1 October 2013
In response to an informal complaint regarding obstructions to access traditional sources of water for indigenous community in Gorkha district in western Nepal, Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) has informed that complaint has been submitted to the concerned authorities.
Indigenous Gurung and Magar people in Bakrang village of the district have been denied access to freely use two major traditional sources of water located in public land for years now. The public land was sold under individual title in collaboration of few locals and land registration and measurement officials in 2008. The landowner, without information to the locals, began diverting sources for selling water to another in mid-2012 to which the locals protested and the diversion stopped.
However, the landowner, despite local opposition, has started selling water from the sources in early 2013 using local police and administration to quell local protests while they have denied registering complaint against the owner. In course of the protests, locals have been repeatedly detained and have had to pay hefty sum for bail in course of the protests besides being beaten and threatened for life.
On 4 July 2013, a struggle committee of local indigenous people, through support of LAHURNIP, has submitted a complaint to National Human Rights Commission of Nepal on the situation demanding protection of their human rights to continuously use their traditional sources of water and recommendations for actions against those violating the rights.
Click here to read the original complaint letter in (Khas) Nepali.
Source: LAHURNIP
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