Kathmandu, November 16

The Supreme Court issued a directive order to the government today telling it to set up appropriate mechanism to address the alarming death rate among Nepali migrant labourers abroad.

The SC issued the directive to the Office of the Prime Minister and other concerned ministries, including Department of Foreign Employment and Foreign Employment Promotion Board.

A division bench of Justice Purushottam Bhandari and Justice Bam Kumar Shrestha issued the directive order. The major issues addressed in the case are related to the lack of proper policy to repatriate the body irrespective of legal status, necessary arrangements at the international airport for transfer of body to the family, post-mortem requirement of the body with government bearing the necessary cause, taking steps towards ratification of migrant workers convention. Law and Policy Forum for Social Justice and Pourakhi-Nepal had registered a public interest litigation at the apex court on December 27, 2016. The SC had issued a show cause notice on March 7, 2017 and the case was placed under priority hearing.

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