The present legal provision has it that rape complaints must be filed within one year
KATHMANDU, MAY 26
Nepal must urgently remove the restrictive statute of limitations on cases of rape and other sexual violence through amendment as it continues to be a barrier for survivors in accessing justice, said Amnesty International today.
It also expressed solidarity with the ongoing protests demanding swift justice for victims of sexual violence and reform of rape laws in the country.
Activists in Nepal have taken to the streets after a survivor on May 18, through social media, made public the allegations of rape that was committed eight years ago when she was 16 years old.
Under the 2017 penal code, the complaints of rape must be filed within one year from the date of the commission of crime. This is grossly restrictive as it prevents many victims, particularly the victims of child rape, from accessing legal remedy effectively.
As a result of the pressure from the protests against the one-year limitation, police arrested the alleged perpetrator on May 21 under the Human Trafficking and Transportation (Control) Act, 2007.
"Time and again we have seen that courageous survivors are denied justice because of the outdated and harmful one-year limit for filing rape complaints.
The current provision is grossly restrictive, unfair and unmindful of the state the survivor might be in.
In its current form, such provisions allow many perpetrators of rape to get away with their crimes," said Yamini Mishra, South Asia Regional Director at Amnesty International, in a press release issued today.
"The provision in its current form should be repealed immediately to guarantee sufficient time to ensure effective access to remedy that is in line with international obligations. The Government of Nepal should consider amending the provision to allow the statute of limitation for a period of time that is sufficient and commensurate with the gravity of the offence in question. This needs to be done in consultation with civil society and survivors so as to take into account the stigma that women and girls face when reporting cases of sexual and gender-based violence," said Yamini Mishra.
The statute of limitation in Nepal is further reduced to three months when the offence is committed against a person held in detention, taken into control, kidnapped, or taken hostage. The law stipulates that no complaint shall lie after the expiry of three months from the date of release from such detention, control, kidnapping, or hostage taking. In 2008, the Supreme Court had issued a directive asking the government to amend laws to adequately expand the then 35 days statute of limitation taking into consideration the victim's psychological status, time required for investigation, and the existing barriers to justice.
According to Amnesty International, the provision of a one-year statute of limitation in the new 2017 penal code remains insufficient and continues to deny legal remedy for victims who filed complaints after one year.
In 2008, the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights representative noted that 'the statutory limit is often used as an excuse by police for not filing complaint in the cases of rape'.
Several other provisions in the law relating to rape and other sexual violence also do not meet international human rights standards. The narrow definition of rape in the penal code only recognises rape committed by man against a woman or girl, but not against people of other genders. This prevents men and boys, and victims of diverse gender identities from accessing justice as per Amnesty International.
A version of this article appears in the print on May 27, 2022, of The Himalayan Times.
