Pokhara, March 18:

Calling on the government to declare that it is ready to hold talks with the Maoists, member of the Nation Human Rights Commission (NHRC) Sudip Pathak today called on the Maoists to renounce violence and embrace the peace process.

Addressing the fourth district convention of Mijar Samaj Nepal, Kaski, in Pokhara, today, Pathak said the NHRC is ready to play the role of a mediator for initiating talks between the Maoists and the government. Stating that previous rounds of talks were full of faults, Pathak stressed the need to correct the faults before initiating another round of talks. Calling on the Samaj to take concrete decisions for the initiation of the peace process, he urged the affected people to file cases against human rig-hts violations in the Pok-hara office of the NHRC.