INHURED has a small team based in Kathmandu Nepal. We do not have regional or local field offices, preferring to work directly with concerned stakeholders and other actors on the ground. In addition to this, not having field offices also reduces the administrative cost and provides us the extra opportunity to focus on issue that requires financial cost.

In order to maximize our impact, we work at multiple levels.

Grassroots: At grassroots level, we work directly with local stakeholder comprises of state authorities, civil societies, non-state actors, victims/ survivours of human rights violation

National level: we work with local human rights partners, lawyers’ associations, National human rights commission and often government ministries responsible for protecting, assisting and responding to the gross violation of human rights and humanitarian law and other related international crimes. We help build and enhance capacity, provide advice and direct assistance to local groups to enhance their interventions with survivors, to strengthen their advocacy work on legal or institutional reforms and the overall goal of preventing human rights violations;

International level: At international level, we work with intergovernmental organizations, such as the United Nations and IOM, regional organizations, International non- governmental organizations. We work to strengthen the international policies and practice related with human rights and fundamental freedom.  

INHURED’ values are to priorities the interests and perspectives of survivors of human rights violation in all aspects of its work. The highest priority in decisions and interventions is given to promoting survivors’ well-being and the avoidance of further traumatization.

SHORT TERM OBJECTIVE

Fact-finding and documentation of information on human rights, including cases of human rights violations:

Exchange of information on human rights with national, regional and international organizations/institutions;

Campaign for public awareness in the field of human rights, environment, development and peace through education, research, teaching, training, workshop, meeting and seminar;

Monitoring compliance with international instruments relating to human rights and environment.

LONG-TERM OBJECTIVES

Work for the establishment of institutions relating to human rights, environment, peace and development;

Assist the academic Institutions for the establishment of Center for Human Rights and the development of curriculum on human rights and international humanitarian law;

Work towards strengthening civil societies and creation of democratic institutions

Inhured Code of Conduct

Inhured Code of Good Practice

Gender Policy

Inhured Financial Policy

LEGAL STATUS

INHURED International is a registered non-governmental organization under the Nepal Organization Registration Act 1977 Clause (4). It has Special Consultative Status with the ECOSOC of the United Nations.

DECISION-MAKING PROCEDURES

Decision-making within the organization is made by the President in consultations with the Board members together with Executive Director and Administrative and Financial Manager and the heads of the departments within INHURED.  This is done through regular bi-monthly meetings of the Steering Committee, which discusses and decides on administrative and programmatic issues.  The Steering Committee is constituted by the Executive Director and the team under the Monitoring and Documentation, Legal Research and Advocacy, and Administrative and Financial Departments.

INHURED also formulates ad-hoc committees within the organization for the decision-making and the implementation of specific programmes or activities within the organization.  It encourages teamwork but also has clear lines of responsibility and accountability.  INHURED has developed systems and structures within the organization that allows for the professional and efficient implementation of tasks, and INHURED has developed internal democratic processes to allow for the contribution and participation of its staff in the different activities of the organization.  Monthly meetings are held with the whole staff to report on activities achieved, challenges encountered, and crafting future activities.  Staff also discuss organizational issues of concern to them and put forward their needs and opinions.

The financial procedures are transparent and the

staff of the Administrative and Financial Department is in charge of managing the transactions and approving the expenditures.

  
Additionally, the President  signs all agreements with donors and partners and is given the responsibility by the Board members to revise contracts and grant letters, undertake necessary amendments if needed, and sign on behalf of INHURED.  The President  also co-signs cheques with a member of the Board (alternatively, two appointed members of the Board can sign cheques) and regularly reviews INHURED’s budget.

BOARD MEMBERS

INHURED has Board members made up of seven well-known figures with different experiences in the field of law, human rights, and legislation, that plays the role of a policy board.  The board is entrusted with the responsibility of adopting policies and ensuring the well-being of the organization, both financially and programmatically.  The Board members appoints a Executive Director who reports regularly to the board, to which s/he is accountable.

The board also approves INHURED’s strategic plans, annual working plans, staff appointments, and budgets. Two members of the board are appointed to sign on cheques; at least one of the members of the board is required to sign with the Executive Director on all cheques and transfers issued by the organization.  The board meets at least three times annually to address issues and make decisions relevant to their mandate.

GENERAL ASSEMBLY

The GA is the supreme body of the organization which approves the constitution of the organization, elects the new governing body and renders overall direction to the organization.

PROGRAMS STEERING COMMITTEE

A Project Steering Committee consisting of the Executive Director and the heads of the three departments meet weekly to discuss programmatic issues and administrative issues related to INHURED’s work and activities in the field of human rights.  The Project Steering Committee usually works by consensus in decision-making, and makes recommendations to the Executive Director regarding human resource matters, and deals with financial matters as per the need basis.

INHURED International is a front-runner human rights organization with Special Consultative Status with ECOSOC of the United Nations. As the name suggests, the organization, with the passage of time, has expanded to one of the leading organizations in terms of spearheading uncompromising safeguards for human rights and rule of law, protection sensitive migration management, refugee response, human security, access to justice and disaster response.  Research, education, training, policy advocacy, lobbying and networking at local, national and international levels for the cause of safeguarding human rights are the organization’s key programming approaches.

Remaining within the centre of credo of community resilience through bottom-up approach, INHURED has been working with the economically challenged and disadvantaged rural communities for the past nearly three decades focused on human rights of disadvantaged, deprived and displaced. During this period, based on the five-fold approach of human rights, democracy, peace and justice and migration management, it has successfully implemented numerous   programmes and projects to address the crucial problems of the country and people for far-reaching reform in these disciplines. These include human rights-based civic education; gender equality and social inclusion; empowerment of women, children and other vulnerable communities; transitional justice, safe, humane, orderly and regular migration; and disaster displacement.

Of late, in considering the escalating plights of conflict and disaster-affected Nepalese people resulting from the continued perpetual poverty, illiteracy, exclusion, dearth in disaster preparedness, discriminatory practices and deficit in culture of tolerance, INHURED has been focusing its programming in the conflict and disaster sectors, including COVID19 like pandemic.  It has been pursuing an approach of ‘conflict and disaster sensitive rights-based development’ with the intention of creating an enabling environment for informed inclusion of affected population also by ensuring environmentally friendly and socially responsive development with a focus target to alleviate the vicious cycle of discrimination and marginalization the traditionally excluded and vulnerable communities.

INHURED International upholds the human rights doctrines adopted by the United Nations. It embraces universality, indivisibility and interdependence of human rights and strives for effective realization of international instruments at domestic level. The primary focus of the organization is to advocate on behalf of population who are in vulnerable position and who have been marginalized from the enjoyment of fundamental human rights and liberty. Similarly, protection of refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) is one of the key areas of concern.

Courage with conscience is vital for effective intervention in the high voltage armed conflict. INHURED International's team demonstrated that valor and conviction for the steadfast opposition to the atrocious royal regime in February 2005 and also massive breach of international human rights and humanitarian law during the decade-long armed conflict. INHURED International played a key role to generate international solidarity in defense of human rights and democratic struggle in the country during these exceptionally difficult hours. Currently, it is championing the most challenging cause of transitional justice and compliance audit of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement. INHURED International believes in zero tolerance to impunity.
INHURED’s vision is to see the rule of law and standards of international human rights and humanitarian law implemented and adhered to, so that Nepalese can enjoy equal treatment with respect to their human dignity.

INHURED Mission

INHURED is a Nepali non-governmental, independent human rights organization that  advocates nationally and internationally to promote the rule of law and respect for human rights for all, through  legal research, documentation and building capacity to address  violations of the individual and collective rights of Nepalese ensured through widely ratified international laws, National laws, act, and policies.

INHURED’s Goals

Laws and policies at the national and international levels that respect and comply with international law are promoted  
Accountability of perpetrators and justice for victims of international human rights and humanitarian law violations.
Develop INHURED’s work as a centre for applied international humanitarian and human rights law  
INHURED’s  organizational capacity, effectiveness and potential sustainability are improved

SECURING FREEDOM SANS BORDER

Gopal Krishna Siwakoti, PhD

President

Sixty-seven years have elapsed since the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) was adopted by the UN. It was also the first time that human rights and fundamental freedoms were set forth in such detail. Inspired by 55 different state constitutions, the UDHR is a compromise among many different conceptions of humanity. It represented a world milestone in the long struggle for human rights and remains one of the best known and most often cited human rights documents in the world to uphold the notion of “All Human Rights for All"—embracing  universality, indivisibility and interdependence of all human rights.

Today, more than 60 human rights instruments constitute an international standard of human rights derived from UDHR. It is a time for governments to ensure that the rights set forth in the international instruments are reflected in their national legislation and to move to ratify those international human rights treaties that may be still pending. The farewell to 67th Anniversary of UDHR also provides the opportunity for more countries not only to condemn blatant violations of human rights but also to take responsibility and action to break the cycle of impunity whenever human rights are violated.

Over the years, the UN has created conventional and extra-conventional mechanisms in order to monitor compliance of States parties with various human rights instruments and to investigate allegations of human rights abuses. There has been a major shift in the human rights doctrine and protection mechanism in the recent years. Forced migration, peace and transitional justice, disaster management have formed significant components of post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals that have overwhelmingly dominated global human rights agenda. 

Human rights are not simply a bundle of western concepts imposed on the countries of the South but are beyond the so-called parachute dropping of human rights into these countries. Poverty, war, civil strife, nuclear proliferation, arms build-up and other anti-people policies have jeopardized the effective realization of all human rights for all and attaining them is still a distant reality. Majority of the population in the global south is deprived of its fundamental freedoms along with economic, social and cultural rights resulting malnutrition, infant mortality, homelessness, discrimination, and injustices. While people starve to death in some places, the warehouses in other privileged cities have more than enough food. The great majority of people in the global south are poor because of the inequitable ownership and control of the means of production, capital, technology, land and other productive assets. There is an urgent need to fundamentally restructure economic relations based on the principles of equality, cooperation, and mutual benefit and along the lines set forth in various documents of domestic and international law.

Our own country Nepal, which has passed through high intensity armed conflict for more than a decade, deadly earthquake, post-conflict organized crimes and violence,  broad human rights movements are gaining strength to collectively achieve the rights as enshrined in the new constitution which paves a way for the effective realization of inclusive human rights, broader freedom and democratization. Nonetheless, the transitional justice process is not gaining any substantial mileage with victims/survivors still waiting for justice of the past abuses. Securing greater gender equality, total elimination of caste-based discrimination and untaouchability, ensuring safer migration and robust action on counter-human trafficking as well as protection of refugees are other issues of critical concern among others.

INHURED International, as a front-runner civil society organization having Special Consultative Status with ECOSOC of the UN,  is dedicated to the protection and promotion of human rights beyond border to build an efficient, human rights-friendly democratic culture in the society and within the machinery of government; one which respects human rights and is accountable to culture of peace and justice in society at large. For this, greater debate on the unconditional fulfillment of human rights obligations with no room for violence and impunity is the demand of the day.