--By TC Correspondent
Widespread corruption and lack of transparency exists at all levels of government bodies in Nepal, according to a report published by the US Department of State (DoS) claimed. The “Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2013” said that corruption is widely present at all levels of Nepal government and police, and the judiciary remain vulnerable to political pressure, bribery, and intimidation. “Although the law provides criminal penalties for corruption by officials, there continued to be reports that officials engaged in corrupt practices with impunity,” the report states.
The report released by US Secretary of State John Kerry on Thursday, 27th February further said that there were numerous reports of corrupt actions by government officials, political parties, and party-affiliated organizations. “The UCPN(M) and CPN-M, in particular, reportedly demanded money from schools, businesses, workers, private citizens, and NGOs,” it said. “There were less frequent reports that student and labor groups associated with other political parties also demanded contributions from schools and businesses.” The US DoS also claimed that corruption and impunity remained general problems within the Nepal Police.
Similarly, the report also said that a large number of public officials were refraining from disclosing their annual financial statements. “According to the National Vigilance Center, the body mandated to monitor financial disclosures and make them available to the public, an estimated 35,000 Nepali civil servants had not submitted and disclosed their annual financial statements as required by law in 2012,” the report informed.
The report, however, mentioned some signs of progress in tackling corruption after the appointment of new leadership at the Commission for the Investigation of the Abuse of Authority (CIAA) last year. “Under new leadership, the CIAA took high-profile actions against the Nepal Energy Authority, the Department of Immigration, and the Department of Foreign Employment,” the report said. The interim government led by former Chairman of the Council of Ministers Khil Raj Regmi named chief commissioner and one associate commissioner at CIAA in 2013.Before that the apex constitutional body for corruption control was leadership less for about five-year period.
According to the report, in August and September, the CIAA arrested 18 officials from the Department of Immigration, 15 from the Department of Foreign Employment, and nine from the Tribhuvan International Airport labour desk for sending 77 Nepali migrants to Qatar with fraudulent or improper documentation – a human trafficking-related offense. The most senior official arrested was the director general of the Department of Foreign Employment.
