Since
the King assumed full power and declared a state of emergency on 1 February,
concern has been growing amongst the international community about the
situation in Nepal. Switzerland - which considers Nepal as a priority country
for its development cooperation - is marking a clear position and is engaged
in the coordination of donors in Nepal itself as well as at international
fora such as a donor meeting in London on 11 March, where 8 countries and
the EU Commission, in response to an SDC initiative, discussed the situation
in Nepal and its effects on development cooperation, or on 14 March in
Geneva at the opening of the 61st session of the UN Commission on Human
Rights.
After
1 February, the SDC made a number of decisions concerning its involvement
in Nepal:
Security considerations for staff and project partners has top priority.
Until
further notice, the SDC will take on no new engagements in Nepal. Current
programmes have been reduced to around 30% of planned activities.
Along
with other donors, the SDC defends the right to move and act freely in
favour of development cooperation.
The
SDC, as a member of the international community, is strongly in favour
of re-establishing civil freedom, human rights and democracy in Nepal.
Adherence to the Basic Operating Guidelines by the conflicting parties
is the minimum requirement for continuation of development cooperation.
At
the London Donor Meeting, these considerations met with the broad consent
of the other delegations. In its conclusions (Conclusions from the Chair),
the donor group underlined that the government as well as the Maoists must
guarantee a return to unhindered access to development programmes to those
in need. Only then can programmes be implemented at full scale as originally
planned.
The
SDC will re-evaluate the situation in May and will continue to closely
monitor the situation until then. |