Members of Nepal’s marginalized Dalit community in Ghuinyaghat, Dhangadhi Kailali in the Far West of Nepal celebrated the inclusion of Access to Justice targets in the Sustainable Development Goals amidst lots of fan-fare on Saturday, October 17, 2015. The celebration coincided with Rural Women’s Day.
Community members linked the justice targets of the global goals to some of their most basic and pressing needs. The Dalit women of the village said they had no toilets in their houses and as a result had to answer nature’s call out in the open. They said it was a gross violation of human rights and an insult to womanhood. They presented a memorandum to the Acting Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Dej Raj Bhatta of Dhangadhi Sub-Metropolitan office, requesting construction of toilets in the village.
Present on the occasion were President of FMDC Umid Bagchand and Executive Director of LANCAU Prabhakar Bagchand. The villagers thanked world leaders for Making Access to Justice a part of the Sustainable Development Goals.