Center for Human Rights and Victims of Violations (CHRV)

About CHRV

The Kathmandu University Center for Human Rights and Victims of Violations is a multidisciplinary research institute focusing on applied human rights and the study and practice of transitional justice from the perspective of victims and survivors.Through social science, conflict studies, and human rights practice, students and faculty critically engage with communities directly affected by armed conflict and serious human rights violations. Our work spans student and faculty research projects, survivor advocacy initiatives, and field work programming. We aim to foster collaboration among local and international academics through partnerships with victim-led organizations, a global university network, and human rights practitioners.

Our Mission:

The Center for Human Rights and Victims of Violations facilitates student engagement and learning on survivor-led transitional justice; brings together academics, advocates, and human rights workers from around the world to advance victims’ rights; and works with conflict victim organizations across Nepal to move the country’s transitional justice process forward.

Our Vision:

We believe there must be a truly victim-centric transitional justice process in Nepal, grounded in the needs, demands, and leadership of victims and survivors. It is now more urgent than ever to realize victims’ rights to truth, justice, dignity, memory, reparation, and guarantees of non-recurrence.We envision a Nepal rich in memory where the historical narrative has been written by victims themselves—a society that heals and rebuilds through remembrance, and vows to never repeat.As an academic center, we aim to expand the international discourse on transitional justice by foregrounding the leadership of survivors and promoting ground-up, community driven models of transitional justice and transformation.

Programming

Currently, the Center is developing a project-based curriculum for local and international students to learn about survivor-led transitional justice. More information about programming will be made available in the future. We plan to work along several thematic areas:

Political Policy and Engagement

Memorialization

Movement Building

Gender

International Human Rights Law

Socio-economic Rights of Victims

If you are interested in learning more or discussing a program partnership with CHRV, please contact chrv@kusoa.edu.np

Newsletters:

The first major initiative of CHRV, The Survivor’s Record is a monthly newsletter covering developments in transitional justice and grassroots initiatives from the perspective of victims and survivors.