Silent protest demanding govt. to expedite OMP’s reconciliation mechanism

• A silent protest will be staged in front of the Justice Ministry, Prime Minister’s Secretariat, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Presidential Secretariat today (30) 
• The Families plan to handover a petition to the Justice Ministry. Copies of this petition would also be handed over to the President, Prime Minister and Ministry of Foreign Affairs

The Families of the Disappeared have expressed concerns regarding the deafening silence maintained by the government with regards to the Office on Missing Persons despite their remarks to strengthen the national mechanism to serve justice for victims of enforced disappearances.  Established in 2017 the mechanism to bring about closure to families of the disappeared through the OMP was criticized by various factions. Even though it requires an independent panel of experts to investigate into complaints and incidents pertaining to disappearances, limited interventions have been made over the years, largely due to political interferences. The issuance of death certificates and meagre compensation for victims of families of disappeared too were labelled as approaches to sweep the larger issue under the carpet. 
With the new government assuming power, Families of the Disappeared have renewed their hopes and are longing for closure. Even though the incumbent government has sought technical assistance to revamp the OMP, such attempts still haven’t seen light of day. In a bid to demand the government to expedite its actions to re-establish the OMP as a powerful independent mechanism to serve justice to Families of the Disappeared, these aggrieved individuals will stage a silent protest in front of several government institutions including Ministry of Justice and Presidential Secretariat today (30). The Families plan to handover a petition to the Justice Ministry. Copies of this petition would also be handed over to the President, Prime Minister and Ministry of Foreign Affairs. 
For long years these families have been yearning for justice. Some of these loved ones have died. Therefore the government is duty bound to serve justice to victims of the war and to bring about closure in its path towards reconciliation.