A/HRC/61/41/Add.1 40. Nepal adopted an integrated legal aid policy in 2019, which is meant to ensure access to justice.66 There are legal aid officers providing free legal aid in 74 out of 77 districts, in coordination with the Central Legal Aid Committee. 67 The Special Rapporteur was told on many occasions that, in practice, victims are not able to acquire access to government-sponsored legal aid services, but instead depend on support from civil society organizations. E. Linguistic rights 41. The Special Rapporteur observed that privileged groups, including government officials and elites, frequently presumed that Nepali was widely spoken and understood. However, from the most marginalized communities, including those belonging to minority groups and Dalits who are dependent on public services for education, healthcare and housing, experience substantial language barriers, as they may not be proficient in Nepali. For example, when filing a complaint to the police, it is not possible to officially do so in one’s mother tongue if it is not Nepali. This means that young Maithili-speaking women who try to file a complaint about domestic violence at a police station in the Madhesh or Koshi provinces face barriers in clearly explaining the violence that they experienced, leading to incomplete and inaccurate complaints or misinterpretation by officials, which can cause their cases to be dismissed. Ultimately, this language barrier severely impedes their equal access to justice. Furthermore, linguistic minorities may be discouraged from reporting crimes. In a similar vein, and in addition to some socioeconomic factors, in primary schools, children whose mother tongue is not Nepali should be taught in their mother tongue at least during primary school education, to ensure their equal access to education. Too many children still drop out of school in the first year, as they do not understand the language used by their teachers. 42. According to the 2021 census, there are 51,373 deaf people, 51,520 hard-of-hearing people and 10,187 deafblind people in Nepal.68 The Constitution guarantees that citizens with disabilities have the right to free higher education (art. 31 (3)) and that citizens with a hearing or speaking impairment have the right to free education through sign language (art. 31 (4)). The Special Rapporteur learned that deaf and hard-of-hearing people face severe barriers in access to employment, healthcare and schooling, all due to the lack of sign language interpretation. V. Situation of particularly vulnerable minority groups A. Dalits 43. The Dalit community represents approximately 13 to 20 per cent of the population of Nepal.69 While opinions may vary as to how caste-affected groups fall under the purview of the Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities, it is undisputed that Nepalis belonging to caste-affected groups face multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination as a result of their descent. Notwithstanding the constitutional guarantees of equality, Dalits in Nepal remain among the most marginalized communities, experiencing deeply entrenched caste-based discrimination. Their rights are violated on many fronts, as they experience high levels of poverty, landlessness, barriers to access to education, healthcare and employment, as well as systematic exclusion from decision-making and State institutions. 44. Having ratified the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, in 1971, the Government of Nepal is and has been under the obligation 66 67 68 69 12 A/HRC/WG.6/51/NPL/1, para. 47. Ibid. See https://censusnepal.cbs.gov.np/results/files/result-folder/National%20Report_English.pdf. See https://idsn.org/countries/nepal/#:~:text=Estimates%20of%20the%20number%20of,the%20 total%20population%20(or%20appr. GE.26-01953