52 entries found
Dalit feminist leaders from India and Nepal met in Bangalore, India, for a week of shared learning and organising. The National Federation of Dalit Women (NFDW) and the Feminist Dalit Organization (FEDO), both IDSN members, strengthened connections across borders and explored the challenges facing Dalit women and girls through capacity-strengthening sessions, exchanges between movement leaders and exposure visits to community initiatives in Bangalore, fostering cross-border feminist solidarity and shared learning.
IDSN brought together #DalitVoicesForJustice, UN experts, civil society and Member States for our HRC62 side-event, Caste, Gender and Power: #DalitVoicesForJustice on 2 July at the UN Human Rights Council. The event highlighted the urgent need to explicitly address caste and gender discrimination as a root cause of widespread human rights violations across South Asia. This was underscored by powerful addresses from the UN Special Rapporteur on Racism, Dr. Ashwini K.P. and the UN Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues, Prof. Nicolas Levrat.
The EU’s 2025 Human Rights and Democracy in the World country reports include several references of relevance to caste-affected communities in South Asia. In Bangladesh, the report explicitly identifies discrimination against Dalits as a longstanding human rights concern. In Nepal, it highlights concerns that Dalits and other marginalised groups have not been meaningfully included in transitional justice processes and could be excluded from current reform debates, while also noting the continuing underrepresentation of women and minorities in political life. In India, caste is not addressed as a systemic issue, although the report notes continuing violence against Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, alongside restrictions affecting civil society. The Pakistan chapter does not explicitly mention caste or Dalits, but raises related concerns including discrimination against minorities, child marriage, child labour, labour rights, and violence against women.
IDSN facilitated a series of advocacy meetings and outreach activities in Brussels involving Dalit human rights defenders that took place in December 2025. The visit created an important opportunity to bring first-hand perspectives from South Asia into exchanges with EU institutions on caste-based discrimination, human rights and democratic governance and contribute to ongoing strategy work on caste discrimination.
IDSN is delighted to announce the appointment of Ms Renu Sijapati as the first Dalit woman from Nepal to be elected chair of the IDSN board following approval of the board at IDSN’s General Assembly. Ms Sijapati is the General Secretary of the Feminist Dalit Organization (FEDO) and will be continuing her tenure on the IDSN board. IDSN is thrilled that Ms Sijapati will lead the newly constituted Board, bringing her invaluable experience and expertise to the forefront and further supporting IDSN’s strategic aims on caste and gender justice.
Dalit activists forming part of the IDSN delegation made their presence felt at the 25th EU-NGO Forum on Human Rights in Brussels, Belgium held from 4-6 December, 2023. Sunil Kumar Pariyar from Nepal and Prameela KP from India joined the forum to highlight the challenges faced by Dalit communities in their respective countries and beyond.
An IDSN delegation of Dalit human rights defenders participated in the UN Forum on Business and Human Rights held on 27-29 November as well as the UN Forum on Minority Issues, held at the Palais des Nations in Geneva from 30 November – 1 December 2023. The delegation made an important impact giving statements and participating in panels, sessions and events.
Perspectives, ideas, insights and engagement filled the room as representatives from IDSN’s member organisations and international associates from across the globe gathered for a two-day general assembly meeting in Geneva on 24-25 November, 2023.
Marking the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), a series of events focusing on combatting descent-based discrimination, through the prism of access to justice and the role of youth in South Asia, were held in Kathmandu. Spanning four days, from September 4th to 7th, 2023, the events were organized jointly by IPMS/Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the International Dalit Solidarity Network (IDSN) and the Global Forum of Communities Discriminated on Work and Descent (GFOD).
IDSN highlighted the need to keep caste discrimination on the international agenda through recommendations, meeting with Permanent Missions and statements at Interactive Dialogues made by IDSN affiliates. Swapon Kumar Das, the Executive Director of DALIT in Khulna, Bangladesh read out a statement at the Interactive Dialogue on the Special Rapporteur (SR) on climate change. Jarna Das working for Parittran in Khulna, Bangladesh, also an affiliate of IDSN’s, read a statement at the Interactive Dialogue on the Special Rapporteur on trafficking, and Kalpana Biswakarma, part of the National Campaign for Dalit Human Rights in New Delhi, India, a member of IDSN, prepared a statement to be read at the Interactive Dialogue on the Special Rapporteur on Poverty.
IDSN delegates from South Asia spoke out on the human rights issues faced by Dalits at the UN Forum on Minority Issues in December 2022. Speaking on the panel and from the floor, human rights defenders from India and Nepal shared their experience of discrimination and injustice and their thoughts on the way forward for their communities.
An IDSN delegation of inspiring young Dalit rights leaders participated in the the 11th session of the UN Forum on Business and Human Rights in Geneva - December 2022. The young Dalit leaders from Nepal and India participated actively in the Forum, through statements from the floor, social media, interviews and in-person interactions during sessions, side-events and breaks. They also took part in side-events, sharing their experiences and learning from the experiences of other.
IDSN strongly condemns the rapes and murders of Dalit girls and women in South Asia. The recent case of gang rape and murder of a 19-year old Dalit woman in Hathras, Uttar Pradesh, has highlighted the ongoing brutality against Dalit women and the impunity with which it is administered. We stand in solidarity with Dalit women, their families and human rights defenders taking action on the ground to ensure that justice is served.
The need for more attention to be paid to intersectional caste and gender discrimination and for transforming mindsets through human rights education and awareness raising, was highlighted at the UN multi-stakeholder hearing ‘Accelerating the Realization of Gender Equality and the Empowerment of all Women and Girls’ on 21 July.
DSN members and affiliates in Nepal are raising awareness and demanding justice in a case of caste-based murder in the country that is still under Covid-19 lockdown. What started as a love story between two young people in Nepal ended in tragedy. The young man was a low caste Dalit and the woman was from a dominant caste group. It is alleged that the woman’s family did not approve of the relationship due to the man being a Dalit. As the couple wished to elope, the young man and several of his friends were attacked, beaten and chased into a river where three of them died, and another three are still missing ,according to news reports.
“It is distressing that caste-based prejudices remain deeply entrenched in our world in the 21st century, and I am filled with sadness for these two young people who held high hopes of building a life together despite the obstacles presented by their accident of birth … Caste-based discrimination remains widespread, not only in Nepal but other countries, and often leads to serious harm and, as in this case, even loss of life. Ending caste-based discrimination is fundamental to the sustainable development vision of leaving no one behind.” Read the full statement from UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet. The United Nations Resident Coordinator, in Nepal, Valerie Julliand, also made several statements on Twitter on the killings.
IDSN members in South Asia and international associates have been quick to offer immediate response and assistance, as the ramifications for Dalits of Covid-19 measures have become clear. While IDSN has issued two general statements on the situation for Dalits, below you will find a collection of publicly available information, appeals and initiatives from our members and associates.
In February, the IDSN Membership Coordinator took part in the National Stakeholder Consultation on the UN UPR in Nepal, organised by IDSN members the Dalit NGO Federation, Feminist Dalit Organization & Jagaran Media Centre together with IDSN Affiliate the Dalit Welfare Organisation and over thirty other Dalit NGOs in Nepal. The Consultation highlighted the need to act to end caste discrimination and promote caste gender justice. Over 70 participants from CSOs, media, academia, and Government took part in the consultation.
Press Release – Ethical Trading Initiative – UK - Remaining silent about caste discrimination in global supply chains is fueling modern slavery, child labour and the exploitation of workers in South Asia, according to new ETI Base Code guidance for companies published today.
IDSN participated actively in the 11th Session of the UN Forum on Minority Issues from the 29-30 November, under the theme "Statelessness: A Minority Issue". IDSN members from Bangladesh, Nepal and Pakistan presented on how Dalits in reality often suffer de facto statelessness, due to extreme marginalization and lack of access to rights. Read the IDSN news article on the forum here.
