CIVICUS discusses the challenges facing Nepal’s Dalit community with Rup Sunar, chairperson of the Dignity Initiative, a Kathmandu-based research and advocacy organisation working to dismantle caste-based discrimination.
Dalits – a community that has historically faced systemic exclusion under the discriminatory label of ‘untouchables’– constitute around 13.4 per cent of Nepal’s population. They continue to experience systemic marginalisation despite constitutional and legal protections. The Dignity Initiative addresses these entrenched inequalities through evidence-based research, strategic advocacy and policy engagement. By collecting disaggregated data, advocating for inclusive legislative frameworks and amplifying excluded voices, it seeks to dismantle caste-based discrimination and open up civic space for Dalits and other excluded groups.
