'Deprived, under-privileged should be brought into mainstream'

Speaker of the House of Representatives (HoR) Devraj Ghimire has said that the Constitution of Nepal is committed to preserving and promoting cohesiveness, solidarity, tolerance, and goodwill amid our diverse cultures, society, and ethnicity. "This is our uniqueness as well as a symbol of social cohesiveness and peace," he said while addressing the 146th Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Assembly in Manama of Bahrain on Sunday on the theme "Promoting peaceful coexistence and inclusive societies: Fighting intolerance".

According to Speaker Ghimire, the Constitution of Nepal elucidates the perpetual values of our foreign policy and by adhering to the principles enshrined in the UN Charter, non-alignment, panchasheel, international law, and norms of world peace, Nepal's Constitution lays the foundation of a balanced and independent foreign policy and diplomacy.

In his speech, Ghimire said that the last three decades of Nepal’s political history are an example of how collective efforts of the major political forces ended the decade-long armed conflict and established peace and added that Nepal's Constitution embodies the principles of inclusiveness and guarantees the proportional representation and participation of all sections.

"Every human being wants to achieve their aspirations and realize their potential. This is hard to accomplish without peace and broader cohesiveness. Strong inclusive democracy requires an environment where every individual and community can exercise their rights equitably with a participatory system of governance. Thus, it is necessary to bring the deprived and underprivileged communities into the mainstream," according to Speaker Ghimire.

On the occasion, he said the IPU has constantly been making cohesiveness and inclusion as the main agenda of its discussions. "It has always made commendable efforts to put the parliaments all over the world in consistent dialogues for peace and prosperity."

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