Conflict victims decried Government’s consultations held on January 13 as a sham, reports Kathmandu Post. As victims and human rights defenders had feared, the consultations held simultaneously in all seven provincial headquarters — Biratnagar, Janakpur, Hetauda, Pokhara, Butwal, Surkhet and Dhangadi were more formality than genuine efforts to listen to their grievances and concerns. The consultations were held in two sessions—three hours with victims and another three hours with human rights defenders, civil society members, security forces and the media. Conflict victims and human rights defenders described the entire process as a farce. “Some of our friends couldn’t even put forth their concerns due to time constraints. Rather than listening to our voices, the discussion was aimed at showing that the government has taken our feedback to amend the Act,” Badri KC, a conflict victim from Baglung who was present at the consultation in Pokhara, told. “The discussion was just a formality. I am not at all hopeful about our concerns being incorporated in the Act,” Shree Kumari Budha, whose father was killed by the Maoists in Thawang, Rolpa and who was present at the consultation in Butwal, told. Former Conflict Victims Common Platform (CVCP) chairperson Suman Adhikari said “The victims were only given three hours. This means, the government is holding the consultations in a ritualistic manner.”