For the relatives of those who went missing in Kotbada, the wounds are still fresh. “We can’t read or write,” they say, “we don’t know where to go, who to talk to, who to meet with so that something is done about our loved ones.”

The ICRC is urging the authorities to clarify the fate and whereabouts of all those who went missing as a result of the conflict and to grant them an official status. Its head of delegation in Nepal said, “we are recommending that the government of Nepal grant those missing in Kotbada the status of missing persons. This will make their relatives eligible for government support, be it financial, psychological or legal.”