A PRACTITIONER’S GUIDE TO INCREASING WOMEN’S ACCESS TO ELECTORAL JUSTICE Judges, prosecutors, and other judicial actors should receive training to handle sensitive cases appropriately, such as those related to violence against women in elections. Reporting instances of gender-based violence to police or judicial forces can re-traumatize survivors due to stigma around the issue. To handle sensitive cases of political violence against women safely and effectively, those involved in the criminal justice system must receive training on how to work with survivors and what is needed to bring these cases to justice. This training could be provided through the National Judicial Academy supported by ICJ and UN Women. A tailored module could enhance efforts to make the judiciary more gender-sensitive, with specific emphasis on addressing violence against women in elections. Political parties should develop a formal, appealable internal dispute resolution mechanism that is institutionalized in their party statutes. Parties should train candidates, members, and supporters to file complaints through this mechanism. Political parties should have formal, standard, and publicized processes for resolving internal party disputes and should train staff and members to use them through, for example, mediation, conciliation, or adjudication. The outcomes of these internal dispute resolution processes should be applicable to an internal process, within the party or to the ECN EDR unit, to mediate intra- and inter-party disputes. The ECN could collaborate with political parties, including the intraparty women’s alliance and the Dalit women’s alliance, as well as civil society organizations, to develop a set of common standards for resolving internal party disputes. Political parties could use the standards to guide the development of the internal dispute resolution and mediation process. If a resolution cannot be reached internally, or if one party seeks to appeal a decision, court-led mediation could be worth exploring. Political parties should conduct gender sensitivity trainings and briefings for their candidates, supporters, and party leadership. Political parties can utilize their committee structures (committees for women, youth, and leadership) and other mechanisms to ensure that members and leaders are aware of the gender-specific elements of the Election Law; receive information on EDR processes for all candidates, including internal dispute resolution mechanisms; and receive training on protecting and respecting the rights of all members and candidates. The Government of Nepal should adopt regulatory and policy reforms to enhance women’s access to electoral justice. Post-election, the ECN and government should seize opportunities to propose amendments or adopt policies to enhance the rights of women to access justice during elections. For example, they could establish legal aid clinics or provide free counsel for women victims of election violence. In addition, the courts could consider lowering filing fees for women seeking electoral justice. Civil society should establish legal clinics or initiatives to increase resources available to women seeking access to electoral justice. Civil society and women’s rights organizations should partner with legal organizations to advance an initiative for women’s access to electoral justice. Activities could include establishing legal clinics to monitor electoral justice cases, track incidents of hate speech and other violations of the Code of Conduct, and provide pro bono counsel for women litigants. A concerted legal strategy could identify and advance public interest litigation cases to develop jurisprudence on issues of inclusion pursuant to the Constitution and advance enforcement of the Election Law. 68