Nepal appoints first female chief justice

Nepal's Judicial Council on Sunday (March 13) recommended senior-most Justice Sushila Karki as the chief justice of the Supreme Court, picking her as the country’s first female chief justice. Gender equality is a hot topic across the globe and as with every year the issue in Nepal hits the headlines with news stories focusing on women's empowerment on the occasion of the 106th International Women's Day. But while women around the world raised their voices on Tuesday with pledges for a 2030 agenda for sustainable development, Nepal, one of the least developed countries, celebrated the day by praising the recent achievements gained in terms of gender equity in the country and women's rights. On the day when United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said in his message "Let us devote solid funding, courageous advocacy and unbending political will to achieving gender equality around the world. There is no greater investment in our common future", Nepalese Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli said here in Kathmandu, "Today, Nepal's state head and speaker of parliament are women. It is the major accomplishment of the new constitution and a result of many long years of movements and struggles for women's rights."