World Day of Remembrance: Social Media Advocacy in Nepal

World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims is an important occasion to remember those who have been killed or seriously injured in road traffic crashes, along with those who are grieving lost ones.  It is often also a catalyst for advocacy to stop more of these devastating, preventable tragedies.

Swatantrata Abhiyan Nepal (SAN)’s World Day of Remembrance campaign has two objectives: firstly and most obviously, to remember those who died in road crashes but also, secondly, to engage citizens to advocate with the government for road safety. Says Writtu Bhatta of SAN, “We believe that our collective message will make government realize that road safety is a serious issue and they need to act on it.”

To take part in the campaign, SAN are asking families of victims to post a photo of their lost one with a message to the government:

Dear government, I don’t want another ……….. (Name of victim) to loss his/her life in road crash.

He/ She would have been enjoying life if government had safe transportation system.

Lack of strict rules and regulations are cause of his/her death.

He/she deserved to live. Road crash is major cause of death for young people like him/her.

Each year, thousands of Nepalese people are dying on road crashes.

Your death is not your fate. Its lack of road safety policies.

It is also inviting people to update their Facebook statuses with the following message (or one of their own).

Life is not a Car Part.

I demand Safe Journey.

I demand Safe Roads.

Think Road Safety.

Strong and enforced laws that put people before vehicles.

Allocate Enough Budget for Road Safety

#WDoR2019 #NepalGovernment #GlobalAllianceOfNGOForRoadSafety #SwatantrataAbhiyanNepal

Read more about SAN’s campaign HERE.