“Lack of access to natural resources exacts a particularly heavy toll on those indigenous communities that rely on traditional hunting and gathering practices for subsistence.” and territories they have traditionally occupied or used, often without compensation. A major turning point in this process was the 1964 Land Reform Act, which nationalized land and terminated traditional collective land tenure systems such as the Kipat. Without protection for communal lands, individual land holdings were gradually lost due to the absence of titles or insecure titles, abuse and corruption, lack of access to the justice system, and indebtedness. The high degree of illiteracy among many indigenous groups, in particular the Tharus in the Terai, made them vulnerable to abusive practices and deceit. Displacement was also a cause of land loss during the armed conflict. Lack of access to natural resources exacts a particularly heavy toll on those indigenous communities that rely on traditional hunting and gathering practices for subsistence. Communities that have traditionally relied on the forests but were not in possession of titles, or lacked resources to compete with private contractors, have lost access to their traditional forest lands. 72 Many Raji people, for instance, were deprived of their access to herbal medicine, honey-gathering and fishing. The Chepangs, who are traditionally hunter-gatherers and practice a nomadic way of life in the forests, are now under threat of eviction from their ancestral lands. A case in point is the Chitwan National Park, the subject of a communication sent by the previous mandate holder in 2007 (Anaya, 2008:61). The park was established in 1971 in areas traditionally used and inhabited by the Tharu, Majhi, Bote, Darai and other communities who were displaced to the park’s buffer zone. Even though these communities now enjoy limited access to fishing and other traditional occupations, many individuals displaced from the park area still remain landless and have not been provided alternative livelihoods nor compensation. The existing benefit-sharing mechanisms are ineffective. A major obstacle in this regard seems to be the composition of the Chitwan Buffer Zone and District Development Committees, in which indigenous peoples are insufficiently represented. Maltreatment, arbitrary detention and sexual abuse of villagers by park rangers and military officials designated to patrol the park’s premises are commonplace. Lack of due process is further reported with regard to offenses dealt with by the Chief Warden, upon whom the National Park and Wildlife Conservation Act vests all law enforcement powers. The mechanisms to compensate or consult indigenous communities are inadequate or nonexistent. As a consequence of land loss and other systemic patterns of marginalization, indigenous people became bonded workers in private farms and wealthier households under the Kamaiya, Kamalari and other systems. Asian NGO Coalition for Agrarian Reform and Rural Development (ANGOC)