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Alert

CAPSULE REPORT: State of emergency lifted but media censorship continues, says IFJ

(IFJ/IFEX) - The following is an IFJ capsule report:

Nepalese Government's grip on the media remains unrelenting

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) regards the removal of the state of emergency in Nepal as an attempt to hoax the international community into believing that human rights are improving in Nepal.

"While the Nepalese Government appears to be giving lip service to its human rights obligations at the international level, its actions in Nepal are the exact opposite," said IFJ President Christopher Warren.

On 29 April, King Gyanendra lifted the state of emergency which was declared on 1 February and included the suspension of human rights and press freedom. The IFJ had hoped that the Nepalese Government would begin to loosen its grip on the media after agreeing at the UN Human Rights Commission on 20 April to lift media censorship. However it is now clear that the Government is unwilling to restore press freedom as the strict censorship of the media continues.

The Nepalese Government has refused to withdraw a six-month-long notice imposing newspaper censorship issued on 2 February. Newspapers are still banned from publishing any reports which go against "the spirit and letter of the 1 February royal proclamation and supports and encourages the activities of the terrorists directly or indirectly".

"The Nepalese Government must restore press freedom; its stranglehold on the free and independent press is a blatant denial of press rights set out in its constitution."

In addition to the continuing press censorship, the Kathmandu Chief District Officer, Baman Prasad Neupane, issued orders banning political activities at a number of major locations in Kathmandu on 30 April.

According to the Asian Centre for Human Rights, more than 3,000 political activists have been arrested during the state of emergency and a number of journalists are still being held.

The urgent need for the Nepalese Government to reinstate human rights has been highlighted by grim statistics released by the Centre on 30 April. The number of people killed since 1 February has increased by more than 100 per cent, with 530 by the Royal Nepal Army and 125 killed by Maoist insurgents. Most of those killed have been civilians deliberately executed by both forces.

Additionally, the IFJ welcomes the appointment of Ian Martin as head of the Office of the High Commission for Human Rights (OHCHR) operation in Nepal as a means of providing a further spotlight on the human rights record of the Himalayan nation.

The IFJ is concerned about the following recent events in Nepal:

Media houses attacked by government-backed vigilantes

On 24 April, a group of 50 to 60 unidentified people attacked three publication houses in western Nepal. Jana Sangharsha, Lumbini Daily and Butawal Today, in the industrial town of Butawal (300 kilometers west to capital), were targeted by the group, which looted newspapers ready for distribution. The group's leader threatened to set fire to their premises and cancel their government registrations, which would force their permanent closure. The attack was in response to papers publishing reports which were critical of the current government.

The Federation of Nepalese Journalists (FNJ) believes the government is now using vigilantes to threaten the private press. FNJ Rupandehi district president D.R Ghimire and other executive members met Dhruba Prasad Sharma, the District Administrative Officer, and strongly condemned the attack on the publication houses and called for immediate action on attacks on the press.

Five journalists freed

Authorities released five journalists after pressure from the FNJ involving an FNJ fact-finding mission monitoring the press situation in five separate regions and involving talks with authorities for the release of journalists across the country.

On 24 April, in the eastern Terai district of Saptari, the release of two journalists was secured after nearly seven hours of negotiations with local administration. The administration agreed to release editor of Batabaran weekly, Arjun Sah, and editor of Jana Akrosh weekly, Manohar Pokhrel. Sah was arrested on 1 February and Pokhrel was arrested on 18 February. Both were given 90 days detention for opposing the Royal proclamation of 1 February.

On 22 April, chief editor of Majdur Aawaj, Satyaram Parajuli, was released after three weeks detention. He was being held at the Training Centre of Nepal Electricity Authority in Kharipati, Bhaktapur, a neighbouring district of Kathmandu, where other political detainees are believed to be held. Parajuli was arrested on 1 April and was expected to be detained for three months.

On 21 April, FNJ's Panchthar branch president, Lavadev Dhungana, was released after more than 50 days in detention. Security forces arrested Dhungana on 3 March for reporting on protests by local student unions against the Royal proclamation.

On 19 April, in the eastern district of Dhankuta, Gopal Baraili, FNJ district chapter member and local reporter for Gorkhapatra, was released unconditionally after a month in detention. During his detention, Gorkhapatra, the government-owned Nepali daily, fired Baraili from his position as reporter.

The FNJ has also demanded the re-induction of 21 reporters expelled by the government from state-run Gorkhapatra daily after the Royal takeover. The FNJ has condemned the government's abrupt decision to expel the journalists, calling it a discriminatory and prejudiced decision.

Nepali government continues media advertising ban

On 21 April, the District Administration Office (DAO), Sindhupalchowk, issued circulars to all the government offices not to provide advertisements to the private media houses. The directive orders all the government offices to boycott private media houses. The ban effectively deprives independent publishers of crucial operational funds.

Journalists injured

On 21 April, journalist K.B. Jumlee was injured when an army vehicle hit him in Nepalgunj, a mid-western city in Nepal. Jumlee, a Jumla-based reporter of Nepal Samacharpatra, a Kathmandu-based national daily, was hit by an army vehicle while he was walking on the road. According to Jumlee, the vehicle drove off after hitting him on the left leg and came back again when he shouted for support to the local people. "After the incident, they took me to the army barrack and later to the local hospital," he said to RSF. "They left me after primary aid." According to Jumlee, the army threatened him not to write any news about the incident.

In a separate incident on 20 April, Gopi Budha, editor-in-chief of the monthly publication Himalikhabar Patrika, was injured when a bomb went off on the premises of the Land Revenue Office in Nepaljunj, at around 2.00pm. Police said that another 19 people were injured, including eight law-professionals.

Meanwhile, Maoists have issued a death threat to a local reporter of the Himalaya Times, a Nepali language daily, who is working in Kailali district in southern Nepal. The rebels issued the threat after the daily published a report on Maoist involvement in deforestation activities.

See www.ifj-asia.org/nepalcrisis.html for more information on the crisis in Nepal.

The IFJ represents over 500,000 journalists in more than 110 countries.