(CEHURDES/IFEX) – CEHURDES condemns the ongoing arrest of journalists but at the same time welcomes the release of one journalist. Furthermore, CEHURDES urges the authorities to ensure that the detained journalists are tried fairly and to respect the universal mandates of press freedom and freedom of expression, as well as fundamental human rights guaranteed by […]
(CEHURDES/IFEX) – CEHURDES condemns the ongoing arrest of journalists but at the same time welcomes the release of one journalist. Furthermore, CEHURDES urges the authorities to ensure that the detained journalists are tried fairly and to respect the universal mandates of press freedom and freedom of expression, as well as fundamental human rights guaranteed by national and international instruments.
On 10 April 2002, security personnel arrested journalist Yubaraj Puri in Sindhupalchok district. Puri is a member of the local unit of the Federation of Nepalese Journalists (FNJ).
On 10 April, Kumar Rawat, publisher and editor of the pro-Maoist monthly magazine “Mul Prabaha” and the weekly newspaper “Mahima”, was released by the security forces after being detained for eighteen days. He was released on the condition that he would report back on short notice. Rawat was arrested on 24 March at his residence in Kalanki, Kathmandu.
In a separate case, on 9 April, security personnel transferred more than ten pro-Maoist journalists and media staff from Bhadra Bandi Griha (prison) to the Hanumandhoka District Police Office. They were all in prison under preventive detention. They were arrested on 26 November 2001, a few hours before the declaration of the “state of emergency”. It is reported that the Supreme Court is due to hear their case on 22 April. Unconfirmed reports also said that the prisoners were taken to the Special Court before being transferred into police custody.
On 9 April, Demling Lama, a local journalist abducted in Sindhupalchok district and held by Communist Party of Nepal (CPN, Maoist) rebels, managed to escape. FNJ Secretary-General Taranath Dahal confirmed that Lama called him from an unknown location and said he had been badly beaten by the rebels. Lama told Dahal that he was hiding in a safe place. He was abducted by the Maoists rebels from his house in Dhuskot on 5 April. Lama works as a local correspondent for the state-owned Radio Nepal.
