(RSF/IFEX) – “The main international freedom of expression organisations have denounced the current repression against Nepalese journalists. But your government does not heed the calls for moderation,” RSF Secretary-General Robert Ménard said in a letter to Nepalese Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba. RSF protested the prolonged detention of Prem Bastola, a “Blast Times Daily” reporter. […]
(RSF/IFEX) – “The main international freedom of expression organisations have denounced the current repression against Nepalese journalists. But your government does not heed the calls for moderation,” RSF Secretary-General Robert Ménard said in a letter to Nepalese Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba. RSF protested the prolonged detention of Prem Bastola, a “Blast Times Daily” reporter. “We cannot but condemn this detention and the poor treatment suffered by this journalist, which confirms Nepal – with 37 information professionals detained – in its sad position as the world’s largest prison for journalists,” added Ménard. “If this journalist was arrested for his articles, it is the duty of your government to free him immediately. The same applies to the other reporters, some of whom have been tortured and arrested entirely illegally,” concluded Ménard.
According to information gathered by RSF, Bastola has been detained since 6 May 2002, at the prison in Biratnagar (about 400 kilometres south-east of Kathmandu). He was arrested by the security forces at his home in Haraicha (a small village in the country’s east). According to the weekly “Jana Aastha”, which reported the information, Bastola has written many articles about the fighting between Maoists and security forces, particularly in a local publication he manages. However, according to the reporter’s colleagues, he has never supported the Maoist movement, which the government considers “terrorist” in nature. Bastola is reported to have been forced to sign a letter, under the threat of a weapon, in which he admitted to having taken photographs at Maoist meetings. The journalist was also violently beaten up by the security forces during interrogation. Key Congress Party members and representatives of the Federation of Nepalese Journalists (FNJ) and the “Blast Times Daily” have unsuccessfully rallied for his release.
On 16 April, RSF published its fact-finding mission’s report on the “Consequences of the State of Emergency and the Fight Against ‘Maoist Terrorism’ Attacks on Freedom of the Press”. The report can be read on RSF’s website at www.rsf.org.
