(CEHURDES/IFEX) – On 29 August 2004, the security forces arrested journalist Badri Khadka in Biratnagar, Morang district, eastern Nepal. After the arrest, Khadka, a reporter for “Janadesh Weekly”, was tortured and transferred to the Rangeli area. The security forces denied having arrested Khadka. His whereabouts remain unknown. The weekly is believed to be the Communist […]
(CEHURDES/IFEX) – On 29 August 2004, the security forces arrested journalist Badri Khadka in Biratnagar, Morang district, eastern Nepal. After the arrest, Khadka, a reporter for “Janadesh Weekly”, was tortured and transferred to the Rangeli area. The security forces denied having arrested Khadka. His whereabouts remain unknown. The weekly is believed to be the Communist Party of Nepal’s (CPN-Maoist) mouthpiece and is currently disseminated solely on the Internet.
In a separate incident, CPN-Maoist rebels forced journalist Anup Gurung to carry a sack filled with rice for about five hours, from Talgaun, Sulubung, to the Mabu area. The incident occurred on 29 August in the Ilam district, eastern Nepal. Gurung, who works for the weekly “Purva Mechi”, was harassed and mistreated for not reporting favourably about the CPN-Maoist rebels. He managed to escape from the rebels after throwing the sack of rice on the ground. According to Gurung, the rebels asked him questions about the current political situation and he was also asked to join their Janabadi (communist) classes. The journalist is currently living at Ilam district headquarters.
CEHURDES condemns Khadka’s arrest and torture and Gurung’s mistreatment. The organisation urges the security forces’ chief and the CPN-Maoist rebels to stop all forms of attacks against journalists and free expression activists. CEHURDES calls on all parties to respect press freedom, freedom of expression and citizens’ civil liberties.
