Journalist I Singh Rokaya was injured when the police opened fire during a protest to bring the situation under control.
This statement was originally published on nepalpressfreedom.org on 11 August 2015.
On 10 August 2015, I Singh Rokaya, a reporter with Bulbule FM in Surkhet, a district in mid-western Nepal, was shot by the police during a demonstration.
According to a fellow reporter with Bulbule FM, Tekendra Bishwokarma, Rokaya was assigned to report on a protest in Surkhet’s market place. He was injured when the police opened fire to bring the situation under control. The journalist was shot in the leg and referred to the nearby city of Nepalgunj for treatment.
The protesters gathered in the market place to express their anger with political parties over a proposal to divide the existing region into six provinces, in the federal setup of the country.
Freedom Forum condemns the incident. It is a violation of the journalist’s right to freely report. FF therefore strongly urges the security forces to maintain restraint while using force to tame mobs.
Reporters, on the other hand, should ensure that they wear their press jacket and ID card, so that they are easily identifiable and are not targeted during protests.
Moreover, FF wishes the injured journalist a speedy recovery.
