Nepal: Time for King to Relinquish Power
Nepal: Time for King to Relinquish Power
Wave of Repression in Year Since Coup
(New York) - One year after King Gyanendra unilaterally assumed full executive authority, the human rights situation in Nepal has dramatically spiraled downwards, Human Rights Watch said today. It called on the king to return power to an elected civilian government and to resume the role of constitutional monarch assigned to him by the constitution.
Since the king’s coup on February 1, 2005, government military and security agencies have summarily suspended or ignored civil and political rights, and continued to engage in the practice of “disappearances,” marking Nepal as the country with the highest number of cases reported to the United Nations. Security forces arbitrarily arrested over 3,000 political activists, journalists, and students. Conflict-related civilian casualties continued at the same pace as before the coup, with the exception of a four-month ceasefire unilaterally declared by the Maoists that ended on January 2. Security forces killed more than 1,000 people over the last year, including civilians, while Maoists were responsible for at least 600 deaths. The king issued numerous decrees to overcome the constitution or legislation that limited his authority.
“While King Gyanendra says he is committed to multi-party democracy and constitutional rule, his actions show that he plans to remain in power,” said Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “It is time for him to step aside and allow the country’s political parties and civil society to work to end the crisis.”
Since the coup, the political and human rights situation in the country has worsened. Some of the most severe problems include:
Censorship
and Attacks on the Media
The new government has
systematically attacked the media through censorship and
oppressive laws, making free press in Nepal virtually
obsolete. Reporters Without Borders reported at least 273
cases of arrests of journalists and 569 cases of censorship
in 2005 occurred in Nepal—half of the total cases of
censorship reported worldwide. On October 9, the king issued
a media ordinance banning any news broadcast on radio. In
addition, the ordinance affects other forms of media as
well. The right of political parties to provide information
on their programs during election periods was weakened
without explanation. Journalists’ licenses can be cancelled
summarily and defamation provisions that include harsh
criminal penalties have been extended to cover broadcast
media.
Attacking Civil Society
In
November, the government issued a Code of Conduct for Social
Organizations. It prohibits any activity endangering “social
harmony” and bars staff of nongovernmental organizations
from having political affiliations, preventing all
politically active persons from NGO work. It also attempts
to control the places NGOs can work and makes all staff of
an NGO legally responsible for its activities, even if an
individual is not involved in that activity. Such provisions
violate international legal protections for freedom of
expression and freedom of association. The Code can be used
to curtail the work of human rights workers and
organizations that have been documenting abuses in spite of
sustained attacks against them since the coup.
Arbitrarily Limiting Political Activity
Rights of
assembly and association have been suspended. Signs of
dissent have led to swift and arbitrary arrests. Opposition
politicians have been branded as “terrorists,” and the
constitution itself was declared an “obstacle” by the Deputy
Vice Chairman of the King’s Council of Ministers, Tulsi
Giri.
Ending the Independence of the National
Human Rights Commission
The commission had
spearheaded investigations into violations of international
human rights and humanitarian law by the government and
Maoist rebels. After the coup, the government set up a new
body to appoint commission members and staffed it with
persons sympathetic to the king. In a continued effort to
sideline the commission, the government also set up a
parallel nine-member Human Rights Committee.
Sidelining the Judiciary
Nepal’s judiciary was
gravely weakened after the coup, as senior judges came under
pressure to support the government takeover and many lawyers
who challenged arbitrary government action faced harassment
and even arrest. The security forces continue to ignore
judicial orders to release those detained. Nepali human
rights groups have documented some 60 cases of people who
were rearrested immediately after they were ordered released
by the courts.
Failing to Protect Civilians
from the Insurgency
Despite justifying the coup
on the pretext of trying to curtail the ten-year-old
insurgency, the king failed to improve protection of
civilians, particularly those in the countryside, caught in
the armed conflict between the government and the Maoists.
Nepalis have no judicial or other protective remedies from
the atrocities committed by both sides. The Maoists declared
a unilateral ceasefire on September 3, leading to a decline
in atrocities. The government did not reciprocate the
ceasefire leading the Maoists to resume hostilities after
four months and launch a series of coordinated attacks on
urban areas, including Kathmandu. Nepali human rights groups
documented at least 66 people killed in the month after the
ceasefire ended.
“If the purpose of the coup was to end the Maoist insurgency, then it has been a failure,” said Adams. “The insurgency shows no signs of abating, and the government’s security forces seem as far from a military victory as ever.”
In an attempt to give a legal sheen to the new system, the king’s imposed government quickly put in place ordinances granting itself wide powers to sweep aside all legal challenge. Although the state of emergency was lifted in April, the Kathmandu District Authority then issued an order against public gatherings, meetings, or any kind of protest in public spaces and on roads. Local officials were also given the authority to intervene in any “political program” involving more than two people.
“New laws cannot hide the fact that the constitution has been peremptorily put aside,” said Adams. “There is no way out of this crisis but a return to constitutional and representative rule.”
Background
Although King Gyanendra suspended
elected government on October 4, 2002, he maintained a
veneer of democratic governance by appointing cabinets
comprised of members of the main political parties. However,
on February 1, 2005, the king declared a state of emergency
and announced his assumption of full executive authority,
and appointed a cabinet comprised largely of members of the
pre-democratic Panchayat party. In a fiercely dramatic
display of authority, he shut down the airport, closed off
all fixed and mobile telephone lines and internet services,
and ordered military oversight of all media. All FM radio
stations, often the only source of information in the
mountainous country, were shut down. Any news items
portraying the king’s acts or acts by other members of the
royal family in a negative light were expressly forbidden.
During the past year, the country’s most senior active political leaders, including Sher Bahadur Deuba, the dismissed Prime Minister and chairperson of the Nepali Congress (Democratic) party; Madhav Kumar Nepal, secretary-general of the (mainstream and non-violent) Communist Party of Nepal-UML; and Girija Prasad Koirala, chairperson of the Nepali Congress Party, were placed under house arrest. While under house arrest, they were not allowed to receive guests, read newspapers, listen to the radio or television, or make phone calls. In addition, hundreds of local political leaders, human rights defenders and student activists were arrested throughout the country.