Home / News / Urgent Appeals / NEPAL: Risk of improper investigation into the murder of an 8-year-old Dalit girl, allegedly sacrificed for good omens
 

NEPAL: Risk of improper investigation into the murder of an 8-year-old Dalit girl, allegedly sacrificed for good omens

February 1, 2010

ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION – URGENT APPEALS PROGRAMME

Urgent Appeal Case: AHRC-UAC-006-2010

http://www.ahrchk.nethttp://www.ahrchk.net/ua/support.php?ua=UAC-006-2010

01 February 2010
------------------------------------------------------
NEPAL: Risk of improper investigation into the murder of an 8-year-old Dalit girl, allegedly sacrificed for good omens

ISSUES: Violence against children; caste based discrimination; police inaction; need for proper investigation
------------------------------------------------------

Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that an 8-year-old Dalit girl has been assassinated, in what could be a sacrifice for good omen on December 4, 2009 in Maryadpur, Rupandehi District, Nepal. The AHRC is concerned that the case may not receive appropriate attention from the local police who have a long record of not investigating properly caste-based crimes in Nepal. Although Nepal's interim constitution formally outlaws caste-based discrimination, those crimes are still frequent in rural Nepal and strong actions need to be taken in this case to show a strong political will to fight against caste based discrimination.

CASE DETAILS:

According to the information the AHRC has received from the Jagaran Media Center, a Nepal-based NGO which have been fighting against caste-based discrimination for the last decade, Manisha Harijan, an 8-year-old Dalit girl, has been found dead on the morning of 4 December 2009, with her throat silted. Upon inquiry with the neighbors and the girl's family, the JMC was informed that the victim had not come home the evening before and that her father, Raju Harijan, along with two other villagers had been looking for her and faced an hostile attitude from workers building a brick kiln. It is only the next morning that her father discovered her body.

The circumstances of the crime have led the villagers and the police officers to suspect that a local non-Dalit businessman, Birendra Jayasawal, has killed the girl as human sacrifice in his brick kiln to bring good omen. Additionally, the chimney of the kiln was found sprinkled with water and the bricks covered with blood.  The villagers and Raju Harijan consider these as evidences of human sacrifice. The day before the incident, Jayasawal had allegedly assured the father that Manisha would be home by the morning.

The police arrested Jayasawal and four other suspects and the villagers demonstrated in front of the Area Police Office-Manjhgawa demanding punishment of the perpetrators. The police then shifted the suspects to the District Police Office (DPO) in Bhairhawa. Nevertheless, the victim's family and the villagers assert having encountered resistance from the police who first refused to file the case and showed negligence in investigating the case.

The JMC regional office, Radio Jagaran 93.6MHz and different local organisations report to have conducted a field visit and submitted a memorandum to the Chief District Officer, Nagendra Jha, a higher authority, urging him to order proper investigations, which the CDO promised. After intense pressures on the DPO from local human rights organisations, a case was eventually filed on 9 December 2009.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

Despite this, the AHRC and the JMC fears that this case may not receive proper attention from the police. The fact that the victim belongs to the Harijan sub-caste which is one of the poorest groups among the Dalits poses a challenge for the family to have adequate access to the judicial system.
 
Indeed, although caste-based crimes are frequent in Nepal, the authorities have often proven careless in addressing them, refusing to register cases, releasing culprits without a trial or even pressuring the victims into withdrawing their complaints. The AHRC has already reported several of those cases: recently the police has been pressuring a Dalit woman who had been accused of witchcraft and forced to eat human excreta into withdrawing her case (UAC-153-2009) and has released the suspect of the rape and murder of an 11-year-old Dalit girl although there were strong evidences against him (UAC-150-2009).  That is why there is a strong probability that such an attitude might be an obstacle to the victim's family's search for justice in this case.
 
The above cases reveal several flaws in the Nepalese police system as a whole, which does not function properly anymore. In some cases it is only after the case receiving publicity and the authorities put under pressure, the police registered cases against the suspects, or the case investigated. Such circumstances make it even more difficult for the Dalits, one of the most isolated citizens of Nepal, to access judiciary institutions. What can be defined as a systematic refusal to receive and support the complaints of the most vulnerable citizens of Nepal will only result in encouraging anti-Dalit sentiments, discrimination and crimes toward them.

Although the caste system has been officially abolished in Nepal in 1963, it still de facto condemns the Dalits to poverty, illiteracy and caste-based discrimination. In rural areas, the rest of the society still considers that the value of a Dalit's life as negligible. While the interim Constitution of Nepal formally prohibits discrimination against Dalits and states that the state should take comprehensive measures to address this issue, a law still has to be designed to specifically protect religious minorities and Dalits from being discriminated against and attacked.

In investigating this case properly, the Nepalese police has a chance to show that it can treat all citizens' complaints equally, which would be an important step forward for the accountability of the police system, and a strong signal condemning anti-Dalit discriminations.

SUGGESTED ACTION:

Please write letters to the authorities listed below, urging them to immediately make sure that the murder of Manisha Harijan will be properly investigated. Please urge for the protection of the victim's family. Please also join us in calling for the drafting of a law to protect religious minorities or Dalits from discrimination in Nepal.

The AHRC is also writing a separate letter to the UN Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, and on violence against women, its causes and consequences calling for intervention in this case.

To support this appeal, please click here: http://www.ahrchk.nethttp://www.ahrchk.net/ua/support.php?ua=UAC-006-2010

SAMPLE LETTER:

Dear __________,

NEPAL: The murder of an 8-year-old Dalit Girl, allegedly sacrificed for good omens must be properly investigated

Name of victim:
Manisha Harijan, 8 years old, permanent resident of Maryadpur Village Development Committee (VDC) - Rupandehi district, Nepal

Name of alleged perpetrator:
Birendra Jayasawal, Maryadpur Village Development Committee (VDC) - Rupandehi district, Nepal

Date of incident: 4 December 2009 (2066/7/21 according to the Nepalese calendar)
Place of incident: Maryadpur VDC, Rupandehi District.

I am writing to voice my concern regarding the murder of an 8-year-old Dalit girl in Maryadpur, Rupandehi District. According to the information I have received, Manisha Harijan's father, Raju Harijan discovered her dead body on the morning of 4 December 2009, with her throat silted, near a brick kiln. The circumstances of the crime have lead the villagers and the police officers to suspect that this is a case of human sacrifice, committed in order to bring good omen to the owner of the brick kiln, a local non-Dalit businessman, Birendra Jayasawal.

The police have arrested Birendra Jayasawal, along with four other suspects and transferred them to the District Police Office of Bhairhawa.

The villagers report that the police officers first refused to file a First Information Report (FIR) and showed negligence in investigating the case. They eventually did so after intense pressures from local human rights NGOs, including the Jagaran Media Center. On 9 December 2009, a FIR was eventually filed. The Chief District Officer, Nagendra Jha, also promised the JMC that he will make sure this case will be properly investigated.

I am deeply concerned that, despite this, this case may not receive proper attention from the police, which has a long record of neglecting the investigation of caste-based crimes in Nepal. I understand that the victim's family has a right to be given justice for this crime and to see this case carefully examined by the police.

This implies that the inquiry must be conducted by an independent and impartial body, committed to take, without unnecessary delays, all the steps essential to an effective investigation process: prompt questioning of the witnesses; DNA examination of the blood samples found in the brick kiln; divulgation of the investigation results to the family, which includes communication of the DNA analysis and post-mortem examination outcomes.

If the enquiry concludes that this has been a sacrificial murder, the perpetrators must be prosecuted, according to the provisions of the Nepalese Penal Law. I am also calling for the protection of the victim's family since, as Dalits, they are vulnerable to pressures, threats and intimidation from the suspects.

I also take this opportunity to draw your attention on the frequent malfunctioning of the Nepalese investigative and legal system, which requires the citizens to have sufficient social influence or material resources to convince the police officers to register and investigate their cases, which de facto excludes the most vulnerable citizens from accessing it. The police system is also suffering from a lack of proper equipment and infrastructures which prevent it from carrying effective inquiries and the government should take measures to make sure it has adequate resources.

I consider that this case is a chance for the police and judiciary system, despite their immediate requirement for adequate resources, to show that they can still function and ensure the protection of every Nepali citizen, regardless of their religion, sex, age or caste. Strong and firm legal actions would act as a deterrent to prevent such ignominious anti-Dalit crimes to happen again.

I also wish to point out that although Nepal is part of different international conventions which strongly condemn caste-based discrimination and that its interim Constitution formally asserts that it is the State's responsibility to ensure the equality of all the citizens, there is currently no law specifically designed to address religious or caste-based discrimination. I therefore urge for the drafting of such a law and for a strong political will to eradicate the anti-Dalit mindset, still present in the rural areas of the country.

Yours sincerely,

----------------

PLEASE SEND YOUR LETTERS TO:

1. Mr. Ramesh Chand Thakuri
Inspector General of Police
Police Head Quarters, Naxal
Kathmandu
NEPAL
Fax: +977 1 4415593
Tel: +977 1 4412432 (Secretary to IGP)
E-mail: info@nepalpolice.gov.np, phqigs@nepalpolice.gov.np 

2. Dr. Bharat Bahadur Karki
Attorney General
Office of Attorney General
Ramshahpath, Kathmandu
NEPAL
Fax: +977 1 4262582
Tel: +977 1 4262506
Email: attorney@mos.com.np 

3. Mr. Sarva Dev Prasad Ojha
Minister for Women, Children and Social Welfare
Singha Durbar, Kathmandu
NEPAL
Fax: +977 1 4241516
Tel: +977 1 4241728/4241551
E-mail: info@mowcsw.gov.np 

4. Ms. Nainkala Thapa
Chairperson
National Women's Commission
Bhadrakali Plaza, Kathmandu
NEPAL
Fax: +977 1 4256783
Tel: +977 1 4249751/4257628

5. Mr. Kedar Nath Upadhaya
Chairperson
National Human Rights Commission
Pulchowk, Lalitpur
NEPAL
Fax: +977 1 55 47973
Tel: +977 1 5010015
E-mail: complaints@nhrcnepal.org or nhrc@nhrcnepal.org 

6. Mr. Sarbendra Khanal
Superintendent of Police
Police HR Cell
Nepal Police, Kathmandu
NEPAL
Fax: +977 1 4415593
Tel: +977 1 4411618
E-mail: hrcell@nepalpolice.gov.np

Thank you.

Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (ua@ahrc.asia)

http://www.ahrchk.nethttp://www.ahrchk.net/ua/support.php?ua=UAC-006-2010

Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Case
Document ID :
AHRC-UAC-006-2010
Countries :
Issues :
Document Actions
Share |
Subscribe to our Mailing List
Follow AHRC
Extended Introduction: Urgent Appeals, theory and practice

A need for dialogue

Many people across Asia are frustrated by the widespread lack of respect for human rights in their countries.  Some may be unhappy about the limitations on the freedom of expression or restrictions on privacy, while some are affected by police brutality and military killings.  Many others are frustrated with the absence of rights on labour issues, the environment, gender and the like. 

Yet the expression of this frustration tends to stay firmly in the private sphere.  People complain among friends and family and within their social circles, but often on a low profile basis. This kind of public discourse is not usually an effective measure of the situation in a country because it is so hard to monitor. 

Though the media may cover the issues in a broad manner they rarely broadcast the private fears and anxieties of the average person.  And along with censorship – a common blight in Asia – there is also often a conscious attempt in the media to reflect a positive or at least sober mood at home, where expressions of domestic malcontent are discouraged as unfashionably unpatriotic. Talking about issues like torture is rarely encouraged in the public realm.

There may also be unwritten, possibly unconscious social taboos that stop the public reflection of private grievances.  Where authoritarian control is tight, sophisticated strategies are put into play by equally sophisticated media practices to keep complaints out of the public space, sometimes very subtly.  In other places an inner consensus is influenced by the privileged section of a society, which can control social expression of those less fortunate.  Moral and ethical qualms can also be an obstacle.

In this way, causes for complaint go unaddressed, un-discussed and unresolved and oppression in its many forms, self perpetuates.  For any action to arise out of private frustration, people need ways to get these issues into the public sphere.

Changing society

In the past bridging this gap was a formidable task; it relied on channels of public expression that required money and were therefore controlled by investors.  Printing presses were expensive, which blocked the gate to expression to anyone without money.  Except in times of revolution the media in Asia has tended to serve the well-off and sideline or misrepresent the poor.

Still, thanks to the IT revolution it is now possible to communicate with large audiences at little cost.  In this situation there is a real avenue for taking issues from private to public, regardless of the class or caste of the individual.

Practical action

The AHRC Urgent Appeals system was created to give a voice to those affected by human rights violations, and by doing so, to create a network of support and open avenues for action.  If X’s freedom of expression is denied, if Y is tortured by someone in power or if Z finds his or her labour rights abused, the incident can be swiftly and effectively broadcast and dealt with. The resulting solidarity can lead to action, resolution and change. And as more people understand their rights and follow suit, as the human rights consciousness grows, change happens faster. The Internet has become one of the human rights community’s most powerful tools.   

At the core of the Urgent Appeals Program is the recording of human rights violations at a grass roots level with objectivity, sympathy and competence. Our information is firstly gathered on the ground, close to the victim of the violation, and is then broadcast by a team of advocates, who can apply decades of experience in the field and a working knowledge of the international human rights arena. The flow of information – due to domestic restrictions – often goes from the source and out to the international community via our program, which then builds a pressure for action that steadily makes its way back to the source through his or her own government.   However these cases in bulk create a narrative – and this is most important aspect of our program. As noted by Sri Lankan human rights lawyer and director of the Asian Human Rights Commission, Basil Fernando:

"The urgent appeal introduces narrative as the driving force for social change. This idea was well expressed in the film Amistad, regarding the issue of slavery. The old man in the film, former president and lawyer, states that to resolve this historical problem it is very essential to know the narrative of the people. It was on this basis that a court case is conducted later. The AHRC establishes the narrative of human rights violations through the urgent appeals. If the narrative is right, the organisation will be doing all right."

Patterns start to emerge as violations are documented across the continent, allowing us to take a more authoritative, systemic response, and to pinpoint the systems within each country that are breaking down. This way we are able to discover and explain why and how violations take place, and how they can most effectively be addressed. On this path, larger audiences have opened up to us and become involved: international NGOs and think tanks, national human rights commissions and United Nations bodies.  The program and its coordinators have become a well-used tool for the international media and for human rights education programs. All this helps pave the way for radical reforms to improve, protect and to promote human rights in the region.