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NEPAL: Abduction, brutal torture, illegal detention and arbitrary arrest of a man by personnel from the Royal Nepal Army

July 5, 2005

URGENT ACTION URGENT ACTION URGENT ACTION URGENT ACTION

ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION - URGENT APPEALS PROGRAM

6 July 2005
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UA-117-2005: NEPAL: Abduction, brutal torture, illegal detention and arbitrary arrest of a man by personnel from the Royal Nepal Army

NEPAL: Abduction; Torture; Arbitrary arrest; Illegal detention; Rule of law
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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information regarding the brutal torture, arbitrary arrest and illegal detention of a young journalist in Nepal.

Mr Chandralal Giri was initially detained by a group of plain clothed Royal Nepal Army personnel on 31 December 2004. He then spent two weeks in army barracks being brutally tortured, both psychologically and physically. It was not until 19 January 2005 that Mr Giri was finally arrested under the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Control and Punishment) Ordinance (TADA). A habeas corpus petition was filed on Mr Giri’s behalf with the Supreme Court who released Mr Giri on 21 June 2005 declaring that he had been illegally detained. However, since then Mr Giri and his family have lived in fear, frightened as to when the army might act next.

Your urgent action is therefore required in this case. Please send a letter to Ian Martin, Chief of Mission, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights - Nepal Office, urging him to pursue this matter and pressure for an immediate investigation and prosecution in this case.
 
Urgent Appeals Desk
Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC)
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DETAILED INFORMATION:

Name of the victim: Mr Chandralal Giri, 22-years-old
Address of the victim: Okhaldhunga Village Development Committee – 7, Okhaldhunga
Alleged perpetrator: Personnel of the Royal Nepal Army
Date of the incident: Detained and tortured between 31 December 2004 and 21 June 2005
Place of the incident: Initially taken from Pulchowk, Lalitpur – near the UN headquarters. Detained at an unknown army barracks, then Shree Jung Barracks, Singh Durbar and Central Jail

Case details: (based on the victim’s account)

At around 3pm on 31 December 2004 while Mr Giri was walking in Pulchowk, Lalitpur near the UN head quarters, six to seven plain clothed persons suddenly approached him and threw him forcibly into a nearby van. He was immediately blindfolded and his captors at once began to verbally abuse and physically assault him. After half an hour he was taken from the van into a cold, dark room. His captors there began questioning him about his relationship with Maoists. They then tied his hands and legs together with ropes and proceeded to torture him, applying electric shock treatment to his head for close to one hour. They also randomly beat Mr Giri with their fists, feet and sticks, targeting his head, chest, back and thighs. He remained in this unknown location for one week where the psychological and physical torture went on unabated. He was also handcuffed and blindfolded for the entire duration.

After one week Mr Giri was then transferred to Shree Jung Barracks, Singh Durbar where he remained for fourteen days. During his detention at Shree Jung Barracks, Mr Giri continued to be tortured by personnel from the Royal Nepal Army.

On 19 January 2005, Mr Giri was transferred to the Central Jail where he was arrested under the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Control and Punishment) Ordinance (TADA).

On 5 June 2005 a habeas corpus petition was filed with the Supreme Court to release Mr Giri from his illegal detention. The court found in favour of Mr Giri and issued his release from Central Jail on 21 June 2005.

A torture compensation case is currently being prepared by a human rights organisation on behalf of Mr Giri to the Kathmandu District Court against the Royal Nepal Army personnel who tortured and detained Mr Giri.

On 29 June 2005 Mr Giri published an article in the weekly paper Janaastha about his illegal detention and severe torture at the hands of Royal Nepal Army personnel. On the evening of that same day, an unknown person telephoned Mr Giri’s home asking questions about him. Mr Giri and his family members fear that the call was from security forces in an attempted threat to prevent him from publishing any further comments on his detention and torture. They also fear that due to his article and the filing of the torture compensation case against personnel from the Royal Nepal Army, Mr Giri might be re-arrested.

  
SUGGESTED ACTION:

Please send a letter to Ian Martin, Chief of Mission, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights - Nepal Office, urging him to pursue this matter and pressure for an immediate investigation and prosecution in this case.

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Sample letter:

Dear Mr. Martin

NEPAL: Abduction, brutal torture, illegal detention and arbitrary arrest of a man by personnel from the Royal Nepal Army

Name of the victim: Mr Chandralal Giri, 22-years-old
Address of the victim: Okhaldhunga Village Development Committee – 7, Okhaldhunga
Alleged perpetrator: Personnel of the Royal Nepal Army
Date of the incident: Detained and tortured between 31 December 2004 and 21 June 2005
Place of the incident: Initially taken from Pulchowk, Lalitpur – near the UN headquarters. Detained at an unknown army barracks, then Shree Jung Barracks, Singh Durbar and Central Jail

I am deeply concerned by the abduction, brutal torture, illegal detention and arbitrary arrest of a man by personnel from the Royal Nepal Army beginning on 31 December 2004.

On that day, while Mr Chandralal Giri was walking in Pulchowk, Lalitpur near the UN head quarters, six to seven plain clothed persons suddenly approached him and threw him forcibly into a nearby van. He was immediately blindfolded and his captors at once began to verbally abuse and physically assault him whilst questioning him on his relationship with Maoists. They then tied his hands and legs together with ropes and proceeded to torture him, applying electric shock treatment to his head. They also randomly beat Mr Giri with their fists, feet and sticks, targeting his head, chest, back and thighs. He remained in this unknown location for one week where the psychological and physical torture went on unabated. He was also handcuffed and blindfolded for the entire duration.

After one week Mr Giri was then transferred to Shree Jung Barracks, Singh Durbar where he remained for fourteen days. During his detention at Shree Jung Barracks, Mr Giri continued to be tortured by personnel from the Royal Nepal Army.

On 19 January 2005, Mr Giri was transferred to the Central Jail where he was arrested under the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Control and Punishment) Ordinance (TADA). On 5 June 2005 a habeas corpus petition was filed with the Supreme Court to release Mr Giri from his illegal detention. The court found in favour of Mr Giri and issued his release from Central Jail on 21 June 2005.

A torture compensation case is currently being prepared by a human rights organisation on behalf of Mr Giri to the Kathmandu District Court against the Royal Nepal Army personnel who tortured and detained Mr Giri.

On 29 June 2005 Mr Giri published an article in the weekly paper Janaastha about his illegal detention and severe torture at the hands of Royal Nepal Army personnel. On the evening of that same day, an unknown person telephoned Mr Giri’s home asking questions about him. Mr Giri and his family members fear that the call was from security forces in an attempted threat to prevent him from publishing any further comments on his detention and torture. They also fear that due to his article and the filing of the torture compensation case against personnel from the Royal Nepal Army that Mr Giri’s might be re-arrested.

I am appalled to learn that Mr Giri was so easily detained and tortured without the intervention of any outside force. The fact that he was demonstrates the Royal Nepal Army’s power in illegally detaining and brutally torturing persons without any fear of prosecution. Such conduct further demonstrates the apparent impunity that all security force personnel in Nepal currently enjoy. I am also shocked to learn that despite the Supreme Court acknowledging the illegal detention of Mr Giri, no action has been taken to bring justice to those who detained him.

In light of this, I ask you, in your capacity as the UN Chief of Mission, to take action. An investigation must be conducted into this case and all persons responsible for Mr Giri’s torture and detention must be brought to justice for their crimes. While such investigations are taking place, protection should be provided to Mr Giri and his family so as to ensure their safety. Compensation should also be provided to Mr Giri for the suffering he has endured. Finally, great pressure must be applied to His Majesty King Gyanendra and Major General Sharma Thappa to stop personnel from the country’s security forces from behaving in such a manner; a manner that has become all too frequent.

We look to your intervention in this matter.

Yours sincerely,

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PLEASE SEND A LETTER TO:

Mr. Ian Martin
Chief of Mission
Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights- Nepal Office
UN House, Pulchowk
Kathmandu
NEPAL
Tel: (977) 1 5524 366 or 5523 200
Fax: (977) 1 5523 991 or 5523 986

PLEASE SEND COPIES TO:

1. His Majesty King Gyanendra
Narayanhity Royal Palace
Durbar Marg
Kathmandu
NEPAL
Tel: 977 14 413577/227577
Fax: 977 14 227395/ 411955

2. Major General Sharma Thappa
Attn: Officer of Royal Nepal Army Human Rights Cell
Human Rights Cell
Singha Durbar
Kathmandu
NEPAL
Telefax: + 977 14 245 020/226 292

3. Mahadeo Prasad Yadav
Attorney General
Office of the Attorney General
Ramshahpath, Kathmandu
NEPAL
Tel: +977 14 262548 (direct line)/262394 (through Personal Assistant)
Fax: +977 14 262582
Email: fpattorney@most.gov.np

4. Mr. Nain Bahadur Khatri
Chairman of the National Human Rights Commission
Pulchowck, Lalitpur
NEPAL
Tel: +977 1 5 547 974 or 525 659 or 547 975
Fax: +9771 5 547 973
Email: nhrc@ntc.net.np

5. Prof. Manfred Nowak
Special Rapporteur on the Question of Torture
Attn: Mr. Safir Syed
C/o OHCHR-UNOG
1211 Geneva 10
SWITZERLAND
Tel: +41 22 917 9230
Fax: +41 22 917 9016 (general)

6. Ms Manuela Carmema Castrillo
Working group on arbitrary detention
C/o OHCHR-UNOG,
1211 Geneva 10
SWITZERLAND
Fax: +41 22 917 9006


Thank you.

Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC)

Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Case
Document ID :
UA-117-2005
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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.