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NEPAL: Police inaction into rape of a 15-year-old girl by a civilian and a soldier denounced

August 9, 2007

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ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION - URGENT APPEALS PROGRAMME

Urgent Appeal

10 August 2007
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UA-250-2007: NEPAL: Police inaction into rape of a 15-year-old girl by a civilian and a soldier denounced

NEPAL: Rape; impunity; violence against women; rights of the child
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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is gravely concerned by allegations of the rape of a 15-year-old girl by a member of the Nepal Army, Ram Narayan Bhattari, and a civilian, Yadav Thapamagar, at around noon on July 19, 2007. The incident took place in the jungle near the Bheri Bridge at Latikoili VDC -1, on the Ratna Highway in Surkhet district, Nepal. Despite initial obstruction by the police, a First Information Report (FIR) was finally registered on August 3, 2007. The police have, however, thus far failed to arrest Yadav Thapamagar and the Army has not responded to a letter from the police calling for Ram Narayan Bhattari to be handed over to them. Obstructions by the authorities and the absence of effective investigations and prosecutions, lead to endemic impunity and represent the major barrier to human rights and justice for past and present violations in Nepal.

CASE DETAILS:

The 15-year-old victim, whose identity is withheld for her protection, is a ninth-grade student and a resident of Ramghat Village Development Committee (VDC) ward number 8, in Surkhet District. She had reportedly been recruited by the Maoists’ People’s Liberation Army (PLA) at their camp in Gumi, Surkhet district for 5 months, starting on December 9, 2006, having been assured that she would have a permanent job and a good salary. She left on May 8, 2007 with the permission of the commander, and returned to school. It is believed that the Maoists have recently been attempting to have her join their party and work for the Maoist-affiliated Young Communist League (YCL), but she has refused to do so. It is not thought that her past affiliations have anything to do with her being targeted by the alleged rapists mentioned above or the police’s failure to take appropriate and effective action to date, but it does mean that she is now facing problems from both the Army and the Maoists.

According to the information received, the victim was returning home to Ramghat village on July 19, 2007, having visited relatives, and was waiting for a bus in Pipira Chowk, Latikohili VDC, Surkhet district, when the two afore-mentioned men approached her and asked for her name and where she was from. Eventually she told them and they told her that they were Ram Narayan Bhattari of the Nepal Army and Yadav Thapamagar and that they were going on holiday to Lekfarsa VDC. When the bus arrived they all got on together. Ram Narayan reportedly told the girl he would drop her off at home as they were going in the same direction, but only after they had bought some snacks at local shops at Bheari Bridge. The victim agreed to go with them to get some snacks, so they got off the bus, but they were not near any snack-selling shops or Bheri Bridge.

The victim began to feel afraid at this point, but Ram Narayan reportedly stated that they were going to Bheri Bridge on foot. A few moments later, Yadav Thapamagar allegedly took the victim by the arm and dragged her around 100 metres into the jungle. He told the victim that he had some work to do with her and threatened to kill her if she made any noise, before undressing and raping the 15-year-old girl. Ram Narayan initially kept watch by the road but then came down and also raped the girl. The two men then left her naked in the jungle. She got dressed and tried to reach the road, but was weak and in pain. However, she saw the two men get on a bus.

The victim caught the next bus from Birendranagar, and by chance sat next to a nurse from the Bheri Zonal Hospital in Banke district, whom she told what had happened to her. The nurse took her to an NGO, Maiti Nepal, in Nepalgunj, Banke district, that helped her to get a medical check-up and to make a short written statement to the District Police Office (DPO), Banke district, however the DPO suggested that the victim register the FIR with the DPO in Surkhet as the incident had occurred in that district.
 
On July 20, 2007, the victim underwent a medical examination in Bheri Zonal Hospital, which shows that she was raped, according to the information received. On August 1, 2007, a female and a male member of the police questioned her about the incident but stated that they could not register an FIR without having the complete details of the perpetrators – the victim was not able to give them her rapists home addresses. Registering FIRs with the police is frequently obstructed for such unacceptable reasons in Nepal, especially when victims are complaining of abuses committed by members of the military or other State-actors. On August 3, 2007, the victim was finally able to register an FIR at the Surkhet DPO against the two alleged rapists. The police inspector, Mr. Nain Singh, had at first not accepted the FIR and told the victim to remove the name of the member of the Army, but was eventually persuaded to register the FIR. On August 5, 2007, the Surkhet DPO sent a letter to the Midwestern Divisional Army Headquarters in Surkhet district, calling on the Army to hand over Mr. Ram Narayan Bhattari to the police, but to date the Army has not responded. The police have also failed to arrest the other suspect, Mr. Yadav Thapamagar.

The Asian Human Rights Commission is gravely concerned by the rape of a 15-year-old girl and by the fact that the police seem unwilling or unable to carry out basic investigation and arrests in this case, despite knowing the identities of the alleged perpetrators. Grave violations by military personnel committed against civilians should be tried in civilian courts, yet the Nepalese Army is refusing to hand over Mr. Ram Narayan Bhattari to the police. The army has consistently ensured impunity for its soldiers in this way concerning widespread and grave human rights violations, including rape, torture, forced disappearance and extra-judicial killing. Despite political changes in Nepal, the system of impunity has not been dismantled and threatens the country’s stability and progress. The police’s failure to arrest Mr. Yadav Thapamagar is yet another indication of the serious failings of the police in Nepal: thorough investigations are rarely conducted, even in serious cases such as rape. The Asian Human Rights Commission therefore calls on the Nepalese Army to immediately hand over Mr. Ram Narayan Bhattari to the police for questioning. The police must also ensure that Mr. Yadav Thapamagar is immediately arrested. If found to be responsible, these persons should be tried and punished by a civilian court in line with the internationally recognized standards of fair trial, and adequate reparation must be provided to the victim.


SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please write to the authorities in Nepal mentioned below, calling for the Nepalese Army to immediately hand over Mr. Ram Narayan Bhattari to the police, and for the immediate arrest of Mr. Yadav Thapamagar. The authorities must ensure the immediate investigation and prosecution of the perpetrators of the rape of the 15-year-old girl on July 19, 2007.

To support this appeal, please click here:
 
Suggested letter:

Dear___________,

NEPAL: Police inaction into rape of a 15-year-old girl by a civilian and a soldier denounced

Victim of rape: 15-year-old girl from Ramghat Village Development Committee (VDC) ward number 8, Surkhet District – name withheld for her protection
Alleged perpetrators:
1. Ram Narayan Bhattari (26-years-old), a rifleman from the Midwestern Divisional Army Headquarters in Surkhet district, and permanent resident of Jarbuta Village Development committee ward number 1, Surkhet district
2. Yadav Thapamagar, who is a civilian and resident of Latikohili VDC ward number -1, Surkhet District


I am gravely concerned by allegations of the rape of a 15-year-old girl by a member of the Nepal Army, Ram Narayan Bhattari, and a civilian, Yadav Thapamagar, at around noon on July 19, 2007. The incident took place in the jungle near the Bheri Bridge at Latikoili VDC -1, on the Ratna Highway in Surkhet district, Nepal. Despite initial obstruction by the police, a First Information Report (FIR) was finally registered on August 3, 2007. The police have, however, thus far failed to arrest Yadav Thapamagar and the Army has not responded to a letter from the police calling for Ram Narayan Bhattari to be handed over to them. Obstructions by the authorities and the absence of effective investigations and prosecutions, lead to endemic impunity and represent the major barrier to human rights and justice for past and present violations in Nepal.

The 15-year-old victim, whose identity is withheld for her protection, is a ninth-grade student and a resident of Ramghat Village Development Committee (VDC) ward number 8, in Surkhet District. She had reportedly been recruited by the Maoists’ People’s Liberation Army (PLA) at their camp in Gumi, Surkhet district for 5 months, starting on December 9, 2006, having been assured that she would have a permanent job and a good salary. She left on May 8, 2007 with the permission of the commander, and returned to school. It is believed that the Maoists have recently been attempting to have her join their party and work for the Maoist-affiliated Young Communist League (YCL), but she has refused to do so. It is not thought that her past affiliations have anything to do with her being targeted by the alleged rapists mentioned above or the police’s failure to take appropriate and effective action to date, but it does mean that she is now facing problems from both the Army and the Maoists.

According to the information received, the victim was returning home to Ramghat village on July 19, 2007, having visited relatives, and was waiting for a bus in Pipira Chowk, Latikohili VDC, Surkhet district, when the two afore-mentioned men approached her and asked for her name and where she was from. Eventually she told them and they told her that they were Ram Narayan Bhattari of the Nepal Army and Yadav Thapamagar and that they were going on holiday to Lekfarsa VDC. When the bus arrived they all got on together. Ram Narayan reportedly told the girl he would drop her off at home as they were going in the same direction, but only after they had bought some snacks at local shops at Bheari Bridge. The victim agreed to go with them to get some snacks, so they got off the bus, but they were not near any snack-selling shops or Bheri Bridge.

The victim began to feel afraid at this point, but Ram Narayan reportedly stated that they were going to Bheri Bridge on foot. A few moments later, Yadav Thapamagar allegedly took the victim by the arm and dragged her around 100 metres into the jungle. He told the victim that he had some work to do with her and threatened to kill her if she made any noise, before undressing and raping the 15-year-old girl. Ram Narayan initially kept watch by the road but then came down and also raped the girl. The two men then left her naked in the jungle. She got dressed and tried to reach the road, but was weak and in pain. However, she saw the two men get on a bus.

The victim caught the next bus from Birendranagar, and by chance sat next to a nurse from the Bheri Zonal Hospital in Banke district, whom she told what had happened to her. The nurse took her to an NGO, Maiti Nepal, in Nepalgunj, Banke district, that helped her to get a medical check-up and to make a short written statement to the District Police Office (DPO), Banke district, however the DPO suggested that the victim register the FIR with the DPO in Surkhet as the incident had occurred in that district.
 
On July 20, 2007, the victim underwent a medical examination in Bheri Zonal Hospital, which shows that she was raped, according to the information received. On August 1, 2007, a female and a male member of the police questioned her about the incident but stated that they could not register an FIR without having the complete details of the perpetrators – the victim was not able to give them her rapists home addresses. Registering FIRs with the police is frequently obstructed for such unacceptable reasons in Nepal, especially when victims are complaining of abuses committed by members of the military or other State-actors. On August 3, 2007, the victim was finally able to register an FIR at the Surkhet DPO against the two alleged rapists. The police inspector, Mr. Nain Singh, had at first not accepted the FIR and told the victim to remove the name of the member of the Army, but was eventually persuaded to register the FIR. On August 5, 2007, the Surkhet DPO sent a letter to the Midwestern Divisional Army Headquarters in Surkhet district, calling on the Army to hand over Mr. Ram Narayan Bhattari to the police, but to date the Army has not responded. The police have also failed to arrest the other suspect, Mr. Yadav Thapamagar.

I reiterate my grave concerns about the rape of a 15-year-old girl and the fact that the police seem unwilling or unable to carry out basic investigation and arrests in this case, despite knowing the identities of the alleged perpetrators. Grave violations by military personnel committed against civilians should be tried in civilian courts, yet the Nepalese Army is refusing to hand over Mr. Ram Narayan Bhattari to the police. The army has consistently ensured impunity for its soldiers in this way concerning widespread and grave human rights violations, including rape, torture, forced disappearance and extra-judicial killing. Despite political changes in Nepal, the system of impunity has not been dismantled and threatens the country’s stability and progress. The police’s failure to arrest Mr. Yadav Thapamagar is yet another indication of the serious failings of the police in Nepal: thorough investigations are rarely conducted, even in serious cases such as rape. I therefore call on the Nepalese Army to immediately hand over Mr. Ram Narayan Bhattari to the police for questioning. The police must also ensure that Mr. Yadav Thapamagar is immediately arrested. If found to be responsible, these persons should be tried and punished by a civilian court in line with the internationally recognized standards of fair trial, and adequate reparation must be provided to the victim. Impunity must be ended in Nepal.

Yours sincerely,

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PLEASE SEND YOUR LETTERS TO:

1. Mr. Krishna Sitaula
Home Minister
Singha Darbar
Kathmandu
NEPAL
Fax: +977 1 4211232
Email: moha@wlink.com.np 

2. Mr. Yagya Murti Banjade
Attorney General
Office of Attorney General
Ramshahpath
Kathmandu
NEPAL
Fax: +977 1 4262582
Email: attorney@mos.com.np

3. Chairperson
National Human Rights Commission
Pulchowck, Lalitpur
NEPAL
Fax: +977 1 5547973
Email: complaints@nhrcnepal.org or nhrc@nhrcnepal.org 

4. Mr. Om Bikram Rana
Inspector General of Police
Police Head Quarters, Naxal
Kathmandu
NEPAL
Fax: +977 1 4415593
Email: info@nepalpolice.gov.np  

5. SP Mr. Navaraj Silwal
Police HR Cell
Human Rights Cell
Nepal Police
Kathmandu
NEPAL
Fax: +977 1 4415593
Email: hrcell@nepalpolice.gov.np 

6. Bi.Pra.Bha.Do. General Rookmangud Katawal
Chief of the Army Staff of the Nepal Army (NA)
Army Headquarters
Bhadrakali, Kathmandu
Kathmandu
Nepal
Fax: +977 4 269624
Email: dpr@nepalarmy.mil.np or dprhq@gmail.com

7. Jag. Brigadier General Mr. Birendra Prasad Aryal
Human Rights Directorate
Nepal Army Headquarter
Bhadrakali, Kathmandu
NEPAL
Fax: +977 1 4245020
Email: na_humanrights@yahoo.com or humanrights@nepalarmy.mil.np

Thank you.

Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (ua@ahrchk.org)

Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Case
Document ID :
UA-250-2007
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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.