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NEPAL: Man threatened with death and tortured into making false confession by police

August 14, 2007

URGENT APPEAL URGENT APPEAL URGENT APPEAL URGENT APPEAL

ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION - URGENT APPEALS PROGRAMME

Urgent Appeal

14 August 2007
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UA-253-2007: NEPAL: Man threatened with death and tortured into making false confession by police

NEPAL: arbitrary arrest and detention; torture; death threats
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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is gravely concerned by the alleged torture of Mr. Kalam Miya, a 27-year-old manual worker and permanent resident of Pakali VDC-3, Sunsari district, Nepal on July 30 and 31, 2007 by the police. Following his arrest, Mr. Kalam Miya was reportedly threatened with death and tortured for lengthy periods in order to force him to confess to having committed a crime, resulting in physical injuries that still require treatment and his continuing arbitrary detention to date. This case is a clear example of the widespread practice of the use of torture as a substitute for investigations into crimes by the police. Individuals, most commonly the poor, are arbitrarily arrested and tortured into admitting to a crime they did not commit, while those responsible for the crime remain free to continue with their criminal activities, reinforcing the cycle of injustice and deterioration of the rule of law in the country.

CASE DETAILS:

Mr. Kalam Miya was reportedly arbitrarily arrested at Saraswati Tole, in Biratnagar Municipality-2, Morang district, at around 8:30 p.m. on July 29, 2007, by policemen from the Ward Police Station, Hathkhola, Biratnagar, that were patrolling in a van. He was arrested on a charge of robbery and was detained for a period of around two hours in the afore-mentioned police station before being transferred to the District Police Office (DPO) in Morang.

In the morning of July 30, 2007, at the Morang DPO, he was locked inside the Women Police Cell room and then interrogated and beaten with a stick by three police men, including Sub Inspector Balram Yadav. He was made to lie on the floor, while two policemen held his legs and chest, and was then beaten with a stick on his feet, ankles, legs and fingers, in particular on the joints of his hands and legs. He was also kicked and punched, with the policemen taking turns doing the beating. Mr. Kalam Miya screamed and pleaded for the torture to stop, but the policemen stuffed his mouth with cloth to stop him making more noise, and continued torturing him for one and a half hours. Mr. Kalam Miya refused to confess to the false accusations, at which point he was threatened with being tortured to death unless he confessed.

He was again tortured on July 31, 2007, from 9 a.m. for around one hour by the same three men in the same room. He was forced to lie on the ground with his legs up on a chair and again beaten on the feet, ankles, legs and hands. In a semi-conscious state, after enduring the severe beatings for around an hour, Mr. Kalam Miya agreed to sign any documents the police wished in order to escape further torture.

Once he had confessed to his involvement in the alleged robbery the torture ceased and he was then produced before the Morang District Court on 31 July and remanded for five days. He was remanded for ten more days by the court on August 5, 2007, despite having complained of having been subjected to torture to the judge, who ignored his complaint. The victim’s current remand period is due to end on August 15, 2007, and it is vital that no further remand is ordered and that he is immediately released.

Mr. Kalam Miya’s legs are still swollen and a blood clot has reportedly been detected in one of his toes in his left foot and he continues to suffer from pain in the joints where he was beaten. The police took him to Kosi Zonal Hospital, Morang, on 31 July for a medical check-up, as a formality, before taking him into remand. However, during this check-up, the doctor reportedly didn’t ask any questions to the victim and did not provide him with any medication. Local NGO Advocacy Forum is now providing him with medication and is preparing to file a case on his behalf in the Morang District Court demanding compensation for torture. Mr. Kalam Miya is still being detained at the Morang District Police Office for further investigation and there remain grave concerns that he may again be subjected to threats, ill-treatment or torture during this time.

The Asian Human Rights Commission is gravely concerned for Mr. Kalam Miya’s physical and psychological integrity as he has been subjected to death threats and tortured into making false confessions, and remains at risk of further such treatment while in arbitrary detention by the police. The Nepalese authorities are urged to immediately release Mr. Kalam Miya, in the absence of valid legal charges and evidence against him, and to investigate the allegations of arbitrary arrest and detention, death threats and torture, in order to find those responsible and bring them to justice in a trial that is conducted in line with the internationally accepted standards of fair trial. Punishment for the perpetrators and reparation for the victim that are in line with international standards should also be provided. Despite recent political changes in Nepal, many deeply ingrained serious practices of human rights abuses continue, including torture. The lack of effective investigation and prosecution of such cases is the prime reason for this continuing problem, which allows widespread impunity to continue in the country.

SUGGESTED ACTION:

Please write to the authorities in Nepal mentioned below, calling for the Nepalese authorities to take all necessary measures to ensure that Mr. Kalam Miya’s physical and psychological integrity are guaranteed and that he is immediately released, in the absence of valid legal charges and evidence against him. The authorities must also launch prompt and impartial investigations into the allegations of arbitrary arrest and detention, death threats and torture, in order to find those responsible and bring them to justice, ensuring that adequate punishment for the perpetrators and reparation for the victim are provided.

To support this appeal, please click:

Suggested letter:

Dear___________,

NEPAL: Man threatened with death and tortured into making false confession by police

Victim: Mr. Kalam Miya, a 27-year-old manual worker and permanent resident of Pakali VDC-3, Sunsari district, Nepal.
Alleged perpetrators: three members of the Morang District Police Office, including Sub Inspector Balram Yadav.
Date of incident: July 29, 2007 to the present.
Place of incident: victim arrested at Saraswati Tole, in Biratnagar Municipality-2, Morang district and tortured and detained in the Morang District Police Office, Nepal.

I am gravely concerned by the alleged torture of Mr. Kalam Miya, a 27-year-old manual worker and permanent resident of Pakali VDC-3, Sunsari district, Nepal on July 30 and 31, 2007 by the police. Following his arrest, Mr. Kalam Miya was reportedly threatened with death and tortured for lengthy periods in order to force him to confess to having committed a crime, resulting in physical injuries that still require treatment and his continuing arbitrary detention to date. This case is a clear example of the widespread practice of the use of torture as a substitute for investigations into crimes by the police. Individuals, most commonly the poor, are arbitrarily arrested and tortured into admitting to a crime they did not commit, while those responsible for the crime remain free to continue with their criminal activities, reinforcing the cycle of injustice and deterioration of the rule of law in the country.

Mr. Kalam Miya was reportedly arbitrarily arrested at Saraswati Tole, in Biratnagar Municipality-2, Morang district, at around 8:30 p.m. on July 29, 2007, by policemen from the Ward Police Station, Hathkhola, Biratnagar, that were patrolling in a van. He was arrested on a charge of robbery and was detained for a period of around two hours in the afore-mentioned police station before being transferred to the District Police Office (DPO) in Morang.

In the morning of July 30, 2007, at the Morang DPO, he was locked inside the Women Police Cell room and then interrogated and beaten with a stick by three police men, including Sub Inspector Balram Yadav. He was made to lie on the floor, while two policemen held his legs and chest, and was then beaten with a stick on his feet, ankles, legs and fingers, in particular on the joints of his hands and legs. He was also kicked and punched, with the policemen taking turns doing the beating. Mr. Kalam Miya screamed and pleaded for the torture to stop, but the policemen stuffed his mouth with cloth to stop him making more noise, and continued torturing him for one and a half hours. Mr. Kalam Miya refused to confess to the false accusations, at which point he was threatened with being tortured to death unless he confessed.

He was again tortured on July 31, 2007, from 9 a.m. for around one hour by the same three men in the same room. He was forced to lie on the ground with his legs up on a chair and again beaten on the feet, ankles, legs and hands. In a semi-conscious state, after enduring the severe beatings for around an hour, Mr. Kalam Miya agreed to sign any documents the police wished in order to escape further torture.

Once he had confessed to his involvement in the alleged robbery the torture ceased and he was then produced before the Morang District Court on 31 July and remanded for five days. He was remanded for ten more days by the court on August 5, 2007, despite having complained of having been subjected to torture to the judge, who ignored his complaint. The victim’s current remand period is due to end on August 15, 2007, and it is vital that no further remand is ordered and that he is immediately released.

Mr. Kalam Miya’s legs are still swollen and a blood clot has reportedly been detected in one of his toes in his left foot and he continues to suffer from pain in the joints where he was beaten. The police took him to Kosi Zonal Hospital, Morang, on 31 July for a medical check-up, as a formality, before taking him into remand. However, during this check-up, the doctor reportedly didn’t ask any questions to the victim and did not provide him with any medication. Local NGO Advocacy Forum is now providing him with medication and is preparing to file a case on his behalf in the Morang District Court demanding compensation for torture. Mr. Kalam Miya is still being detained at the Morang District Police Office for further investigation and there remain grave concerns that he may again be subjected to threats, ill-treatment or torture during this time.

I am therefore gravely concerned for Mr. Kalam Miya’s physical and psychological integrity as he has been subjected to death threats and tortured into making false confessions, and remains at risk of further such treatment while in arbitrary detention by the police. I urge the Nepalese authorities to immediately release Mr. Kalam Miya, in the absence of valid legal charges and evidence against him, and to investigate the allegations of arbitrary arrest and detention, death threats and torture, in order to find those responsible and bring them to justice in a trial that is conducted in line with the internationally accepted standards of fair trial. Punishment for the perpetrators and reparation for the victim that are in line with international standards should also be provided. Despite recent political changes in Nepal, many deeply ingrained serious practices of human rights abuses continue, including torture. The lack of effective investigation and prosecution of such cases is the prime reason for this continuing problem, which allows widespread impunity to continue in the country.


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 

Thank you.

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

Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Case
Document ID :
UA-253-2007
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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.