Dear friends
The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is sending you updated information about the situation in Nepal. Please send a letter to the Government of Nepal demanding that they restore the parliament, revoke the draconian order of illegal assembly, and unconditionally release all detainees.
To see our previous appeals issued on the current situation in Nepal, please visit:
[UP-19-2004: http://www.ahrchk.net/ua/mainfile.php/2004/661/
UP-17-2004: http://www.ahrchk.net/ua/mainfile.php/2004/657/
UA-38-2004: http://www.ahrchk.net/ua/mainfile.php/2004/654/]
Urgent Appeals Desk
Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC)
—————————————————–
DETAILED INFORMATION:
In Nepal, protests are taking place in various areas of Kathmandu City everyday, and assaults, arrests and detentions of demonstrators and bystanders by the police are continuing. (The exact number of those arrested in recent a few days is not known, is but assumed to be over hundreds.) It is reported that a Nepal Students Union member, Ms. Srijana Adhikar was gravely injured by the police while she was attending the protest. The King has begun to consult with some political leaders but none of them belong to the five-parties that are leading the current protests.
The police commandeer private trucks and drivers for ferrying arrested demonstrators and bystanders
According to a monitoring team, the police illegally seize private trucks and misuse the drivers in their control operations against the protests. The list of the trucks that have been used to ferry the arrested in the protests is as follows:
1. Truck no.: Na 1 Kha 2585, the driver A (the name withheld on request), illegally commandeered on 22 April 2004
2. Truck no.: Ba 1 Kha 1655, the driver B (the name withheld on request), illegally commandeered on 22 April 2004
3. Truck no.: Na 2 Kha 3742, the driver C (the name withheld on request), illegally commandeered on 22 April 2004
4. Truck no.: Na 2 Kha 6217, the driver name: Bir Bahadur, illegally commandeered on 22 April 2004
5. Truck no.: Ba 1 Kha 5049, the driver D (the name withheld on request), illegally commandeered on 22 April 2004
6. Truck no.: Ba 1 Kha 6777, the driver F (the name withheld on request), illegally commandeered on 18 April 2004
7. Truck no.: Na 2 Kha 2553, the driver name: Shyam Tamang, illegally commandeered on 18 April 2004
8. Truck no.: Na 2 Kha 2968, the driver G (the name withheld on request), illegally commandeered on 19 April 2004
9. Truck no.: Ba 1 Kha 8003, the driver name: Narendra Shrestha, illegally commandeered on 17 April 2004
10. Truck no.: Na 1 Kha 8504, the driver name: Sushe Lama, illegally commandeered on 18 April 2004
11. Truck no.: Na 2 Kha 8753, the driver H (the name withheld on request), illegally commandeered on 18 April 2004
12. Truck no.: Ba 1 Kha 8240, the driver name: Bhakta Tamang, illegally commandeered on 18 April 2004
13. Truck no.: Ba 2 Kha 7994, the driver I (the name withheld on request), illegally commandeered on 22 April 2004
14. Truck no.: Ba 1 Kha 781, the driver J (the name withheld on request), illegally commandeered on 23 April 2004
15. Truck no.: Ba 1 Kha 8498, the driver name: Sri Krishna Thapa, illegally commandeered on 23 April 2004
16. Truck no.: Ba 1 Kha 5825, the driver name: Krishna Lama, illegally commandeered on 23 April 2004
17. Truck no.: Na 1 Kha 5644, the driver name: Krishna Lama, illegally commandeered on 23 April 2004
18. Truck no.: Ba 1 Kha 8984, the driver name: Gopal Mainali, illegally commandeered on 23 April 2004
19. Truck no.: Ba 2 Kha 2268, the driver name: Krishna Kumar Ghising, illegally commandeered on 23 April 2004
20. Truck no.: Na 2 Kha 6230, the driver name: Ram Chandra Thapa, illegally commandeered on 22 April 2004
According to a monitoring team who interviewed truck drivers and the truck owners, the traffic police stopped the trucks and asked the drivers for their driving licenses and registration documents. Even though they showed the required documents, the police told them to go to the Baggikhana Traffic Police Office in Kathmandu. At the police office, the traffic police seized the valid documents of trucks and handed over the drivers and trucks to the Armed Police Force, who ordered them to use their trucks to carry the arrested people from several protest sites including Bagbazaar, Putalisadak, New Road, Ratna Park, Exhibition Road, Dilli Bazaar, etc. No written order was produced to the drivers and the drivers were not allowed to go back to their houses and were forced to stay in the road without any assistance or facilities such as food or water. This is a clear situation of illegal arrests and detentions of the truck drivers by the police.
Conditions of the ‘detained’ truck drivers
According to the information received, the drivers are not being treated properly. As the police did not pay any money to the truck owners for using their trucks and drivers, they also did not pay any daily wages to the drivers. The drivers had to buy fuel at their own expense. In addition, the drivers received no food including drinking water and snacks and had to sleep in the trucks while they were thus detained. Also, the trucks were frequently targeted by the protesters as a symbol of the government’s ‘regression’, so several trucks were damaged and destroyed and the drivers had to endure such risks during the protests. But the truck owners have not received any compensation from the police.
Update on the writ petition
The hearing on the writ petition in the Supreme Court, which has been filed on behalf of Jan Morcha Nepal (People’s Front Nepal or PFN), CPN (UML) and Nepali Congress (NC) scheduled on 22 April 2004, was not held due to failure of submission of the respondents (the government agencies). According to Supreme Court regulations, the date of submission can be extended by a week, on acceptance of reasonable ground.
SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please send a letter, fax or email urging the Nepalese Government to stop ongoing arrests and detentions of demonstrators and release all the detainees as soon as possible. You can access the contact information (address, tel/fax no, email address) of the Nepalese authorities in our previous urgent appeals mentioned above.
To support this case, please click here: SEND APPEAL LETTER
SAMPLE LETTER
Dear
Re: Police commandeering private trucks in their illegal operations
I am deeply concerned by the continuing arbitrary arrests and detentions of protest participants and bystanders in Nepal. Even though the protests by the people were started peacefully, the overreaction (the assaults, illegal arrests and detention) of the police on the participants overturned the situation and the situation of Nepal is getting worse.
Apart from illegally arresting and detaining the demonstrators and bystanders, I have received information that the police have also illegally seized the private trucks and drivers and misused the drivers in their control operations against the protests. They were forcibly dispatched to several protest areas for ferrying the arrested people under the control of the police. It is reported that during the ‘police detention’, the drivers were treated badly. No written order was produced to the drivers and the drivers were not allowed to go back their houses. The police provide no food including the water and had to sleep in trucks. As the police did not pay any money for their ‘forced’ work, the drivers also lost their daily wages that is essential to support their family.
Therefore, I strongly urge you to order the police to prevent using force and violence on the civilians. I also urge the Government of Nepal to stop illegal and arbitrary arrests and detentions immediately and unconditionally. The Nepalese Government must ensure that all the injured people have in protests access to medical attention. I further request the Government of Nepal to revoke its draconian order of illegal assembly, and stop criminalizing those who are dedicated to peace and democracy. Especially, the Nepalese police should stop to illegally seize and commandeer private trucks and mistreat the drivers in the police control operation. All the truck drivers detained by the police should be compensated by the Government of Nepal.
Yours sincerely
———————-
Thank you.
Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC)
