Dear Friends
The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is gravely concerned of repeated rape and sexual abuse of two blind girl students by the hostel warden at the Shree Janata Higher Secondary School in Balewa, Baglung District of Western Region, Nepal. It has been reported from a reliable source that a 20-year-old Miss X and an 18-year-old Miss Y have been continuously raped by the hostel warden, Mr. Kamal G.C. for several years (Victims’ names are withheld). The victims have filed a complaint against the perpetrator after graduated from the school. Mr. Kamal G.C. is currently under the police custody for the investigation.
However, a human rights organization that interviewed the two victims and other blind students said that the actual number of victims would be much higher. Several girls reported that they also had been repeatedly raped by the accused for a long time. More seriously, it is alleged that the investigators have received pressure from high-level government officials to protect the accused. If a thorough investigation is not conducted, all the available evidences will be destroyed and the accused will be free and finally the victims will be at risk. AHRC urge you to write a letter to the government of Nepal and request them to conduct a thorough and independent investigation in this matter and bring the perpetrator to justice as soon as possible.
Argent Appeals Desk
The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC)
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DETAILED INFORMATION:
Name of the victims: Miss. X (20 years old) of Chanaute Village, at Sigana VDC-6, Baglung District and Miss. Y (18 years old) of Kolpata Village at Narayansthan VDC-3, Baglung District (the name of victims are withheld)
Alleged perpetrator: Mr. Kamal G.C., a hostel warden of the Shree Janata Higher Secondary School in Balewa, Baglung District, Nepal
Period of incident: from 8 May 1998 to January 2004
Status of the Case: Danger of police inaction due to the pressure from the high level
Case details: (based on the account of statements of the victims)
Case 1: Rape case of Miss X (20 years old), undergoing 1st year of certificate level in Arts at Prithivi Narayan Campus in Pokha City
Miss X was enrolled in the blind school in February 1998 after she lost the sight of her eyes when she was in grade 5 in local school. She testified that the sexual abuse by Mr. Kamal G.C. started after a week of her enrolment. Abuse started by molesting and touching the body parts including the sexual organs. She escaped from school and went back to her house. But she could not tell the story to anybody except crying and her family thought she had just been homesick. She had to rejoin the school because of her mother’s pressure on 23 March 1998.
At the night of 8 May 1998, Mr. Kamal G.C. forcefully took her to his room and raped her. When she shouted and told she would tell it to everybody, Mr. Kamal G.C. threatened her saying that he would kill her if she did so. He also threatened that he would kill her family members and expel her from the school and from her scholarship.
After she came back to her room, she told her friends what happened but surprisingly they replied that they were the victims as well. They said, “This is the culture of this school. If you want to continue your study, there is no other way than following the culture.” After being raped, she suffered from bleeding, nausea and vertigo and had difficulty with urinating for 15 days. She testified that the rape continued once about every 15 days for four years until she left the school.
The victim was also repeatedly taken to the hotels in Baglung, Pokhara and Kathmandu and raped there. She said, “When I went to Kathmandu for my vision examination, I was kept at Triveni Hotel, where Mr. Kamal G.C. forcefully raped me. On that night, he brought a drunken man who also raped me. The next evening, he brought another person who also raped me.” She added, “I tried to reveal the truth in my school life however I could not succeed because of Kamal’s threats and lack of friends’ support. I had to suffer for such a long period.”
Case 2: Rape case of Miss Y (18 years old), undergoing 1st year of certificate level in Education at Prithivi Narayan Campus in Pokha City
Miss Y enrolled in the Shree Janata Higher Secondary School on 11 January 1995, as she had lost her sight when she was seven years old. As she was so small she was completely ignorant about the meaning of Mr. Kamal’s act. When he used to touch her body she only thought that the teacher loved her as his own child.
One day in October 2002, Mr. Kamal G.C. sent one student and asked her to come to his room to report. When she went to Mr. Kamal G.C.’s room, she could not see what he was doing as she is completely blind. She was so frightened when she later found him completely undressed and she was forcefully raped by the accused. According to the victim, Mr. Kamal G.C. raped and sexually abused her about every 15 days with the threats to expel her from the school, deprive her of scholarship, destroy her life, etc.
The victim testified that the accused also raped her at the hotel in Baglung on the way back from Kathmandu after participating in a sport program. When she went to Baglung for her School Leaving Certificate (SLC) examination, the accused raped the victim at Hotel Hill View twice. She was taken two times to Pokhara for her medical examination as she had suffered from some vaginal discharge. According to the victim, Mr. Kamal G.C. used to beat and reveal anger and throw insulting words to her when she refused to serve his desire.
According to the report we have received, the hotel owners in Baglung and Kathmandu confirmed that Mr. Kamal G.C. came to their hotels regularly with some blind children. Hotel in Baglung testified that the accused used to stay together with the blind girls in the same room. Moreover, a human rights organization that interviewed the two victims and other students reported the actual number of the victims would be much higher as several blind girls at the school reported that they have also been repeatedly raped by the accused for a long time. He repeatedly told the girls that “sex is biological need and everyone should do it at least one every 15 days to get rid of stress and to be mentally fresh.” They also reported that some male students attempted to raise these issues but they were harassed and finally expelled from the school at one incident.
When the victims passed SLC, the girls dreamed about freedom from abuses. However, according to the report, several girls were not given their certificate from the school to get enrolling in the college outside and they had to struggle with the school authority to get the certificates for several months. Ironically, Mr. Kamal G.C. has been respected as the “father” of the blinds and addressed as a good model of the teacher by several organizations.
Shree Janata Higher Secondary School, the residential school for blinds has established under the special educational project of the government. However, the routine practice of rape and sexual exploitations on the blind students shows that the school authority has failed to put measures to investigate, monitor and protect the victims. Rather, they have allegedly ignored this horrible situation for a long time. The school principle has not taken any administrative sanction or punishment against the accused and has kept deep silence till now.
Mr. Kamal G.C. is currently under the police custody for the inquiry. However, according to the reliable source, one of the investigatiors disclosed that he has been under pressure from high-level government officials to cover up the case. Furthermore, they have not been able to visit the incident place (the school) and to contact or interview all the concerned persons. They also cannot access the information and documents related to school administration that is essential to find out details about the situation. The victims fear that all the available evidences will be destroyed and the accused will be free with lack of evidence. In this case, the victims, who revealed their agonies bravely, will be at risk.
SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please send a letter, fax or email to the local authorities to express your concern on this case. A sample letter is attached.
1. Hon. Surya Bahadur Thapa
Prime Minister
Office of the Prime Minister
Singha Durbar, Kathmandu
NEPAL
Tel: +977 1 228555 or 227955
Fax: +977 1 4 227 765 / +977 1 227286
Email: hmg@es.wlink.com.np
2. Mr. Keshav Prasad Upadhaya
The Chief Justice
Singha Durbar, Kathmandu
NEPAL
Tel: +977 1 4 262546
Fax: +977 1 4 262878
3. Chief of Armed Police Officer
Kathmandu
NEPAL
Tel: +977 1 4 275 685
Fax: +977 1 4 277 418
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. Ms. Yakin Ertk
Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women
OHCHR-UNOG
8-14 Avenue de la Paix
1211 Geneva 10,
SWITZERLAND
Fax: +41 22 917 9022 / 917 9011
6. Mr. John Bevan
Officer in Human Rights Section
C/o UNDP, UN House,
P.O. Box: 107
Pulchowk, Kathmandu
NEPAL
Tel: +977 1 5 524 366 / 5 523 200
Fax: +977 1 5 523 991 / 5 523 986
Email: john.bevan@undp.org
To support this case, please click here: SEND APPEAL LETTER
SAMPLE LETTER
Dear
Re: Rape of two blind girls by the hostel warden and danger of police inaction
Name of the victims: Miss. X (20 years old) of Chanaute Village, at Sigana VDC-6, Baglung District and Miss. Y (18 years old) of Kolpata Village at Narayansthan VDC-3, Baglung District (the name of victims are withheld)
Alleged perpetrator: Mr. Kamal G.C., a hostel warden of the Shree Janata Higher Secondary School in Balewa, Baglung District, Nepal
Period of incident: from 8 May 1998 to January 2004
Status of the Case: Danger of police inaction due to the pressure from the high level
I am shocked to learn about the repeated rape of two young blind girls by the hostel warden of the Shree Janata Higher Secondary School in Balewa, Baglung, Nepal.
According to the information I have received, since 8 may 1998 till January 2004, the two victims above were continuously raped by Mr. Kamal G.C.. Even though the two victims revealed the story and lodged complaints against the perpetrator recently, no serious action has yet been taken by the police. On the contrary, it is alleged that the investigation team has pressure from the high-level government officials to protect the accused and cover up the case. In particular, the perpetrator’s denial about the case and uncooperative attitude of the School Principle obstruct to conduct a through investigation. It is also alleged that the perpetrator intimidated the victims to withdraw complaints. I am worried that if a proper investigation is not conducted, all the available evidences will be destroyed and the accused will be free with lack of evidence.
Therefore, I urge you to order a speedy and impartial investigation on this matter and bring the perpetrator to justice as soon as possible. The victims should be compensated in accordance with international standard. I further request Shree Janata Higher Secondary School to apply strong disciplinary and administrative sanction to the perpetrator. The government of Nepal must improve monitoring mechanism of the public school, especially schools for blind children, in order to prohibit further violation. Lastly, I urge the government of Nepal to implement Convent Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), of which Nepal is a state party, into domestic laws.
Truly yours
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Thank you.
Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC)
