Dear friends,
 
The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) wishes to forward you the following press release and linked report produced by Nepalese NGO Advocacy Forum. The report, entitled  “Torture Continues: A Brief Report on the Practice of Torture in Nepal,” was released to mark the United Nations International Day in Support of Victims of Torture on June 26, 2007, and focuses on the ongoing problem of torture in Nepal. It is based on the daily monitoring of 35 police detention centres in Nepal, during which Advocacy Forum has alone documented 1,313 new cases of torture since the popular uprisings in April 2006.

Link to the report: http://nepal.ahrchk.net/pdf/AHRC-FP-011-2007-Nepal.pdf

Asian Human Rights Commission
Hong Kong
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FORWARDED PRESS RELEASE
AHRC-FP-011-2007

A Press Release from Advocacy Forum forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC)

NEPAL: Advocacy Forum releases report on the occasion of the UN International Day in Support of Victims of Torture

On 25 June 2006, Advocacy Forum organized an interactive programme to mark the “United Nations International Day in Support of Victims of Torture.” Advocacy Forum issued the report “Torture Continues: A Brief Report on the Practice of Torture in Nepal” that was prepared on the basis of Advocacy Forum’s daily monitoring of 35 police detention centres. 

Nepal ratified the Convention Against Torture on 14 May 1991. Yet, Nepal only criminalised torture with the promulgation of the Interim Constitution. Despite the heroic struggle of the People’s Movement and pledges from the political leadership to improve Nepal’s human rights practices, torture still continues.

Advocacy Forum alone has documented 1,313 new cases of torture (after April 2006). Though the power of the military to detain civilians has been curtailed, the Nepal Army (NA) still arrests and detains civilians and inflicts torture upon them. AF has documented 17 cases of torture, 4 cases of rape and 6 cases of illegal detention of civilians committed by the NA after April 2006. As for the Maoists, Advocacy Forum has documented 67 cases of torture, 1 case of rape, and 96 cases of abduction since the People’s Movement of April 2006.

Advocacy Forum’s documentation of police detention centres has shown that the People’s Movement has not led to any significant amelioration in detention practices. Of the 3,908 detainees interviewed since April 2006, 27.6% were subjected to acts of torture. Of 1,105 juveniles interviewed since the People’s Movement, 36.9% admitted to being tortured and 42.7% were detained illegally. Though Nepalis have a constitutional right to be produced in court within 24 hours of their arrest, only 28.8% of detainees interviewed by Advocacy Forum were guaranteed this right. 

The existing legal framework in Nepal has failed to protect the fundamental human rights of Nepalis. The torture compensation scheme, which offers no witness or victim protection, is perpetrator-friendly and wholly insufficient.  Moreover, perpetrators rely on a culture of impunity that protects them from criminal action.

Nepal needs proactive intervention from major stakeholders to effectively combat the systematic practice of torture. The police, public prosecutors, defense lawyers, and judges must remain committed to upholding the fundamental human rights of Nepalis and implementing the constitutional prohibition against torture.

Advocacy Forum joins hands with all of these actors in their efforts to combat torture. On this occasion, Advocacy Forum extends its support to survivors of torture and stands along with them in their quest for justice. 

Link to the report: http://nepal.ahrchk.net/pdf/AHRC-FP-011-2007-Nepal.pdf

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About AHRC: The Asian Human Rights Commission is a regional non-governmental organisation monitoring and lobbying human rights issues in Asia. The Hong Kong-based group was founded in 1984.