To: Ms. Rashida Manjoo, Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences, Mr. Frank La Rue, Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression; Mr. Maina Kiai, Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association; Ms. Margaret Sekaggya, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders; Mr. Christof Heyns, Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions; and Mr. Olivier de Frouville, Chair-Rapporteur, Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances
From: Mugiyanto, Chairperson and Mary Aileen Diez-Bacalso, Secretary-General, Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD)
Date: 18 February 2013
Re: Alarming human rights situation in Nepal with the arrest of 23 human rights defenders and a mother with a three year-old child
Dear Special Rapporteurs:
The Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD) seeks your urgent action on the alarming situation of human rights in Nepal with the arrest of 23 human rights defenders, including our Executive Council member, Mandira Sharma and a mother with her three year-old daughter on 16 February 2013.
The mostly women protesters were on their way to the Prime Minister’s house to deliver a letter demanding justice for the murder of Maina Sunuwar, a 15 year-old school girl by government security forces in 2004. It was a peaceful expression of dissent; however it was met with police force, unnecessarily wounding one protester, Badri Prasad Bhusal who was punched on the face. They were released a few hours later.
This is the second arrest this year of peaceful human rights defenders and ordinary citizens composed mostly of women who have been campaigning for government action on the increasing violence against women. Last January 25th, police also arrested 32 participants of a sit-in demonstration in front of the Prime Minister’s residence. The sit-in demonstration, dubbed as “Occupy Baluawatar”, is a public movement to end all forms of violence against women and gender-based discrimination that started in the last week of December.
However, AFAD finds it disturbing that instead of investigating, arresting and prosecuting human rights violators, the government has been directing its actions against human rights defenders. The recent arrests and other actions against human rights indicate a retrogression of the government’s human rights commitment to the international human rights community. Early in January, there were also attempts to block the investigation on the case of Dekendra Thapa, a journalist who disappeared in 2008.
Given this situation, AFAD seeks your support to press the Bhattarai government to:
-
Respect the rights of its people to free expression and peaceful assembly;
-
Address the demands of the Occupy Baluatar Movement against gender-based violence and discrimination; and
-
Adhere to its human rights obligations by instituting measures to restore the rule of law, investigate and prosecute the perpetrators of human rights violations.
Please see the attached call of AFAD on the Bhattarai government as reference.
Thank you, in advance, for your consideration of this urgent appeal.
Sincerely,
MUGIYANTO
Chairperson
MARY AILEEN BACALSO
Secretary-General