Following the latest political development of the country, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) removed King Gyanendra and Maoist Chairman Prachanda from the list of Press Freedom Predators.

The Paris based media watchdog said that the King and Prachanda were removed from the list as the king has ceded power to parliament and government, and Prachanda signed a political accord with Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala on 16 June undertaking to respect democracy and press freedom.

“The press freedom predators have been defeated or forced to accept the rules of democracy and pluralism in Nepal,” Reporters Without Borders said. “But we will continue to monitor developments.

Maoist cadres in Chitawan have just threatened a journalist, which is unacceptable under the terms of the accord signed by Prachanda, the statement adds.

The press freedom organisation called on the government and the Maoists to quickly settle the issue of compensation for victims of the civil war, including journalists.

“We will remain extremely vigilant and we will denounce attacks on journalists whether they come from the state or the Maoists,” the organization said.

The RSF hailed the release of all imprisoned journalists, including those who support the Maoist movement.

Likewise the international media watchdog also welcomed the repeal of the media ordinances issued by King Gyanendra’s government and end of the policy of restricting the allocation of state advertising.

The RSF also hailed overturning by the supreme court of article 8 of the Radio and TV Broadcasting Act and article 15(1) of the Publications and Newspapers Act and formation of a commission that will look at ways to adapt legislation to the emergence of the electronic media, among others.

Reporters Without Borders nonetheless regrets that no media experts or online journalists are on the commission, the statement adds.