The royal regime continues to detain four senior civil society and rights activists – just for standing up in favour of peace and ‘loktantra’ in the country.

By Indra Adhikari

It’s been two months that former ministers in the interim government of 1990, Dr Devendra Raj Panday and Prof. Mathura Prasad Shrestha, senior rights activist Krishna Pahadi and editor Shyam Shrestha – were picked up from their houses early in the morning and put behind bars.

Their crime: to stand up against the royal regime and campaign fearlessly for restoration of peace, human rights, rule of law and `loktantra’ (democracy) in the country.

At a time when telephone lines were cut off, hundreds of political leaders and activists were detained and there was unprecedented censorship on the media, rights activist Pahadi organized the first street protest in the capital, Kathmandu, within a week of the royal takeover in February last year. Dr. Panday, Prof. Shrestha and editor of pro-left Mulyankan monthly Shyam Shrestha were also in the forefront of civil society’s peaceful movement against the royal regime. They later floated ‘Citizens’ Movement for Peace and Democracy’ with a view to act as watchdog and support the opposition parties’ movement for the restoration of democracy in the country.

(From left) Prof. Shrestha, Dr. Panday, editor Shrestha and Pahadi. The banner that was displayed at the Yelamaya Kendra on Friday reads: “Why are you detaining them? Release them immediately.” (Photo courtesy: Min Bajracharya/ Himal khabarpatrika)
A day before the huge mass meeting and rally being organized by the seven party opposition alliance in Kathmandu, over one hundred political leaders and activists were arrested by police. Shrestha duo, Dr. Panday and Pahadi were among them. The next day, the royal government declared day-long curfew in the streets of Kathmandu. It was the first time since the restoration of democracy in 1990 that the government had resorted to curfew in an attempt to thwart the peaceful rally.

“The continued detention of politicians and rights activists shows that this government does not have even a little bit of respect towards rule of law and the country’s constitution,” said politician and ideologue Nilamber Acharya, addressing a protest programme organised at the Yelamaya Kendra in Lalitpur on Friday. “It’s obvious that all these detentions are illegal which has been proved by the orders delivered by the court in other similar cases,” he added.

Said Padma Ratna Tuladhar, a noted rights activist, Nepalis in general and political parties in particular should applaud the commitment and courage exhibited by jailed rights activists.

Politicians still behind bars include Nepali Congress general secretary Ram Chandra Poudel and NC leader Narahari Acharya. Local authorities handed over detention orders to politicians and civil society activists saying that it had been necessary to put them under ‘preventive detention’ as their activities would, otherwise, pose serious threat to law and order in the country. Was that true?

Talking to Nepalnews, rights activist and chairman of Informal Sector Service Center (INSEC), Subodh Raj Pyakurel, said that allegations like these are simply ‘unethical.’ “It is a well known fact that rights activists have ‘zero tolerance’ towards all kinds of violence. Hence, such baseless allegations only expose the mentality and intention of the royal regime,” he added.

“The government has to understand that you cannot expand authority and shed responsibility; you can not preach democracy and deny freedom; you cannot preach law and order and hold yourself above the Constitution.”
— Priniti Pant, daughter of Dr. Panday
When kept in confinement, inner strength and conviction are the only companion available to people who willingly choose custody rather than submission to an authoritarian regime. When surveyed by Nepalnews, family members of detained civil society leaders and rights activists said all of them had high morale and were spending their time reading and writing.

President of Human Rights Organisation of Nepal (HURON), Charan Prasai, was put behind bars for nearly two weeks in Jawalakhel without any warrant last month. On Wednesday, he went to see his colleague and friend, Krishna Pahadi and senior journalist Shyam Shrestha, at the Armed Police Force battalion no 2 in Maharajgunj.

“Shrestha and Pahadi spend about two hours daily practicing Yoga in the morning. The day begins with newspapers allowed by the government in the custody. Then they spend their time rest of the day reading books, writing articles, diaries etc. and discussing about the future of freedom in the country,” said Prasain.

A vegetarian and bachelor, Pahadi dons his trademark yellow clothes. He is still to recover from his illness. He has been diagnosed with excess cholesterol in blood; and has been contacting doctors at the Gangalal Hospital. “My uncle had turned sick but now there has been some improvement in his health,” Pahadi’s niece, Anupama, told us.

Journalist Shrestha’s wife said, “When I go to meet him, he seldom talks politics. Police now-a-days do not intervene while we are talking but they ask us not to spend too much time there.”

Pahadi has asked for books on history, water resources, human rights and religion while Shrestha seemed more interested in politics and biography of imminent political figures. Shrestha recently completed biography of Nelson Mandela and is looking for books on restructuring of the state. One of the favourite of Pahadi is Bhagavad Gita, according to his family members.

According to Pranav, son of Prof. Mathura Shrestha, the senior rights activist is suffering from cough and cold for the last one week. “He is gradually recovering now,” he said.

“My father is allowed to read the state-owned Gorkhapatra, Nepal Samacharpatra and Rajdhani dailies. Listening radio is strictly prohibited,” said Pranav.

Prof. Shrestha also passes his days reading books. He has more interest on political philosophies and analysis. “He also asks us to email to selected persons and media houses his write-ups and political analysis which he gives us in hand written form,” said his son.

Nepalnews was not able to talk to family members of Dr Devendra Raj Panday despite several attempts.

According to rights groups who had visited him, Panday is being kept at APF battalion-1 in Naxal and has been denied access to radio and independent newspapers. Conditions of food and bed are also unsatisfactory.

As Nepali officials including Foreign Minister Ramesh Nath Pandey are giving final touches to Nepal’s presentation at the 62nd session of the UN Human Rights Commission (now, renamed as Human Rights Council), dozens of political leaders and rights activists continue to languish in detention centers in Kathmandu.

The officials are likely to face hard times in Geneva while attempting defend the human rights record of the government after the royal takeover. But it was difficult to understand why the government continues to detain politicians and civil society activists despite widespread international condemnation.

In an op-ed article published in Thursday’s The Himalayan Times daily, Priniti Pant wrote, “My father (Dr. Devendra Raj Panday) has been jailed for more than two months. While the government may argue that he has been charged with a crime, everyone understands that it is simply semantics. Will the government which made the decision to jail him ever be held accountable?”

Dr. Pant, who teaches at Roger Williams University, Rhode Islands in the US, further wrote: “The government has to understand that you cannot expand authority and shed responsibility; you can not preach democracy and deny freedom; you cannot preach law and order and hold yourself above the Constitution. The people in this government need to fear the day of judgment and understand that when the day comes, they will be held accountable for what they have done to this country and they are doing.”