Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment in Nepal

March 14, 2001
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Kathmandu: Below we reproduce some excerpts of the release on Nepal which has recently been published by the US Department of State. The report, as reported last week as well, is a compilation of the findings by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor. This part of the release deals with torture and other cruel and inhumane treatment meted out to Nepali prisoners in Nepal by concerned authorities. The text begins-Chief editor.

The Constitution and criminal law prohibit torture; however, the police often use torture and beatings to punish suspects or to extract confessions. According to Amnesty International, torture methods include boxing of the ears, beating of the feet, and the rolling of weights over the thighs. Amnesty International noted that torture apparently was used to intimidate or punish detainees and to extract information and/or confessions, and that torture often took place while detainees were held incommunicado and unable to contact family, doctors, or lawyers (see Section 1.d.). The Government has failed to conduct thorough and independent investigations of reports of police brutality and has refused to take significant disciplinary action against officers involved. Police often are unwilling to investigate and to discipline fellow officers, and persons are afraid to bring cases against police for fear of reprisals. The Constitution provides for compensation for victims of torture, and the Torture Compensation Act, providing for such compensation, was passed by Parliament in 1996. According to Amnesty International, 12 persons made claims under the act in 1998; 6 later withdrew their complaints, reportedly because of fear for their safety. The Government has begun human rights education for the police force. According to an August government newspaper report, the Government suspended seven police personnel and appointed a high-level commission to probe the death of trucker Ale Tamang following alleged police torture while in custody on the charge of theft. The police allegedly doused the victim’s legs with kerosene and set them on fire, dipped them in water, and again burned them. The appointment of the commission came after considerable public criticism. In October 1998, Ganesh Rai died in police custody as a result of torture. Two policemen were suspended in connection with the case.

Human rights groups have reported instances of torture in areas affected by the “People’s War.” Dozens of male detainees reported having torture inflicted on them by the police, while women in these areas have reported instances of rape and sexual abuse by the police. Representatives of Amnesty International who visited the country after the May 1998 police sweeps against UPF insurgents began reported that they found evidence of “the systematic use of severe torture” by police. AI also raised its concerns over the relative impunity of the police for such actions.

Local and international human rights groups also have documented Maoist violence in areas affected by the “People’s War,” including the severing of arms and limbs. The Maoists most often have targeted political leaders, local elites, and suspected informers, including representatives of the more moderate Communist Party of Nepal–United Marxist-Leninist (UML) and of the Nepali Congress Party (NPC). Throughout the year, Maoists looted banks and bombed or set fire to government offices, hospitals, and homes of local political leaders. International nongovernmental organization (NGO) offices also were attacked on several occasions. There also were cases of intimidation, torture, or other degrading treatment. On February 16, insurgents threw a gasoline bomb at a truck in Kathmandu. No one was injured. Maoists were suspected of bombing the home of Padam Prasad Pokhrel, the civilian official who controls the country’s police force, on March 2. No one was injured in the bombing. On March 29, the office of an international NGO in Gadhi, Kabhre district was looted by Maoists. On April 7, a hospital run by the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) in Makwanpur district was bombed by the Maoists; no one was hurt. On April 15, in Kathmandu, four suspected Maoists entered a tax office during working hours, poured gasoline in the office, and set fire to it. The perpetrators left pamphlets calling for a general strike. On April 18, insurgents stopped Lalitpur land revenue official Tara Nath Subedi, smeared black paint on his face, and told him to stop accepting bribes. They then doused him with gasoline and tried to set him on fire, but Subedi escaped. On May 1, two policemen and three election officials were injured by a Maoist bomb while heading to Sisna village. On June 8, Maoists attacked Govinda Pahadi of Sindhuli with khukuri knives, and seriously wounded him. On June 25, Maoists attacked Yadu Prasad Wasti and Gunjeswor Neupane in Gorkha district. The two reportedly were tied up with ropes and beaten with polythene pipes. In Tanahu district on August 5, Maoists dragged Raj Lohani, a member of the Nepali Congress district committee, out of a truck carrying some 100 passengers and killed him in front of them. The Maoists called for a general strike on October 8; on the night prior to the strike, bombs exploded in Kathmandu, Gorkha, Bhadrapur, Jhapa, Syangja, Chitwan, Birgunj, and Sindhulimadi. At least 10 persons were injured in the bombings. Bombs were defused by the army in Hetauda and Nuwakot.

On September 22, deputy superintendent of police Thule Rai was abducted by Maoist insurgents in Rukum. He was released on December 20.

Prison conditions are poor. Overcrowding is common in prisons and authorities sometimes handcuff or fetter detainees. Women are normally incarcerated separately from men, but in similar conditions. The Government still has not implemented a provision in the 1992 Children’s Act calling for the establishment of a juvenile home and juvenile court. Consequently, children are sometimes incarcerated with adults–either with an incarcerated parent, or, as one local NGO reports, as criminal offenders. The Department of Prisons states that there are no cases of children in jail or custody for offenses they have committed; close to 100 noncriminal dependent children, however, are incarcerated along with their parents (see Section 5). In Rukum district, a 13-year-old boy was arrested in 1997 and accused of being a Maoist. He was held for 6 months with 54 adults in a cell designed for only 15 persons, before a trial date was scheduled.

There has been some improvement in prison conditions. The authorities are more likely to transfer sick prisoners to hospitals than they were in the past. However, due to the inadequacy of medical facilities in the country, the authorities sometimes place the mentally ill in jails under inhumane conditions.

The Government permits local human rights groups and the International Committee of the Red Cross to visit prisons.