United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Nepal, on the occasion of the International Day of the Disappeared (30 August)

UNITED NATIONS
OFFICE OF THE HIGH COMMISSIONER
FOR HUMAN RIGHTS IN NEPAL


PRESS RELEASE

30 August 2005

On the occasion of the International Day of the Disappeared (30 August), Ian Martin, the Representative of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Nepal, emphasized that the problem of disappearances continues to be a serious concern and that OHCHR-Nepal is regularly receiving complaints of disappearances by both CPN-Maoists and the security forces.

Mr. Martin drew attention to the recommendations made by the UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances, which visited Nepal in December 2004. “There is still much to be done on implementing those recommendations” said Mr. Martin. “Some steps have been taken towards establishing a list of detainees in Army barracks, but it is still unclear how Government will provide accurate, up-to-date lists of all those held in any place of detention”, he stated. The creation of a national registry, open to the families of detainees, the National Human Rights Commission and others, was a key recommendation of the Working Group.

Mr. Martin noted that the Working Group, in its annual message from Geneva, had singled out Nepal as a particular case of a country where families of disappeared persons or human rights defenders are harassed, hampered from locating their loved ones, or even accused by the authorities of trying to destabilize the country. “I share that concern,” he said; “we have had many reports that civil society organizations, as well as journalists, continue to receive threats and are under pressure from both sides of the conflict. This will certainly be reflected in our reporting”.


* * * * *