Nepal

A previously unknown group calling itself the National Republican Army, Nepal (NRA) has claimed to have killed a freelance reporter abducted a week ago from his home in the western district of Kanchanpur. On Monday, the group claimed in an email that it had killed reporter Prakash Thakuri and accused him of “propaganda in support of the monarchy.” “We are concerned about the safety of Prakash...

KATMANDU, Nepal: A search continued for a journalist abducted last week in western Nepal and one suspect has been arrested, a police official said Tuesday. Freelance journalist Prakash Thakuri was kidnapped July 5 from his home in Kanchanpur town, about 550 kilometers (330 miles) west of the capital Katmandu, said police official Chabilal Joshi. Officials received an e-mail Monday night claiming...

(FNJ/IFEX) - Pabitra Kumar Khadka, central representative of the FNJ and Sindhupalchowk correspondent for the national daily "Gorkhapatra ", was threatened with death on 18 June 2007 by Sub-Inspector Surendra Basnet and Constable Keshab Raut of the area police office in Barabise, Sindhupalchowk, a district in central Nepal. Khadka was threatened for not disclosing the source of a news report...

(CPJ/IFEX) - New York, June 21, 2007 - Two newspapers in Kathmandu have suspended publication this week in response to pressure, including death threats, from a Maoist party-affiliated trade union, the All-Nepal Communication, Press and Publications Trade Union. Nepalese journalists told the Committee to Protect Journalists that the trade union action appeared to be aimed at influencing coverage...

Nepal’s Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala has pledged to preserve monarchy in the country if the present king Gyanendra and Prince Paras voluntarily quit their throne. Speaking Sunday to Pakistani journalists in kathmandu, Koirala expressed his inner desire to protect monarchy even if the coming Constituent Assembly decides not to keep it. When his remarks were highlighted by national media in...

(FNJ/IFEX) - Ambika Bhandari, editor of the "Samyentra Weekly", published in Biratchowk in Morang, a district in eastern Nepal, was threatened with death by Bikram Bhujel, owner of the "Don't Cross Me" restaurant on 11 June 2007. Bhandari was threatened regarding news published in the paper that same day. According to Shiva Bahadur Karki, president of FNJ's Morang chapter, Bhujel entered Bhandari...

Reporters Without Borders voiced concern today about the safety of journalists in southern Nepal where armed groups are becoming increasingly active. At least 72 journalists have been attacked or threatened since 1 January by groups that use violence against the media and the civilian population in general. A list of the main incidents involving armed groups accompanies this release. "This is...

(FNJ/IFEX) - The distributors of the daily "Nepal Samacharpatra", who are associated with the pro-Maoist Nepal Publication and Communication Labour Association, padlocked the publication and distribution office of "Nepal Samacharpatra" on 26 May 2007 in the central district of Katmandu. According to "Nepal Samcharpatra", the distributors started the strike after making several demands on the...

(FNJ/IFEX) - Lokshari Kuwar, editor and publisher of "Morning Bell" daily, was captured and attacked by a group of people on 2 May 2007 in Dhangadi, Kailali, a western district of Nepal. According to Birendra Rawal, president of Press Chautrai Nepal, three "hooligans" - Ganesh Chand, Lalit Kuwar and Prem Kalel - brutally beat Kuwar. He sustained serious wounds to his head and neck; two teeth were...

(FNJ/IFEX) - Yuvraj Adhikary, a local correspondent of Radio Nepal, was attacked by cadres of the Maoist-aligned Young Communist League (YCL) on 2 May 2007 in the Kusumba market of Bardiya, a mid-western district of Nepal. Adhikary had gone to the Kusumba market to collect news about a clash between armed police forces, deployed at the market for border security purposes, and a group of refugees...