Nepal

A group of journalists today called on the chief of the United Nations Office of High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in Nepal to play a pro-active in protecting Nepali media from various government offenses. In a memorandum handed over to Ian Martin, the journalists said they feared that in the aftermath the Supreme Court’s decision yesterday in relation to the media ordinance, the...

King Gyanendra, while addressing the inaugural session of the thirteenth SAARC summit in Dhaka today, said that his February 1 move was necessitated by the ground realities of the pre-Feb 1 period and was not taken at the cost of the democracy. Nepal was in the danger of turning into a failed state, but since February 1, the security situation in Nepal had improved, the King said. He said the...

The Nepalese Attorney General, Professor Pawan Kumar Ohja, has defended the legality of the recent media ordinance, claiming that it is not unconstitutional - despite having been issued by the executive in the absence of parliament. "As ordinances also hold legislative power, it can amend not only the ordinance itself, but also the existing laws and regulations made by the parliament," Ohja said...

KATHMANDU, Nov. 11: The Gorkhapatra Style Book will be amended to bring uniformity to its Nepali publications, said Executive Chairperson of the Gorkhapatra Corporation at the conclusion of the two-day refresher course organised by the corporation to its Nepali proofreaders on Friday. During the training, different speakers said that there were different dictionaries and grammar books and, thus...

The Supreme Court today declined to issue a stay order on the implementation of the controversial media ordinance. It also refused to continue the interlocutory stay order issued on October 27 ordering the government not to take further action against Kantipur FM. The court ruled there was no ground to issue a stay order in the case filed by Kantipur FM and others. A special bench of Chief Justice...

Cheju Island _ Some 70 senior journalists from 22 nations Wednesday called on the Nepalese government to take immediate steps to restore freedom of speech in the Himalayan country. ``The ongoing government crackdown on the Nepalese media is a cause for great concern for journalists committed to freedom and democracy in the Asia-Pacific region,'' they said in a statement. They adopted the statement...

KATMANDU, Nepal -- A general strike shut down schools, businesses and transportation in the capital Friday in a protest of new laws restricting the media for criticizing Nepal's king. Nepal's seven major political parties called the strike to oppose new regulations that let authorities shut down newspapers and radio stations and jail journalists. The new laws, imposed Oct. 9, make publishing or...

The Supreme Court of Nepal has asked the government to furnish written replies over the controversial media ordinance issued by King Gyanendra and a subsequent midnight raid conducted on a private FM radio station by the police. VOX POPULI: There have been widespread protests agianst the King's controversial media ordinance. Nine professional organisations filed a writ petition challenging the...

KATHMANDU, Oct 23 - Nine professional organizations, on Sunday, filed a writ petition in the Supreme Court seeking nullification of the media ordinance, claiming it is against the Constitution. "The Ordinance contravenes constitutional provisions on Articles 11, 12, 13, 14, 16, 18, 22 and 72 . So the ordinance should be nullified," reads the petition. The provisions are related to right to...

Police on Friday raided a major private radio broadcaster, seizing key studio and transmitting components after the station defied a government order to halt newscasts, an official said. Kantipur Radio channel -- which belongs to the country's largest private media group -- was raided by dozens of police on Friday, said Amit Dhakal, news editor of the Kathmandu Post, the English daily published by...