NEPAL: Stop atrocities by security forces against peaceful demonstrators
Written by FORUM-ASIA
Saturday, 22 April 2006
PRESS STATEMENT
FORUM-ASIA strongly condemns the atrocities being waged by the Nepalese security agencies ・the Royal Nepalese Army, the Armed Police Force and the Nepal Police against the people of Nepal participating in peaceful demonstrations. With these atrocities against its own people, the regime of King Gyanendra has lost all credibility to govern Nepal.
Security forces are indiscriminately firing bullets and teargas shells at the demonstrators. Severe beatings and indiscriminate baton-charges to disperse the protesters have caused a large number of injuries to the civilian population, including human rights activists, journalists, medical professionals, lawyers, bystanders, women and children.
We strongly oppose the excessive force unleashed by the security forces causing the extrajudicial killings of at least a dozen civilians, leaving other hundreds injured and thousands arrested over the last two weeks.
The denial of access and freedom of movement to human rights defenders, media and medical personnel is totally unacceptable. Even UN monitors have been denied freedom of movement, thus violating the agreement between the Nepalese government and the OHCHR, as well as others.
For atrocities committed, the Nepalese security forces cannot expect amnesty either from their own people or under international law.
We caution the Nepalese army against obeying criminal orders from the king to kill unarmed protesting civilians. The level of indiscriminate firing into crowds and wilful killing of human rights defenders place criminal liability on individual military personnel before international law and cannot be shielded by reason of ‘following orders’ Soldiers should be aware that they are undertaking unlawful orders to commit crimes against humanity and could be made accountable after the king has been deposed.
Such unrestrained actions have to be taken up by the UN Security Council and the Department of Political Affairs. The carnage caused by the Nepalese security agencies in their home country has to be noted by the Department of Peacekeeping Operations to re-assess the recruitment of Nepalese soldiers for UN peacekeeping missions.
Their violations should also be noted by the UN Peacebuilding Commission, as Nepal should not be seated in its Organizational Committee, given its security forces’ actions in their own country.
We join the Nepalese people, regional and international groups, and UN experts and officials to demand that King Gyanendra immediately end the crackdown on peaceful protests and step down. Likewise, we strongly call on the Nepalese security agencies not to obey the orders of the government which result in the killing and further suffering of their own people.
