United Nations appeals for an End to Fighting in Nepal by Bertrand Ramcharan 8:04am 25th Mar, 2004   31 March 2004    The acting United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Bertrand Ramcharan, has welcomed the 26 March declaration by the Government of Nepal reaffirming its commitment to its international human rights and humanitarian law obligations.    In a letter today to Nepalese Prime Minister Surya Bahadur Thapa, the acting High Commissioner expressed his sincere hope that the implementation of "His Majesty's Government's Commitment on the Implementation of Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law" would help protect civilians from the armed conflict and contribute to building confidence.    The acting High Commissioner noted that the Commitment provides for a specific monitoring role for the National Human Rights Commission of Nepal (NHRC), with external technical assistance. He stressed that in order to be effective as a tool for human rights protection, the Government's declaration needed to be accompanied by a firm commitment to nationwide monitoring of adherence to international standards, under the aegis and mandate of the NHRC. He reiterated the readiness of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to provide technical assistance to support the NHRC in carrying out this monitoring role.    23 March 2004    Voicing concern at the escalation of fighting in Nepal with its mounting toll of civilian casualties and human rights abuses, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan has called on the government and communists to end their conflict and offered his good offices in helping to reach a solution.    In a statement issued by his spokesman last night, Mr. Annan said the continued conflict was having an increasingly devastating impact on the lives of ordinary people.    “Civilian casualties and serious human rights violations are a routine occurrence, and the country's economic and social development is being seriously hampered,” he added.    Discounting a military solution to the conflict, he appealed to the government and the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) “to take immediate steps to end the fighting and resume the peace process with the participation of all political and civil forces in the country.”    Mr. Annan added that he “continues to be available to assist the search for a solution in any manner the parties consider useful.”    9 March 2004    UN human rights experts alarmed by deteriorating situation in Nepal.    Citing secret detentions, torture, the harassment of civilians and indiscriminate attacks, three United Nations human rights experts said today they were deeply concerned by the "deteriorating situation" in Nepal.    In a joint statement released in Geneva, the rapporteurs urged the Nepalese Government and the Communist Party of Nepal (CPN) to sign and implement the Human Rights Accord immediately and respect international human rights laws and norms.    The UN Special Rapporteur on torture, Theo van Boven, the Special Rapporteur on the right to freedom of opinion and expression, Ambeyi Ligabo, and the Chairperson-Rapporteur of the Working Group on arbitrary detention, Leïla Zerroügui, said the human rights situation in Nepal has worsened since their last public warning in mid-November.    Since then, the three rapporteurs have sent 47 urgent appeals to Kathmandu relating to the alleged detention of about 100 people in unknown locations.    "Many reports refer to an increasing incidence of harassment - including house searches, arrests and detention - of journalists, teachers, lawyers and trade unionists for expressing themselves on the conflict," the three experts said.    The rapporteurs added they had received "disturbing reports of impunity of the security forces responsible for human rights violations," which include torture and other forms of ill-treatment of prisoners being held incommunicado.    The three experts also said they were "seriously concerned" about indiscriminate attacks against civilians by both sides in the conflict between the Nepalese Government and the CPN.
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