Nepal
22.09.04
Urgent Interventions
Nepal: arbitrary arrest and torture of Mr. Ganesh Chhetri
Case NPL 220904
Arbitrary Arrest / Alleged Torture / Impunity
The International Secretariat of OMCT requests your URGENT intervention in the following situation in NEPAL.
Brief description of the situation
The International Secretariat of OMCT has been informed by a reliable source and the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC), a member of the OMCT network, of the arbitrary arrest and torture of Mr. Ganesh Chhetri in Nepal.
According to the information received, Mr. Ganesh Chhetri, a 44 year-old resident of Kathmandu, was arrested around 7:00 p.m. on 27 August 2004. The arrest, carried out by two uniformed police personnel, assistant sub-inspector B. Pande and one police constable from the Balaju Ward Police Station, was carried out at his residence and witnessed by his father. The officers reportedly arrested Mr. Ganesh Chhetri without any warrant and told him that someone had filed a petition against him and therefore they had some questions to ask him.
According to the information reported, Mr. Ganesh Chhetri was first placed in the Banasthali temporary police station, then was quickly moved to Balaju Ward Police Station. Mr. Ganesh Chhetri was given a blanket and told that he would have to stay until the next morning when the chief could speak with him.
The next morning, the morning of August 28, 2004, Inspector (I) Uttam K.C. and assistant sub-inspector B. Pander, as well as other officers reportedly brutally beat Mr. Ganesh Chhetri kicking him and beating him with a pole without interrogating him. Mr. Ganesh Chhetri could not remember how many officers actually beat him because he soon fell unconscious.
After the beatings Mr. Ganesh Chhetri awoke with a bleeding nose and blood surrounding him. He remembers the police being worried about the amount of blood he was losing because they kept checking on him. According to the information received, at around 1:00 p.m., the police called his father to come pick up his son. Upon Mr. Chhetri’s release the police threatened him and his father not to report anything about his detainment to the media or they would torture him again in the same way. He was released on the condition of Rs. 450 (US$6) compensation to the petitioner of the file. Mr. Uttam K.C. claims that the injuries Mr. Chhetri had upon release were inflicted by a fall that the victim had which resulted in a wound on his neck.
After his release, Mr. Chhetri was brought by his father to the B&B hospital at Gwarko, Lalitpur where he was examined and was provided with medical care.
The International Secretariat of OMCT is gravely concerned about the physical and psychological integrity of Mr. Ganesh Chhetri, as his injuries were severe and his mental health was severely affected. OMCT calls on the authorities to launch a prompt, thorough and impartial investigation into the circumstances of these events in order to bring those responsible for any violations of human rights to justice.
Action Requested
Please write to the authorities in Nepal urging them to :
i. take all measures necessary to guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of Mr. Ganesh Chhetri;
ii. order a thorough and impartial investigation into the circumstances of these events in order to identify those responsible, bring them to trial and apply the penal and/or administrative sanctions as provided by law;
iii. guarantee that adequate reparation is provided to the victim of this abuse;
iv. guarantee the respect of human rights and the fundamental freedoms throughout the country in accordance with national laws and international human rights standards.
Adresses
Please also write the embassies of Nepal in your respective country.
Geneva, 22 September 2004
Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.
Arbitrary Arrest / Alleged Torture / Impunity
The International Secretariat of OMCT requests your URGENT intervention in the following situation in NEPAL.
Brief description of the situation
The International Secretariat of OMCT has been informed by a reliable source and the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC), a member of the OMCT network, of the arbitrary arrest and torture of Mr. Ganesh Chhetri in Nepal.
According to the information received, Mr. Ganesh Chhetri, a 44 year-old resident of Kathmandu, was arrested around 7:00 p.m. on 27 August 2004. The arrest, carried out by two uniformed police personnel, assistant sub-inspector B. Pande and one police constable from the Balaju Ward Police Station, was carried out at his residence and witnessed by his father. The officers reportedly arrested Mr. Ganesh Chhetri without any warrant and told him that someone had filed a petition against him and therefore they had some questions to ask him.
According to the information reported, Mr. Ganesh Chhetri was first placed in the Banasthali temporary police station, then was quickly moved to Balaju Ward Police Station. Mr. Ganesh Chhetri was given a blanket and told that he would have to stay until the next morning when the chief could speak with him.
The next morning, the morning of August 28, 2004, Inspector (I) Uttam K.C. and assistant sub-inspector B. Pander, as well as other officers reportedly brutally beat Mr. Ganesh Chhetri kicking him and beating him with a pole without interrogating him. Mr. Ganesh Chhetri could not remember how many officers actually beat him because he soon fell unconscious.
After the beatings Mr. Ganesh Chhetri awoke with a bleeding nose and blood surrounding him. He remembers the police being worried about the amount of blood he was losing because they kept checking on him. According to the information received, at around 1:00 p.m., the police called his father to come pick up his son. Upon Mr. Chhetri’s release the police threatened him and his father not to report anything about his detainment to the media or they would torture him again in the same way. He was released on the condition of Rs. 450 (US$6) compensation to the petitioner of the file. Mr. Uttam K.C. claims that the injuries Mr. Chhetri had upon release were inflicted by a fall that the victim had which resulted in a wound on his neck.
After his release, Mr. Chhetri was brought by his father to the B&B hospital at Gwarko, Lalitpur where he was examined and was provided with medical care.
The International Secretariat of OMCT is gravely concerned about the physical and psychological integrity of Mr. Ganesh Chhetri, as his injuries were severe and his mental health was severely affected. OMCT calls on the authorities to launch a prompt, thorough and impartial investigation into the circumstances of these events in order to bring those responsible for any violations of human rights to justice.
Action Requested
Please write to the authorities in Nepal urging them to :
i. take all measures necessary to guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of Mr. Ganesh Chhetri;
ii. order a thorough and impartial investigation into the circumstances of these events in order to identify those responsible, bring them to trial and apply the penal and/or administrative sanctions as provided by law;
iii. guarantee that adequate reparation is provided to the victim of this abuse;
iv. guarantee the respect of human rights and the fundamental freedoms throughout the country in accordance with national laws and international human rights standards.
Adresses
- Shyam Bhakta Thapa, Inspector General of Police (IGP), Police Headquarter, Maharajganj, Kathmandu, Nepal, Tel: +997 14 412432/412737 (direct), +997 14 414985 (residence), Fax: +977 14 415593
- Mr. Sher Bahdur Deuba, Prime Minister, Office of the Prime Minister, Singha Durbar, Kathmandu, Nepal, Tel: +977 1 228555 or 227955, Fax: +977 1 4 227286/227765
- Mr. Nain Bahadur Khatri, Chairman of the National Human Rights Commission, Pulchowck, Lalitpur, Nepal, Tel: +977 1 5 547 974 or 525 659 or 547 975, Fax: +9771 5 547 973, Email: nhrc@ntc.net.np
- Mr. Theo C. van Boven, Special Rapporteur on the Question of Torture, OHCHR-UNOG, 8-14 Avenue de la Paix, 1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland, Fax: +41 22 917 9016
Please also write the embassies of Nepal in your respective country.
Geneva, 22 September 2004
Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply.