Explanation:
Deadly violence has continued since the promulgation of the constitution on September 20. Much of the Terai, which is home to half of Nepal’s population, remains at a near standstill due to ongoing strikes and protests. The town of Tikapur, in Kailali district, has been under curfew since August 24.
Community leaders on both sides have used crude populist language which risks inflaming tensions. In Kailali district, communally-motivated attacks on property took place, most notably after protesters killed the eight police officers on August 24.
However, it is important to note that aside from events in Kailali where the property of the members of the Tharu community was attacked, there are, according to the authorities, no known instances of protesters attacking people or property with an evident ethnic, caste, or other discriminatory motive in the areas covered by this report. This is despite the fact that the political differences underlying these protests are largely polarized along communal lines, and despite the contrary impression too often given in national media coverage of the events. At the same time, many people we spoke to in the affected areas said that police used insulting and derogatory language toward them. There has also been a worrying eruption in crude, prejudiced commentary on social media. There is a widespread fear among commentators in Nepal that the situation in some regions of the country could deteriorate into communal violence.
Local authorities have declared curfews and “restricted” or “prohibited” zones declared with the stated aim to contain public unrest and protests, some of which have been in effect for considerable periods. Some of these restrictions have severely constrained freedom of movement and economic activity.
Many of the incidents described in this report are well known in the regions where the violence has occurred, but have not been reported in the rest of the country. While the media has consistently characterized the protesters as violent, it has also avoided reporting on the details of police violence, despite some illegal killings by the police having been witnessed and even filmed by numerous journalists. Newspaper editors explain these decisions as being made to “protect social harmony.”
The government needs to immediately ensure that security forces cease the use of disproportionate force against protesters, and in particular that they abide by the United Nations Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials. The security forces need to immediately stop using unlawful violence. Intimidation and abusive language toward members of the public should end. The government should immediately establish independent bodies to investigate the unlawful killing of protesters and prosecute perpetrators, while ensuring the due process and fair trial rights of all accused of crimes, including those accused of killing police officers.
Human Rights Watch urges protesters and protest leaders to take all feasible steps to ensure that all protests are peaceful, and fully cooperate with the authorities in ensuring those responsible for serious crimes are brought to justice. It is especially important that those on all sides of this political dispute, including protesters and the government, avoid any action which could incite communal tensions.
The international community should urgently press the Nepali government to uphold basic international human rights and allow a credible and timely independent investigation of the events described in this report and in credible reports of local media, nongovernmental organizations, and the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), among others.
