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Threats To Journalists In Nepal Alarm UN Human Rights Officials
UN News Center
August 27, 2010: United Nations human rights officials in Nepal have been concerned with continued reports that journalists working in the eastern Terai districts have been facing serious threats and intimidation. The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in Nepal has issued a press statement yesterday from Biratnagar stating it has received at least nine reports of threats to journalists in that region since May.
Many journalists have also told OHCHR that they have increasingly felt insecure in Nepal since the end of the decade-long civil war with a peace accord in 2006. Political tensions still persist in the South Asian country.
“The situation jeopardizes the right to freedom of expression and the right to liberty and security of journalists, who are at the forefront in defending the rights of other peoples,” according to the press statement. “Freedom of expression is fundamental in a society that respects human rights and is a core element of a democratic society.”
The office has stressed the need for State authorities in Nepal to build an environment in which media professionals can carry out their work free of threat or intimidation.
