Nepal
in Crisis 2005: Human Rights |
Europeans
concerned over Nepal's situation |
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Human
rights abuses have increased since February |
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KATHMANDU,
6 Oct 2005 (IRIN)
A European Union troika visiting Nepal says it is worried
that the country could be on the verge of political collapse.
The
three-day visit by the high-level EU team concluded its assessment on Thursday,
calling on the government, political parties, rebels and security forces
not to lose time in effectively addressing the country's problems.
"The
real fear we have in our minds is that the failure of the constitutional
forces in Nepal to work together would lead to breakdown of the government
institutions," head of the delegation Tom Phillips said.
This
is the second visit by the EU troika since December 2004 when the team
met the former Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba. King Gyanendra sacked
Deuba and his government in February 2005 and subsequently assumed direct
rule. Since then the international community has expressed concerns about
the political crisis, as well as the negative impact it was having on Nepal's
development aid.
European
donors like Denmark and Switzerland became the first countries to cut bilateral
aid to the Himalayan kingdom. Danish-funded activities under the Revenue
Administration Support project were suspended until further notice. Copenhagen
has still not decided whether to enter into any project or programme agreements
with the Nepalese authorities.
Just
over seven months have passed since Nepal has seen a democratic government
or held any elections. "We judge the changes of 1 February to have been
self-defeating," Phillips said, adding that multiparty democracy was the
only sustainable solution to the country's problems.
This
year alone, various credible international and national reports assessed
that the country was facing humanitarian challenges. They added that human
rights abuses were escalating and torture was still practiced. In September,
the UN Special Rapporteur on torture, Manfred Nowak, visited Nepal and
found that detainees were subject to torture and ill-treatment by the police
and army.
"We
urge the government and the security forces to lead by example in respecting
human rights, to tackle the prevailing culture of impunity and to use security
legislation with utmost caution," an EU statement said.
The
delegation also cautioned that the Maoists, who have fought a nine-year
war against the government, should not to be under any illusions and said
that the EU absolutely rejected the use of violence.
Although
it welcomed the unilateral ceasefire declared by the Maoists in September,
the delegates were still skeptical whether they were sincere about their
declaration. According to reports, the incidents of extortion, abduction,
human rights abuses and disruption of development are still taking place.
"My
sense is that the sincerity of their ceasefire has yet to be proved. The
Maoists are yet to convince us that they are willing to renounce violence
as a means to political ends and are ready to take part in a meaningful
political negotiation," Phillips said.
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