KATHMANDU: The government of Nepal is hell-bent on undermining the rights to freedom of expression and association while denying justice for conflict-era abuses, Human Rights Watch said in its World Report 2020.
It said that harassment and arrests of journalists have increased of late, while draft legislation has placed draconian restrictions on online expression.
Meenakshi Ganguly, South Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said Nepali people struggled for decades to institutionalize a democratic constitutional order. However, they now being denied their rights by the very people they had hoped would represent those values.
“Political parties, once they are in government, are fighting tooth and nail to stifle critical voices and protect those allegedly responsible for past war crimes,” she said in a statement.
In the 652-page World Report 2020, HRW reviews human rights practices in nearly 100 countries.
It has also referred to the arrest of journalists, bloggers, and rappers for reporting on corrupt business practices, publishing negative movie reviews, or singing about youth culture in the past year.
The statement said that the government has also put in place a variety of policies aimed at limiting the autonomy of non-government groups, several of which campaign for human rights, accountability, and social change.
It has also alleged the Nepali government of bending to Chinese demands by prohibiting domestic freedom of expression in relation to Tibet.
During the visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping, at least two Nepali citizens were arrested for wearing clothing that featured a Tibetan flag.
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