Death threats after filing a torture compensation case

Death threats after filing atorture compensation case/ Fear for the physical and psychological integrity/Risk of impunity

The International Secretariat of the WorldOrganisation Against Torture (OMCT) requests your URGENT intervention inthe following situation in Nepal.

Brief description of thesituation

TheInternational Secretariat of OMCT has beeninformed by Advocacy Forum (AF), a member organisation of OMCT SOS-TortureNetwork, about the death threats received by Mr. Dev Lal Mukhiya, a 36-year-old marble paver, and his wife Ms. Ram Biraji Devi Mukhiya, 37 years old,permanent residents of Goth Koyelpur VDC-5 in Dhanusha district (about 123 kmsouth east from the capital Kathmandu) for having filed a torture compensationcase against a police officer. OMCT is gravely concerned about their safety andphysical and psychological integrity.

According to the information received, on 16 June 2012 at about 12:30 pm, Mr.Dev Lal Mukhiyareceived a phone call from an unknown person who told him that he needed amarble paver for his new house. Mr. Dev Lal Mukhiya was asked to meet thisperson on the same day near Kalanki temple, at Kalanki, Kathmandu. There, threeindividuals were reportedly waiting for him in a taxi and he was taken to avillage, near a river below Thankot in Kathmandu district. Two otherindividuals followed the taxi on a motorbike. When they arrived in the village,he was taken out of the taxi and the five individuals started to ask him why hehad filed a torture compensation case against their friend, referring to thecase that his wife, Ms. Ram Biraji Devi Mukhiya, had filed under the TortureCompensation Act (1996) against Assistant Sub-Inspector of Police Dev KumarRaut alias Deep Kumar before the District Court of Dhanusha, on 22 March 2012 (see background information).

Accordingto the same information, Mr. Dev Lal Mukhiya was asked whom he had asked forsupport before filing the case. The individuals then reportedly started to beathim randomly all over his body. They allegedly said “We give you a week’s timeto withdraw the case” and then kept kicking and punching him with their fistsuntil he fell unconscious. When he woke up, he was reportedly again beaten forabout half an hour while being asked why he had filed a case against a policeofficer and was told to withdraw the case within one week or face consequences.They stopped beating Mr. Dev Lal Mukhiya when his phone started to ring.

Later,on 2 July 2012, Ms. Ram Biraji Devi Mukhiya received four threatening phone callsfrom an unknown caller with the number 977 9817728411. The caller allegedlyverbally abused her and threatened to kill all her family members if she didnot withdraw the aforementioned case.

The International Secretariat of OMCTexpresses its deep concern about the safety and physical and psychologicalintegrity of Ms. Ram Biraji Devi Mukhiya and Mr.Dev Lal Mukhiya. OMCT urges the competentauthorities to guarantee their physical and psychological integrity at alltimes, notably by immediately putting in place adequate protection measures forthem, and by suspending the policemen believed to be responsible for theallegations of torture and ill-treatment, pending an investigation.

OMCT recalls that Nepal is a State partyto the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or DegradingTreatment or Punishment and the International Covenant on Civil and PoliticalRights, which both prohibit torture and ill-treatment. In line with theirobligations under these treaties, it is incumbent on the competent authoritiesto consider seriously any allegations of torture and ill-treatment, and toundertake a prompt, effective, thorough, independent and impartialinvestigation in this regard, in order to identify all those responsible, bringthem to trial and apply adequate sanctions.

OMCT also recalls that victims of tortureand ill-treatment must be ensured the right to an effective remedy for thehuman rights violations suffered as well as the right to full redress,including compensation and rehabilitation.

Background information

According to the information received, on 8 March 2012, Ms. Ram Biraji Devi Mukhiya wasarrested without any arrest warrant at her house by Assistant Sub-Inspector ofPolice Dev Kumar Raut alias Deep Kumar who was accompanied by two unidentified armedpolicemen and a man called Ramprit Chaudhary. Assistant Sub-Inspector of PoliceDev Kumar Raut was reportedly looking for Ms. Ram Biraji Devi Mukhiya’sbrother-in-law because of a land dispute with Mr. Ramprit Chaudhary. When Ms. RamBiraji Devi Mukhiya informed them that her brother-in-law did not live in thesame house and asked them why they came back to her house (AssistantSub-Inspector of Police Dev Kumar Raut and Mr. Ramprit Chaudhary reportedly alreadycame to her house on 7 March 2012 to ask the same question), AssistantSub-Inspector allegedly got angry and verbally abused her. He then arrested herand took her to the Area Police Office, Chorakoila where she was reportedlypunched on the left side of her forehead and slapped several times on her leftcheek. She was later released when her husband, Mr. Dev Lal Mukhiya, came tothe police station. He brought her to the Janakpur Zonal Hospital for medicaltreatment. On 22 March 2012, she filed a torture compensation file againstAssistant Sub-Inspector of Police Dev Kumar Raut before the Dhanusha DistrictCourt.

Action requested

Please write to the authorities in Nepal urging themto:

i. Guarantee,in all circumstances, the physical and psychological integrity of Ms. Ram Biraji DeviMukhiya and Mr. Dev Lal Mukhiya, their familymembers and the lawyers working on the case;

ii. Immediately put in place adequate protection measures for Ms. Ram Biraji DeviMukhiya and Mr. Dev Lal Mukhiya, as well astheir family members;

iii. Carry out a prompt, effective,thorough, independent and impartial investigation into the aforementionedfacts, in particular theallegations of torture and ill-treatment and the death threats, in accordancewith international human rights standards, the result of which must be made public,in orderto bring those responsiblebefore a competent, independent and impartial tribunal and apply penal, civiland/or administrative sanctions as provided by law;

iv. Ensure that adequate, effective and promptreparation, including adequate compensation and rehabilitation, is granted to the victims concerned;

v. Ensurethe respect of human rights and fundamental freedoms throughout the country inaccordance with national laws and international human rights standards, inparticular ensure that all acts of torture and cruel, inhuman and degradingtreatment and punishment are clearly defined in law as offences in accordancewith the provisions set out in Articles 1, 4 and 16 of the Convention againstTorture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment and thatthey be made punishable with appropriate penalties which take into account thegrave nature of the crimes as required (which is not the case under the 1996Torture Compensation Act);

vi. Ensure the respect of humanrights and fundamental freedoms throughout the country in accordance withnational laws and international human rights standards.

Addresses

Ø Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of HomeAffairs, Mr. Bijaya Kumar Gacchedar, Ministry of Home Affairs, Singha Darbar,Kathmandu, Nepal. Tel: + 977-01-4211208 / + 977-01-4211214, Fax: + 977-1-4211257 / 4211286, Email: gunaso@moha.gov.np

Ø Inspector General of Police, Rabindra PratapShah, Police Head Quarters, Naxal, Kathmandu, Nepal, PO. Box No.: 407, Fax: + 977 1 4 415 593, Email: info@nepalpolice.gov.np

Ø Attorney General, Mr. Mukti Nath Pradhan, Officeof Attorney General Ramshahpath, Kathmandu, Nepal, Fax: + 977 1 4262582, Email: attorney@mos.com.np, info@attorneygeneral@gov.np , socialjus@gmail.com

Ø DSP Bishwa Adhikari, Human Rights Cell, Nepal Police, Kathmandu, Nepal PO. Box No.: 407,Fax: + 977 1 4415593 E- mail: hrcell@nepalpolice.gov.np

Ø Chairman of the National Human Rights Commission,Mr. Kedar Nath Uppadhya, Pulchowck, Lalitpur, Nepal; Email: nhrc@nhrcnepal.org ; complaints@nhrcnepal.org Fax: + 977 1 5547973

Ø Head of the Human Rights Unit, Office of thePrime Minister and Council of Ministers, Singh Darbar, Kathmandu, Nepal. Tel: +977-01-4211000, P. O. Box: 23312, Email: info@opmcm.gov.np

Ø Permanent Mission of Nepal, 81 rue de laServette, 1201 Geneva, Switzerland,Fax: + 4122 7332722, E-mail: mission.nepal@bluewin.ch

Please also write to the embassies of Nepal in yourrespective country.

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Geneva, 5 July 2012

Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting thecode of this appeal in your reply.