Journalist’s murder has ‘chilling effect’ on press freedom
February 2009: The brutal murder of journalist Uma Singh has had a chilling effect on press freedom in Nepal, with some leaving the profession out of fear for their safety and others shying away from investigative reporting.
The brutal murder of journalist Uma Singh – hacked to death by an unidentified gang in Nepal’s southern town of Janakpur in early January – has had a chilling effect on press freedom in the south Asian nation, with some journalists leaving the profession out of fear for their safety and others shying away from investigative reporting.
The murder of Singh, a prominent human rights activist, continues an alarming rise in attacks on the country’s media. The Federation of Nepali Journalists (FNJ) recorded a staggering 342 press freedom violations in 2008 alone, including a significant escalation in the number of physical attacks on journalists and media houses.
Four journalists – Uma Singh, J.P. Joshi, Birendra Sah and Pushkar Bahadur Shrestha – have been killed since 2006. Since Singh’s murder, a number of journalists have received death threats, with some being evacuated from their regional offices to the capital for their protection.
The safety of female journalists, already under-represented in the profession, is of particular concern. Many report that, because of intimidation and harassment, they are under pressure to leave their work and sometimes move away from their home.
These ongoing attacks, threats and harassment of media personnel and organisations are having a chilling effect on press freedom, according to an International Press Freedom and Freedom of Expression Mission, which visited Nepal from 5 – 8 February.
“Free and open debate is being undermined with journalists and media being forced into self-censorship, seriously jeopardising the peace and democratisation process currently underway in the country,” it said.
“Critical reporting is being met with violence and perpetrators go unpunished. The authorities are failing in their duty to prevent, punish and redress the harm caused by such attacks. The violations of journalists’ rights is a direct infringement of the public right to information.”
The International Media Mission said that the links between political parties and some the perpetrators of violent acts against journalists were a matter of “serious concern” and it called on the authorities to undertake prompt and independent investigations of these matters and all other cases of murder and disappearances of journalists.
NHRC – media dialogue
The Chairperson and Members of Nepal’s National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) met with the International Media Mission on Friday 6 February.
They told the mission’s delegates that the NHRC was undertaking an independent investigation of Uma Singh’s murder and stressed the NHRC’s ongoing commitment to promote freedom of expression in Nepal.
The meeting came at the end of a week-long media and communication workshop involving the NHRC and key civil society groups, organised by the Asia Pacific Forum in partnership with the NHRC.
In addition to looking at how human rights organisations can work more effectively with the media to promote their issues, the workshop also addressed the difficult situation facing journalists.
A dedicated ‘media dialogue’ session provided representatives from media houses and the FNJ with an opportunity to raise their concerns about intimidation and attacks on journalists with NHRC Commissioners and staff.
They also provided feedback and advice for the NHRC on how they could provide human rights information and stories to the media.
Both groups expressed a desire to find practical ways to work in partnership to promote human rights issues and freedom of expression in Nepal.
Agenda for change
A six-point plan to promote press freedom was launched by the International Media Mission during its recent visit to Nepal.
The ‘Agenda for Change’ report, prepared in late 2008 by ARTICLE 19 in close cooperation with the FNJ and Freedom Forum, a Kathmandu-based NGO, recommends that:
- guarantees of freedom of expression for all and press freedom must be enshrined in the new constitution
- the Right to Information Act should be properly enforced so as to give practical effect to the presumption in favour of disclosure
- the Government should end control of media and introduce Public Service Broadcasting
- an independent regulator for broadcasting should be created in place of direct government control
- criminal defamation should be abolished and defamation should be addressed only through civil law
- the Working Journalists’ Act should be implemented and accompanied by regular dialogue between media workers and owners.
The International Media Mission urged the Government and political parties to implement these recommendations as swiftly and fully as possible, in accordance with international standards and best practice
The delegation included representatives from ARTICLE 19, International Federation of Journalists, International Media Support, International Press Institute, Reporters Without Borders, UNESCO and World Press Freedom Committee. They travelled to Nepal at the request of the FNJ and other members of the Nepali media community.
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