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Nepal: Journalists in Terai Face First Challenge After Jana Andolan

By Indra Adhikari

Despite the commitments by Madhesi Janadhikar Forum (MJF)leaders, members of the MJF continue to threaten and harass journalists in the terai district in the name of enforcing their indefinite strike.

The security of the journalists working in these districts has become a serious concern: they have not been able to cover the incidents but still they are being threatened to cover the incidents in the best interest of the organisers.

The organisers in some places threaten journalists not to write anything about their activities while in other place, media persons are harassed, threatened with death or displaced from their work-station for not adequately disseminating the news of the Madhes bandh.

In addition to MJF members, other groups have beaten, threatened and harassed journalists. Journalists raised their concerns with the government and local authorities, requesting guarantees of security, but guarantees were not forthcoming.

After the success of the people's movement in April last year, the hope of journalists for a safer working environment has been shattered by the Madhesh demonstrations.

Nepal Sadbhawana Party, Banke district president Ram Kumar Dixit threatened station manager Tula Adhikari and news reporters Roshan Puri and Rakesh Mishra associated with the local Bageshwori FM, Nepalgunj on March 10.

He threatened that if they did not disseminate the news of protest programmes organised by Madhesi Janadhikar Forum (MJF) in such a way that it will bring ethnic conflicts. He also threatened them saying in failing to do so their lives might be in danger.

Due to the threat posed to them, all journalists working with the FM station have been feeling insecure. They have not been able to collect news since then.

Similarly, the MJF cadres in Duhabi area in Sunsari district harassed journalist Santosh Yadav, local correspondent of Rajdhani daily on March 9.

Yadav had reached the area to report on the demonstration organised by the MFJ that abruptly shut down markets. A few hours earlier, MFJ cadres on the same spot burned the bike owned by a local newspaper.

Yadav sustained injuries to his forehead when the MJF members threw stones at him.

Anil Adhikari of Blast Time daily, published from Dharan, who was with Yadav was also injured in the incident.

Similarly, MJF protestors beat up Chiranjivi Rijal, Manager and Bimal Lamichane, sub-editor of Janabidroha on 9 March. The journalists were attacked while they were carrying newspapers on the motorbike. The protestors ordered them to get down from the bike and burned it along with the newspapers.

On 8 March, Gopal Bhandari, editor and publisher of Baraha Saptahik was attacked and his motorbike damaged at Bansbari in the Morang district.

On March 10, journalists in Jhapa district organised a rally in the eastern town of Damak. Organised by the Federation of Nepalese Journalists (FNJ) Jhapa district committee, the journalists demanded security in their job and demanded an immediate end to threats to media personnel for not reporting on certain events.

Various miscreants including the MJF had been threatening journalists in the district to adequately cover the demonstration and strike they called. In other places, journalists were threatened for writing or disseminating news of unruly behaviour while enforcing the strike.

The imposition of the curfew orders in Banke district has affected the work of media personnel. Due to local authorities not providing passes to the journalists to enter curfew area, the situation during curfew hours has not been reported. The local authority must issue curfew passes to journalists so they can report on the situation in the restricted area.

Journalists have also called on the government to look into the problems they face while working in the field. On March 11, a team of journalists led by Nepal Press Union central member Bharati Upadhaya met with PM Koirala in his residence in Biratnagar to inform the government about the difficulty faced by media in the unsafe districts.

The journalists discussed the attacks on media personnel, excesses, threats that continue during the terai unrest due to the strike called by the MJF and the subsequent displacement of the journalists from their working areas.

Other members of the delegation were Bed Raj Poudel and Binod Bhandary of Kantipur, Kumod Adhikari of Radio Nepal, editor of Birat Darpan daily Bijaya Pathak, Arjun Pokhrel of Kantipur TV and Uddhav Ghimire of Himalayan Times. They demanded guarantees of security for journalists and press freedom. The PM in reply, urged the delegation to be patient "for some time".

Freedom Forum urges all to respect the responsibility being shouldered by the journalists to inform the people of what is happening in the country. We also strongly call on the concerned authorities to stop excesses, threats, harassment and beating of journalists and allow them to work in a free and fair manner. Similarly, we urge the government to take serious steps guaranteeing security for the journalists.

Indra Adhikari
Chief of media monitoring desk
Freedom Forum, Nepal