Nepal atrocities blamed on government and Maoists

A grim picture of deaths in army custody, disappearances, torture and child guerrillas is painted in an Amnesty report on abuses during the civil war blighting the Himalayan kingdom of Nepal.

The human rights group said yesterday it believed nearly half of the 4,366 people to die in the conflict over the past year may have been killed unlawfully. It found "unprecedented levels" of human rights abuses since November 2001, when talks collapsed between the Nepalese government and the Maoist guerrillas seeking to overthrow the monarchy and establish a Communist state.

The vast majority of the victims were civilians targeted "for their real or perceived support" for the Maoists, said the report. Others were "Maoists deliberately killed after they were taken prisoner or killed instead of being arrested." Amnesty International has recorded 66 "disappearances" – including six children – in the nine months to the end of August. Some of those who disappeared recently may still be alive and in the hands of the Nepalese army; others are feared to have been killed in custody and their bodies disposed of, said the 21-page report, Nepal: A Deepening Human Rights Crisis.

Since 1996, the Maoists – who have strong support from the lower castes, the poor and unemployed in the mountain kingdom of 23 million – have gained control over large areas of the countryside. They have inflicted heavy casualties, killing more than 1,000 members of the security forces, according to official estimates. In all, more than 7,000 people have died, most of them after Nepal's King Gyandendra imposed a state of emergency in November 2001 and ordered the army to join police in fighting the guerrillas.

The Amnesty document includes criticism about the methods used by Nepal's army, the Armed Police Force (APF) and the police. It accuses the army of having systematically held people blindfolded and handcuffed for days, weeks, and even months. Its methods have included rape, beating soles of the feet, electric shocks, mock executions, and beatings with iron rods, says the report. Reports of torture arise "almost daily".

The Nepalese army has sweeping powers under recently introduced anti-terrorism legislation. Amnesty concludes that the impunity enjoyed by the security forces is the "single most destructive factor" affecting the human rights situation. "Members of the security forces feel entirely shielded from outside scrutiny for their actions. The heaviest sanction they face is an internal inquiry."

Amnesty found abuses on both sides. It says Maoist forces killed an estimated 800 civilians considered "enemies of the revolution", with politicians and teachers a particular target. Amnesty accuses the guerrillas of torturing and murdering captives and taking hostages for ransom. The report says the Maoists regularly recruit children into their ranks, operating a policy of "one family, one member" in areas under their control. It says children are used in combat to help provide ammunition or evacuate wounded. Amnesty says it spoke to one 14-year-old girl who described children receiving weapons training at night after studying at school in the daytime.

Nepalese officials denied the allegations. An army spokesman said there had been no human rights violations by the security forces, adding that all such allegations were investigated. He admitted only that innocent people may have been "killed in cross-fire".

The European Union issued a statement expressing "increasing concern with the deteriorating security ... situation in Nepal and violations of human rights and international humanitarian law". The EU called on the Maoists to stop "killings, harassment and destruction" and urged them to begin talks with the government to end the revolt.