The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) is alarmed at the growing catalogue of attacks on journalists by political agents in Nepal. These attacks invariably are provoked by grievances related to media content.

In the latest attack, the IFJ is informed by its affiliate, the Federation of Nepali Journalists (FNJ), that two journalists were forced to flee their home district after being threatened with death by cadre of the Unified Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), until recently the leading constituent of the coalition that governed the country.

The journalists are Labadev Dhungana, former President of the FNJ Panchthar district chapter, and Kumar Ojha. They reportedly left the district on July 4 after being threatened over a news item published in the Nepali language daily Kantipur.

“The IFJ is disturbed to hear that the Panchthar district administration failed to register the complaint of the two journalists who had reason to fear that their lives were in imminent danger. This must count as a serious abdication of responsibility by the authorities,” IFJ Asia-Pacific Director Jacqueline Park said.

The IFJ calls on the leadership of the Maoists and all other political parties in Nepal to make a clear statement that they will not tolerate coercive methods of addressing grievances about media content.

“Nepal’s evolving democracy has instituted credible institutions for dealing with issues connected to media content,” Park said. “We call upon all parties to respect these processes and institutions and to help strengthen them.”

For further information contact IFJ Asia-Pacific on +612 9333 0919

The IFJ represents over 600,000 journalists in 120 countries worldwide