Shivering with fear and pain, wounds all over his face and body, it is hard for Anoj (not his real name) to recall the torture he was subjected to at the hands of Nepal’s security forces inside the army’s main barracks in the capital, Kathmandu. Looking feeble and ill, he may not live long if he fails to get proper medical treatment.
The period since 1 February 2005 when King Gyanendra assumed direct rule of the Himalayan kingdom has been characterised by the widespread arrests of political activists, human rights defenders, trade unionists and journalists - the government's apparent aim to prevent protest against the takeover.
Local human rights organisations estimate that more than 3,000 people have been arrested since 1 February, many of them been held in preventive detention. Anoj says he believes it was a phone call from an enemy of his family to the security forces, that led to his arrest on suspicion of being a Maoist insurgent. In July 2005, he says, he was brutally battered, pounded, punched, caned and given electric shocks until he collapsed.
“I was sleeping when six or seven soldiers came into our flat early one morning. My brother-in-law was nearly shot when he asked why they were arresting me. As soon as I was dragged inside a van, they tied my hands and blindfolded me. They pushed me down onto the floor of the vehicle. Then, one of the soldiers started wrenching my stomach and pounded my head. Another grabbed my testicles so hard that I still feel the pain. They kept on battering for another 30 minutes – after that I could not scream anymore, I fainted.
At the barracks, they put a clip on my ear and began administering electric shocks while shouting that I was a Maoist worker. I fainted again. When I woke up, they started caning me with bamboo sticks and forced water into my mouth and nose. They made me lie flat on the floor and they took turns to step over my stomach and punched my mouth so many times that I had to vomit blood many times.
They tortured me for four hours until the evening. They offered biscuits but I could not eat as my mouth had swollen due to the beatings and electric shock. The next morning, around six, security personnel came and started kicking me while I was asleep. They told me that they would not torture me if I confessed that I was a Maoist.
The pain was so unbearable that I pleaded with them to just shoot me dead. After a few days the interrogators returned, said that they had made a mistake and that I was an innocent civilian. They said I would be released, but threatened to arrest and torture me again if I reported the incident to anyone. As soon as I got home, I fainted again in my sister’s arms. Shocked at my condition, my sister immediately took me to a local private clinic for emergency treatment.
I want justice! Why did they have to torture me for no reason? It’s just too much to bear. Five months later I can hardly sleep due to the pain in my stomach and head. My fingers are all numb. I can barely walk. Two months ago, I again received a call reminding me not to tell anyone what had happened to me. It really scares me to think that they will come back and kill me.”
The period since 1 February 2005 when King Gyanendra assumed direct rule of the Himalayan kingdom has been characterised by the widespread arrests of political activists, human rights defenders, trade unionists and journalists - the government's apparent aim to prevent protest against the takeover.
Local human rights organisations estimate that more than 3,000 people have been arrested since 1 February, many of them been held in preventive detention. Anoj says he believes it was a phone call from an enemy of his family to the security forces, that led to his arrest on suspicion of being a Maoist insurgent. In July 2005, he says, he was brutally battered, pounded, punched, caned and given electric shocks until he collapsed.
“I was sleeping when six or seven soldiers came into our flat early one morning. My brother-in-law was nearly shot when he asked why they were arresting me. As soon as I was dragged inside a van, they tied my hands and blindfolded me. They pushed me down onto the floor of the vehicle. Then, one of the soldiers started wrenching my stomach and pounded my head. Another grabbed my testicles so hard that I still feel the pain. They kept on battering for another 30 minutes – after that I could not scream anymore, I fainted.
At the barracks, they put a clip on my ear and began administering electric shocks while shouting that I was a Maoist worker. I fainted again. When I woke up, they started caning me with bamboo sticks and forced water into my mouth and nose. They made me lie flat on the floor and they took turns to step over my stomach and punched my mouth so many times that I had to vomit blood many times.
They tortured me for four hours until the evening. They offered biscuits but I could not eat as my mouth had swollen due to the beatings and electric shock. The next morning, around six, security personnel came and started kicking me while I was asleep. They told me that they would not torture me if I confessed that I was a Maoist.
The pain was so unbearable that I pleaded with them to just shoot me dead. After a few days the interrogators returned, said that they had made a mistake and that I was an innocent civilian. They said I would be released, but threatened to arrest and torture me again if I reported the incident to anyone. As soon as I got home, I fainted again in my sister’s arms. Shocked at my condition, my sister immediately took me to a local private clinic for emergency treatment.
I want justice! Why did they have to torture me for no reason? It’s just too much to bear. Five months later I can hardly sleep due to the pain in my stomach and head. My fingers are all numb. I can barely walk. Two months ago, I again received a call reminding me not to tell anyone what had happened to me. It really scares me to think that they will come back and kill me.”
This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions
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