MAOIST ATROCITIES AGAINST CIVILIANS ON THE INCREASE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KATHMANDU 000633

SIPDIS

STATE FOR SA/INS

SENSITIVE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PHUM PTER PGOV PINR NP
SUBJECT: MAOIST ATROCITIES AGAINST CIVILIANS ON THE INCREASE

REF: (A) KATHMANDU 0604; (B) KATHMANDU 0450;

(C) KATHMANDU 0446

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SUMMARY
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1. (U) MAOIST ACTIVITIES HAVE TAKEN A MORE VIOLENT TURN, WITH
ATROCITIES PERPETRATED AGAINST HELPLESS CIVILIANS ESCALATING BOTH
IN NUMBER AND SEVERITY. REPORTS OF THE MAOISTS DECAPITATING
VICTIMS OR TORTURING THEM TO DEATH WITH KNIVES IN DISTRICTS
ACROSS THE COUNTRY HAVE BECOME A HEART-RENDING COMMONPLACE IN
NEPAL'S MEDIA. OVER THE PAST TWO WEEKS ALONE, AS DETAILED BELOW,
THE MAOISTS HAVE BRUTALLY SLAIN CIVILIANS IN EACH OF NEPAL'S FIVE
DEVELOPMENT REGIONS. LOCAL HUMAN RIGHTS GROUPS HAVE ATTEMPTED TO
SHINE LIGHT ON THIS MOST HORRIBLE ASPECT OF THE INSURGENCY, BUT
SOME OF THEIR INTERNATIONAL COUNTERPARTS ARE TO DATE APPARENTLY
LESS MOVED BY THE DOCUMENTED HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES OF THE MAOISTS.

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IN THE EASTERN REGION
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2. (SBU) ON MARCH 21 MAOISTS ABDUCTED LEKNATH GAUTAM, A TEACHER
AND MEMBER OF THE LOCAL CHAPTER OF AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL, FROM
HIS HOME IN PANCHTHAR DISTRICT. HIS BODY WAS LATER FOUND NEAR AN
ABANDONED POLICE POST THAT HAD BEEN DESTROYED IN A PREVIOUS
MAOIST ATTACK. THE LOCAL NGO HUMAN RIGHTS AND PEACE SOCIETY
(HURPES) ISSUED A PRESS STATEMENT CONDEMNING THE KILLING. HURPES
MEMBER KRISHNA PAHADI ALSO TOLD POLOFF THAT THE NGO HAS
TEMPORARILY SUSPENDED A PROGRAM OF "PEACE" DRAMAS IN VARIOUS
DISTRICTS AFTER RECEIVING THREATS FROM MAOIST SYMPATHIZERS. THE
NGO HAS ALREADY HELD SUCH DRAMATIZATIONS IN 16 DIFFERENT
DISTRICTS, DRAWING CROWDS OF UP TO 2,000 IN SOME LOCATIONS.

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IN THE CENTRAL REGION
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3. (U) A GROUP OF MAOISTS KILLED BHOLA SHAH TELI, AN ACTIVE
MEMBER OF THE RULING NEPALI CONGRESS AT KARUNIYA IN RAUTAHAT
DISTRICT ON THE NIGHT OF MARCH 22. NEPALI CONGRESS ACTIVISTS
HAVE BEEN FREQUENT TARGETS OF MAOIST VIOLENCE, ESPECIALLY IN
OUTLYING AREAS.

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IN THE WESTERN REGION
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4. (U) MAOISTS ATTACKED AND BRUTALLY KILLED RAM MANI GYAWALI,
CHAIRMAN OF KERUNG VILLAGE DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE (VDC),
ARGHAKHANCHI DISTRICT, WESTERN NEPAL, ON THE EVENING OF MARCH 12.
AFTER GYAWALI'S HANDS AND LEGS WERE TIED WITH A ROPE, HE WAS
SLASHED WITH A KNIFE UNTIL HE DIED. TRAUMATIZED FAMILY MEMBERS
STATED THAT THEY WERE DETAINED BY THE MAOISTS WITHIN EARSHOT OF
THE MURDER, THROUGHOUT THE TWO AND A HALF HOUR ORDEAL. GYAWALI,
WHO HAD RELOCATED TO KATHMANDU AFTER RECEIVING DEATH THREATS, HAD
TEMPORARILY RETURNED TO THE VDC TO FOLLOW PROGRESS IN AN
ELECTRIFICATION PROGRAM IN HIS HOME VILLAGE. THE VICTIM'S SISTER-
IN-LAW, A PROGRAM SPECIALIST AT USAID KATHMANDU, CONFIRMED THE
NEWS OF HIS VICIOUS SLAYING.


5. (U) THE INSURGENTS ALSO ATTACKED AND WOUNDED HARI DHAKAL, A
TEACHER IN SUNWAL VDC OF NAWALPARASI DISTRICT, MARHC 14.
ACCORDING TO ASSISTANT CHIEF DISTRICT OFFICER (CDO) OF
NAWALPARASI, DHAKAL WAS SHOT IN THE HEAD, AND IS IN CRITICAL
CONDITION. A GROUP OF MAOISTS SET FIRE TO THE HOUSE OF DEVI
PRASAD NEUPANE, VICE CHAIRMAN OF CHANDRESWORE VDC OF LAMJUNG
DISTRICT ON MARCH 15. NEUPANE IS A LOCAL LEADER OF THE NEPALI
CONGRESS PARTY. THE DISTRICT POLICE OFFICE IN GORKHA CONFIRMED
THAT MAOISTS KILLED YAM KUMARI ALE OF MANKAMANA VDC OF GORKHA
DISTRICT ON MARCH 20. SHE HAD EARLIER SURRENDERED TO THE
DISTRICT ADMINISTRATION OFFICE AND DISSOCIATED HERSELF FROM
MAOIST ACTIVITY ABOUT TWO MONTHS BEFORE. IN KASKI DISTRICT, TWO
FEMALE FAMILY MEMBERS OF DEVENDRA THAKURI, A MEMBER OF THE ROYAL
NEPALESE ARMY, WERE KILLED AFTER MAOISTS BOMBED HIS HOUSE IN
THUKMI THE NIGHT OF MARCH 26.

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IN THE MID-WESTERN REGION
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6. (U) IN DANG DISTRICT, A GROUP OF MAOIST INSURGENTS BEHEADED A
BUS OWNER IN KAVRE VDC ON MARCH 14. HIS BODY WAS RECOVERED NEAR
THE PREMISES OF THE LOCAL POST OFFICE, ACCORDING TO DANG'S
ASSISTANT CDO. MAOISTS MURDERED LAL BAHADUR GHARTI, WARD
CHAIRMAN OF SAHIGA VDC IN DANG DISTRICT, ON MARCH 15. DANG'S CDO
DESCRIBED THE KILLING AS MERCILESS, NOTING THE DECEASED HAD
SEVERAL KNIFE CUTS ON HIS NECK AND BODY. DANG DISTRICT POLICE
AND CDO ALSO REPORT MAOISTS DECAPITATED SHANKAR GHARTI OF
TRIBHUVAN MUNICIPALITY, DANG DISTRICT ON MARCH 19. A GROUP OF
ARMED MAOISTS SHOT DEAD GANESH BAHADUR SHAHI, A DISTRICT CHAIRMAN
OF NEPAL TRADE UNION CONGRESS, SURKHET DISTRICT, ON MARCH 27.

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IN THE FAR-WEST
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7. (U) MAOISTS KILLED PREM BAHADUR BISTA, VICE CHAIRMAN OF
MANILEKH VDC IN DADELHURA DISTRICT OF THE FAR WESTERN HILL
REGION, HACKING HIM TO DEATH WITH A KHUKURI KNIFE ON MARCH 14,
THE SPOKESMAN OF THE MINISTRY OF DEFENSE CONFIRMED. THE LOCAL
PRESS ALSO REPORTED THAT MAOISTS STABBED TO DEATH VDC CHAIRMAN
PADAM SINGH BADAL AND UDAYA SINGH DHAMI OF HIKILA VDC, DARCHULA
DISTRICT, ON MARCH 16. THIS REPORT COULD NOT BE CONFIRMED THROUGH
THE DISTRICT ADMINISTRATION, AS TELEPHONE CONNECTIONS TO THAT
REMOTE AREA HAVE BEEN DISRUPTED.

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COMMENT
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8. (SBU) MAOISTS HAVE TORTURED AND MURDERED HELPLESS CIVILIANS
FROM THE BEGINNING OF THE INSURGENCY IN FEBRUARY 1996. THE
MAOISTS' CAMPAIGN OF INTENSIFYING BRUTALITY TOWARD INNOCENT
CIVILIANS REVEALS AS SPURIOUS THEIR CLAIM TO REPRESENT THE BEST
INTERESTS OF THE COMMON PEOPLE. THE TIMING OF THE MAOIST CALL
FOR A GENERAL STRIKE (REFTEL A),COINCIDING WITH THE ALL-
IMPORTANT NATIONAL SECONDARY SCHOOL EXAMS, REINFORCES THIS
CONCLUSION. SUBODH RAJ PYAKUREL, GENERAL SECRETARY OF THE LOCAL
HUMAN RIGHTS ORGANIZATION INSEC, DESCRIBED THE IMPACT OF THE
STRIKE AS PARTICULARLY HARMFUL, SAYING "THE ATTEMPT TO DISTURB
THE EXAMINATION WITH WHICH THE FUTURE OF THOUSANDS OF STUDENTS IS
LINKED, IS A CRIME BIGGER THAN MURDER." APPARENTLY UNABLE TO WIN
SUPPORT FOR THEIR MOVEMENT THROUGH PERSUASION, THE MAOISTS ARE
TURNING TO TERROR AND INTIMIDATION TO QUASH POPULAR OPPOSITION.
WHILE MANY LOCAL HUMAN RIGHTS GROUPS PUBLICIZE AND PROTEST SUCH
ATROCITIES, WE ARE CONCERNED BY THE COMPARATIVE LACK OF
COMMENSURATE COVERAGE GIVEN MAOIST ABUSES BY INTERNATIONAL HUMAN
RIGHTS GROUPS.

MALINOWSKI