E/CN.4/2006/6/Add.5
page 6
4.
During the course of the visit, the Special Rapporteur met with officials, including (in
chronological order): the Secretary and Joint Secretary of the Office of the Prime Minister and
Council of Ministers, Mr. D. Pant and Mr. T. Upreti; the Attorney-General, Mr. P. Ojha; the
Minister of Home Affairs, Mr. D. Shahi; the Secretary and Joint Secretary of the Ministry of
Home Affairs, Mr. C. Shrestha and Mr. B.G. Bista; the Director General of the Department of
Prison Management, Mr. B. Neupelane; the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Mr. D. Poudel;
the Acting Registrar of the Supreme Court, Mr. R. Timalsena; the Inspector General of Police,
Mr. S. Thapa; and the Additional Inspector General of the Armed Police Force, Mr. R. Thapa.
He met senior officials of the Royal Nepalese Army, including Chief of General Staff
Lieutenant General R. Katwal and the commanders of the Eastern and Midwestern Divisions of
the RNA, Major General P. Malla and Major General C. Gurung. Meetings were held with the
Heads of the Human Rights Cells of the Police, the Armed Police and the RNA.
5.
The Special Rapporteur met with the Commissioners and staff of the National Human
Rights Commission (NHRC), including commissioners R. Rakesh, S. Pathak and S. Silu, and
Acting Secretary K. Poudyal.
6.
The Special Rapporteur met representatives of the diplomatic corps in Nepal, the
International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the United Nations Country Team
(UNCT). He met representatives of the following NGOs: Advocacy Forum, Center for
Human Rights and Democratic Studies (CEHURDES), Centre for Victims of Torture (CVICT),
Constitutional Lawyer’s Forum, Dalit NGO Federation, Feminist Dalit Organization (FEDO),
Human Rights Organization of Nepal (HURON), Human Rights and Peace Society (HURPES),
Informal Sector Service Centre (INSEC), Nepalese Section of the International Commission of
Jurists, Institute of Human Rights Communication, Nepal (IHRICON), Law Associates Nepal,
People’s Forum for Human Rights and Development (PFHRD), People’s Front and Nepal Bar
Association.
7.
In Kathmandu, the Special Rapporteur visited the Central Prison, Hanuman Dhoka
District Police Office, Patan Police Office, Chhauni barracks of the RNA and Sundarijal
Investigation Centre, where he interviewed detainees and staff.
8.
The Special Rapporteur also travelled to Nepalgunj in the west of the country, where he
met with NGOs and the Chief District Officer, Mr. B.K. Adikhari, among others. In Nepalgunj
he visited the District Prison of Banke District, the RNA Midwestern Division Headquarters
(Pritna), the Chisapani and Kohalpur barracks, the Armed Police Force Tactical Training Centre
and the District Police Office.
9.
The Special Rapporteur expresses his appreciation to the Government for the full
cooperation it provided to him throughout the visit, and looks forward to a long-term process of
cooperation with the Government to prevent and combat the practice of torture.
10.
He also extends his sincere appreciation for the excellent support provided to him by the
United Nations Resident Coordinator, Mr. M. Kahane, and by Ms. H. Sorensen, Ms. R. Shakya
and the drivers; the field presence of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
(OHCHR) in Nepal, particularly Mr. I. Martin, Mr. D. Johnson, Ms. C. Covarrubias,
Mr. E. Boati, Mr. B. Majekodumni, Ms. N. de Oliveira and Mr. Baivatu; OHCHR, Geneva,
particularly Mr. S. Syed; Ms. J. Kozma of the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute of Human Rights; and
the interpreters and forensic specialists who accompanied the Special Rapporteur.