Friends,
Read this following news, and tell me if Maoist should kill these three army men or not?
Thanks!
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RNA court martial only a cosmetic gesture: HRW
BY TILAK P. POKHAREL
NEW YORK, Sept 29 - Terming the conviction of three army officers to six months in jail for human rights abuses by a military court only a ?cosmetic gesture?, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said here Wednesday that the Royal Nepalese Army (RNA) won?t risk punishment while they continue to abuse civilians.
The global human rights watchdog said in a statement that the RNA initiated the court martial against the soldiers found guilty of torturing and murdering a 15-year-old girl after being taken into custody, just to counter mounting international condemnation against its ill-conduct.
?To counter international pressure, the army has instituted some cosmetic gestures such as initiating a court martial and creating a unit dedicated to addressing the military?s poor human rights record,? said HRW. ?In practice, however, government security forces operate without any accountability.?
The HRW statement also said the RNA, over the past two years, ?has been responsible for the largest number of reported forced disappearances in the world."
The rights body has strongly criticized the RNA verdict for not putting the guilty even a single day in actual jail. ?This ruling allows [the guilty] officers... to avoid serving even a single day in jail,? the statement quoted Brad Adams, Asia Director of HRW. ?This tells soldiers in the Nepalese army that they won?t risk punishment if they continue to abuse civilians.?
Rather, the HRW said the ruling of the army court highlights the impunity in their organization.
?Maina was punished because her family dared to challenge the army?s impunity,? Adams said. ?While her family has suffered horribly, the perpetrators are getting away without any real punishment. This verdict confirms that the Nepalese army is simply not serious about respecting the most basic human rights.?
The army court last week had slapped a six-month jail term on Colonel Bobby Khatri and Captains Sunil Adhikari and Amit Pun in connection with the killing of Maina Sunuwar, a ninth grader, in the Kavre district army barracks in February 2004. Even after arresting her in front of her father, the army did not acknowledge the arrest the following day, and after killing her, the body was not given back to the family for cremation. However, citing that all the convicted had already ?served? the term inside the army barracks during the six months long investigation, all of them have been freed. The court had also decided to hold the promotion of Colonel Khatri for two years and one year each for the two captains. The RNA has also claimed it has asked Khatri to pay Rs 50,000 as compensation to the victim's next of kin, and ordered the captain duo to pay Rs 25,000 each.
