US condemns detention of leaders in Nepal
Washington, Apr 7: Strongly condemning the arrests and detention of political leaders in Nepal, the United States has urged the royal government to immediately release all the people held for voicing their opposition to the ''autocratic rule'' in the Himalayan kingdom. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack told reporters here that the United States is seriously concerned about Nepal's banning of public gatherings and the detention of opposition political party and civil society activists.
''We are seriously concerned about the government's ongoing curbs on civil liberties and human rights, which has led to serious unrest in Nepal. The arrests and harassment of pro-democracy activists violate their fundamental civil rights,'' he added.
''Dialogue
between
Nepal's
constitutional
political
forces,
the
King
and
opposition
political
parties,
is
the
only
effective
way
to
return
Nepal
to
democracy
and
address
its
insurgency.
Such
a
dialogue
is
not
possible
in
the
climate
in
which
freedoms
of
assembly
and
speech
are
suppressed,''
Mr
McCormack
said.
UNI