AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL REPORT 2016/17

Omid Masoumali, an Iranian refugee, died
after setting himself on fire in April. The
authorities failed to protect refugees and
asylum-seekers from continued physical and
verbal attacks by the community, as well as
arbitrary arrest and detention. The conditions
amounted to torture and caused severe
psychological harm. 1
In August, the UK newspaper The
Guardian published over 2,000 leaked
incident reports (known as the “Nauru Files”)
which had been recorded by staff employed
at the RPC. The files documented incidents
including physical and sexual abuse of
refugees and asylum-seekers, including
children, in Nauru, as well as cases of
hunger strikes, self-harm and medical
emergencies.
In November, the Australian government
announced that some of the refugees
detained in Nauru and Papua New Guinea’s
Manus Island would be resettled in the USA
(see Papua New Guinea entry).
1. Island of despair: Australia’s “processing” of refugees on Nauru (ASA
12/4934/2016)
NEPAL
Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal
Head of state: Bidhya Devi Bhandari
Head of government: Pushpa Kamal Dahal (replaced
Khadga Prasad Sharma Oli in August)
Tens of thousands of people continued to
be denied the right to adequate housing
and other human rights following the 2015
earthquake. Marginalized groups expressed
dissatisfaction with constitutional
amendments, on the grounds that they did
not address discriminatory clauses. The use
of torture and unnecessary or excessive
force against protesters in the Tarai region
were not effectively investigated. There was
little progress on justice for the grave
human rights violations committed during
the armed conflict. Migrant workers were
exploited by recruitment companies despite
a new government policy regulating the
sector. Discrimination on the basis of
gender, caste, class, ethnic origin, sexual
orientation, gender identity and religion
persisted. Women and girls were not
adequately protected against gender-based
violence.
RIGHT TO ADEQUATE HOUSING
Hundreds of thousands of people affected by
the April 2015 earthquake continued to live
in temporary shelters. The National
Reconstruction Authority began work in
January and reconstruction officially started
in April. By December, detailed housing
damage assessments were completed for 11
of the 14 worst affected districts. Grant
distributions to enable people to reconstruct
their houses were delayed and people
affected expected to endure another cold
season lacking basic shelter and other
essential services. In September, Prime
Minister Dahal announced a grant increase
from around US$1,850 to 2,800 which was
approved by the cabinet in late December.
In July the UN Committee on the Rights of
the Child expressed concern about the
earthquake’s impact on children’s rights and
the number of displaced children living in
camps for internally displaced people or
informal settlements, without adequate
access to food, safe drinking water,
sanitation, health care or education.
EXCESSIVE USE OF FORCE
The use of torture and unnecessary or
excessive force against protesters in the Tarai
region were not effectively investigated.
Madhesi and other marginalized groups in
the Tarai continued to protest against the
2015 Constitution and its January
amendments which, they claimed,
discriminated against them and denied them
fair political representation. Protesters
blocked border crossings with India resulting
in severe shortages of fuel, food, medicine
and construction materials.
In August, an official commission to
investigate incidents of excessive force by
security forces in the Tarai during these
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