Karna Bahadur Basnet, Dailekh district in-charge of the UCPN (Maoist), and Harka Bahadur Shahi, member of the Bheri-Karnali state council of the CPN-Maoist, signed a letter of commitment, paving the way for the return of the displaced journalists.[break]
On Tuesday, the letter was also signed by Sharada Prasad Trital, regional administrator of the midwestern region, Shiva Gaunle, president of the Federation of Nepalese Journalists (FNJ), Pushkar Thapa, Dailekh district committee chairman of the FNJ, and Tapendra Dhwoj Hamal, chief of the midwestern regional police office.
As per the three-point letter, the local administration will regularly monitor the security of journalists in Dailekh and write to the government seeking compensation for the Tesro Aankha daily, whose office was vandalized, allegedly by Maoist cadres.
After the 22 reporters fled Dailekh district following threats from Maoist cadres on January 25, the publication of two local dailies and one weekly had halted indefinitely. Two FM radio stations had also gone off air.
Earlier, cadres of the Young Communist League (YCL), the youth wing of the UCPN (Maoist), had warned that at least 10 more journalists would meet the same fate as Dekendra Thapa, who was abducted and ´buried alive´, allegedly by Maoist cadres in 2004.
On Tuesday, hundreds of locals, including representatives of the political parties and civil society, had greeted the displaced journalists upon their return to Dailekh.
Apart from the FNJ, the National Human Rights Commission, Nepal Press Union and human rights activists had played a key role in striking a deal with local Maoist leaders to help the displaced journalists return to their district.
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