Nepal PM pledge on rights abuses

By Sushil Sharma
BBC correspondent in Kathmandu

Mr Thapa's government is under pressure on foreign aid

Nepal's prime minister has announced a series of measures to curb human rights abuses after criticism from activists at home and abroad.

Surya Bahadur Thapa pledged to prevent illegal detention and investigate cases of people who disappeared after arrest.

Rights groups say abuses have worsened with an upsurge in violence between the government and Maoist rebels.

The Maoists, who broke off a ceasefire last August, are fighting to replace the monarchy with a republic.

Prime Minister Thapa pledged full cooperation in locating those who disappeared after being detained.

He said the International Committee of the Red Cross would be allowed access to all detention centres.

UN mediation

National and international human rights organisations have blamed both the government and the rebels for the abuses.

Rights groups have expressed concern for some detainees

The government has mainly been criticised for illegally detaining people on suspicion of being Maoist sympathisers.

Nepal's independent national human rights commission recently issued a list of 700 people it said had disappeared.

Nepal's international donors have also voiced concern and issued a veiled warning that aid could be stopped if the human rights situation did not improve.

More than half of the country's annual budget comes from foreign aid and the government is under more pressure to respond to accusations of rights abuses than the Maoists.

About 9,000 people have died in the eight-year Maoist insurgency.

Meanwhile, a top rebel leader, Prachanda, has renewed his support for the United Nations to mediate to resolve the conflict.

His comments come in response to UN Secretary General Kofi Annan's recent statement urging the government and the rebels to immediately end the fighting and resume the peace process.

There has been no government response to the rebels' statement but in the past it has rejected any outside mediation.