Maoist guerrillas have attacked the Nepalese human rights office
Backward Society Education (BASE) and threatened to kill its founder
director Dilli Chaudhary.
On the night of 28 June, members of the Communist Party of Nepal
(the Maoists) detonated a powerful bomb at Backward Society Education's
(BASE) office in Dhangadi, Kailali and threatened to kill Dilli
Chaudhary. Although no casualties were reported after the attack,
the office was severely damaged with the complete destruction
of the organisation's car, documents and furniture.
The increasing number of Maoist attacks and threats have forced
Dilli Chaudhary and his colleagues to freeze their work and projects
on bonded labour indefinitely.
"The Maoists' attack against BASE and Dilli Chaudhary must
be condemned in the strongest terms. This attack threatens the
lives of Nepal's poorest and most marginalised people, by further
preventing the distribution of land and support to freed bonded
labourers," Mary Cunneen Director of Anti-Slavery International
said.
BASE and Dilli Chaudhary have been instrumental in organising
kamaiya bonded labourers (agricultural bonded labour among
the Tharu minority), increasing awareness of their rights.
They led a successful campaign against this slavery, pressing
the Government to outlaw bonded labour in 2002.
The same year BASE received the Anti-Slavery
Award for its work on bonded labour. In spite of the danger,
Dilli continues to promote social justice for Nepal's marginalised
people through education and income-generating initiatives.
