Nepal
Guard at temple door, Kathmandu.
For more than nine years a conflict has raged in Nepal between government security forces and fighters of the Communist Party of Nepal (CPN)(Maoist) rebels. The conflict has had a devastating effect on all sections of Nepali society—but especially on the lives of children. The most fundamental rights of children are being violated routinely, and nowhere is this more apparent than in schools across the country.
Children and the conflict in Nepal
There are now well over 2,000 children who have lost at least one parent, and over 4,000 children among those displaced in the conflict-affected areas. Education services, already very limited in Nepal, have been badly hit by the conflict, resulting in many children being unable to access their right to education.
Impact of the Conflict on Education
The ongoing conflict between the CPN (Maoist) and the security forces has had a devastating effect on the lives of school children and teachers, who are literally caught in the crossfire between the two sides.
Schools are being used for military purposes by both sides, and many have entirely shut down due to destruction of premises, lack of teachers, military operations, and threats by the CPN (Maoist). The CPN (Maoist) have abducted tens of thousands of school children and their teachers for “political education” sessions.
- The CPN (Maoist) have abducted tens of thousands of school children and teachers for political education sessions. While most are released after short periods, those children who do not return home are believed to have been recruited for military-related activities.
- Security forces and the CPN (Maoist) have requisitioned school premises to use as military barracks.
- Teachers in areas controlled by the CPN (Maoist) are often forced to teach the Maoist curriculum and to make “donations” from their salaries to support CPN (Maoist) activities.
- The CPN (Maoist) consistently targets private schools, which it ideologically opposes.
- Teachers have come under attack from both parties to the conflict. The National Teachers Association estimates that more that 160 teachers have been killed in conflict-related violence, some of whom have been specifically targeted on suspicion of supporting one side or the other in the conflict.
- Thousands of children and teachers have been forcibly displaced from their communities.
Child Soldiers
There is increasing evidence that the CPN (Maoist) recruit children for armed activities, although the CPN (Maoist) leadership continue to deny this. The use of children under the age of 15 in armed conflict is recognized as a war crime.
- The CPN (Maoist) recruits children for armed activities, including engagement in actual fighting and carrying bombs or ammunition.
- Children also are forced to carry out other tasks for the CPN (Maoist), including serving as informers, messengers, porters, and cooks. Children have been forced to dig roads and bunkers.
- The threat of forced recruitment by the CPN (Maoist) is resulting in further displacement as families flee from their homes and communities to protect their children.
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More information on Nepal and Amnesty's work to promote human rights in this country
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