Justice still denied for Nepal's killed and disappeared journalists, Freedom Forum says

Freedom Forum has called on the government to prosecute those responsible for killing, disappearing and attacking journalists in Nepal, and to deliver justice to the victims' families. It warns that continued impunity for crimes against journalists weakens both press freedom and the rule of law.

The call came in a statement issued on Sunday to mark 2 November, the International Day to End Impunity for Crimes against Journalists. This year's theme is that threats are changing, but impunity remains.

According to the Forum, the families of journalists killed or forcibly disappeared during the armed conflict have still not received justice. Complaints about conflict-era cases are registered with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, but those cases remain undecided.

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The Forum names ten journalists killed during the conflict whose cases are still pending before the commission, including Navaraj Sharma, Krishna Bahadur Sen, Gopal Giri and Ishwor Budhathoki. It also lists journalists killed after the peace agreement, including Jagat Prasad Joshi, Khagendra Shrestha and Devi Prasad Dhital, and Jamim Shah, who was shot dead in Kathmandu. Journalists who died in the 2015 Madhes movement, Rohan Chaudhary and Ganesh Chaudhary, are also among the cases without judicial progress.

Four disappeared journalists remain unaccounted for, the Forum says: Dhan Bahadur Rokaya Magar and Milan Nepali from the conflict period, and Madan Paudel and Prakash Singh Thakuri from later years. Their whereabouts are still unknown.

The Forum argues that journalists were not parties to the conflict but human rights defenders, and that crimes against them should be handled through the regular criminal justice system rather than only through the transitional justice mechanism.

It also raised recent cases. Suresh Rajak of Avenues Television died on 28 March 2025 while covering a royalist protest at Tinkune in Kathmandu, and the Forum says his killing has not been fairly investigated. During the Gen Z movement on 8 September 2025, journalists Shambhu Dangal, Dipendra Dhungana, Shyam Shrestha and Umesh Karki were injured by police bullets, and no one has been held responsible.

Recommendations by the Gauri Bahadur Karki commission and the National Human Rights Commission for further independent investigation of those events have not been implemented in any concrete way, the Forum says.

Its report records that 103 journalists were affected by press-freedom violations in Nepal between 1 November 2025 and 31 October 2026, including 91 men and 12 women. It says security forces entering media offices and the arrest of journalists have added to the risks facing the press.

The Forum has demanded accountability for those responsible, regular criminal proceedings for conflict-era cases, and justice for the victims and their families.