Original Story

POST REPORT

 Number of Nepali prisoners in Thai ‘Hiltons’ crosses 50

KATHMANDU, Aug 11

The five-men team of the Committee for Prison Transfer Exchange (CfPTE), spearheaded by
American national Ben Park, has reported cases of Nepalese nationals languishing in 
four Thai prisons, and being subjected to tortures and abuses. 
The prisons the team visited are Bangwang Prison, Klong Prem Prison, 
Women’s Central Prison and Bambhat  Prison.
 
Yet another finding of the team is that the number of prisoners, which numbered 37 
until May 13, has shot up by another 15 inmates.

"In fact, the number is much more but we could not ascertain it," Raju Gurung,
who is a member of the five-man team, told The Kathmandu Post rather belatedly.
The visit had taken place through May 25-30.

"The high point of the visit was that we had taken the mother of Robin Gurung 
who is serving a life sentence," said Raju  Gurung who had travelled with the 
fact-finding team to Bangkok. "She was relieved to see her son."

He also reported of inmates complaining about food and the total indifference
demonstrated by the Nepalese embassy officials in Bangkok "who do not care to 
check the status of the jailed nationals while personnel of the embassies of
other nations do so."

"The worst part is that the prison police barge in and start beating us, calling us
‘You Nepalese Communist bastards,’" Raju Gurung of CfPTE attributed to Chandra Gurung
 as saying. The inmates are also hit on the ears which is having adverse effects 
on their hearing capacity. Many of them are also suffering from tuberculosis.

CfPTE and other organisations working in the area of penal reforms have been lobbying
for the signing of the Prisoner Exchange Treaty between Thailand and Nepal 
which is vital for the exchange of prisoners detained in each other’s  prisons.

Nostalgically, Chandra Kumar Rai, detained with 30 other Nepalese nationals in
Klong Prem Prison, appears to be a closet artiste since he has created portraits
of King Gyanendra and Queen Komal.

His picture had been e-mailed to The Kathmandu Post which had earlier reported
on the cases on May 13.
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