NEPAL: Journalists, HR activists, professionals deprived of mobile service

Journalists find themselves without mobile service on direction from higher authorities

Nepal News
Tuesday, May 3, 2005

AsiaMedia Editor's Note: Nepalnews is operating under the directives of King Gyanendra, and thus cannot publish anything "that goes agains the letter and spirit of the Royal Proclamation."

Kathmandu -- Though the post-paid mobile service resumed on Monday, journalists, professionals, human rights activists and leaders, among others, are still denied the service, reports said on Tuesday.

According to NT officials, their phones were not activated following a direction from higher authorities, reports said.

According to The Kathmandu Post, an English national daily, Himal publications’ Kanak Dixit, Kunda Dixit and Rajendra Dahal, Samay weekly’s Yubraj Ghimire and other senior journalists, senior staffs of Kantipur Publications, president of the Nepal Bar Association- Shambhu Thapa, secretary Madhav Baskota, president of the Federation of Journalists Taranath Dahal and human rights activists Subodh Pyakurel, Gauri Pradhan and Sudip Pathak, amog others, are deprived of the service. The reasons are not known.

Sugatratna Kansakar, the managing director of the Nepal Telecom, earlier told Nepalnews that the authorities permitted the NT to resume the post-paid mobile service in the Valley. “The post paid mobile service is not available to all mobile users. People who have complications while furnishing details while re-registering may have to wait longer,” he said. He didn’t elaborate.

Mobile services had been suspended in Nepal after the political development of February 1.

A total of 45,000 of 55,000 users in Kathmandu had submitted the re-registration forms, while only 34,000 lines have been activated. The Nepal Telecom that has distributed 249,000 mobile phone lines including 173,200 pre-paid lines.

Date Posted: 5/3/2005