KATHMANDU, Feb. 15 -- The ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP) government is taking incremental steps to curb press freedom, hoping no one will notice. But added up, they represent a serious threat to the constitutionally guaranteed right to freedom of expression of citizens and journalists.
With federalism, controls on the press also seem to be decentralised, with provincial governments drafting laws that would jail journalists for perceived infractions. A new criminal code last year already announced punitive measures against reporting construed to infringe on privacy, or ridicule political figures. This week, the government proposed new laws to punish objectionable content on social media with a Rs1.5 million fine, or 5 years in prison....