Interview

Nepal: “There are prisons inside prisons”

A call for help from human rights defenders

Nepal has been marked by many human rights violations, especially since the civil war1. Although the conflict ended, human rights abuses remain. The prison system counts 15,400 cells but holds 25,400 persons. The sanitary situation is deemed “inhumane”. Civil society actors are alarmed and try to make their voices heard.
Om Prakash Sen Thakuri is the executive director of Advocacy Forum Nepal, an organisation providing legal, medical and psychological support to prisoners and victims of crime. Advocacy Forum documents cases of human rights abuse and publishes reports on ill-treatment in detention. Prison Insider asked him three questions.


  1. The armed conflict took place between 1996 and 2006. Violence escalated in 2001 when the royal family was killed by the prince. A period of political, economic and social instability ensued. 

Prisoners are trapped in sexual exploitation and forced labour, surrounded by gang violence.

While the prison is planned for 250 prisoners, it currently holds 900 people.

Upgrading prison infrastructures to improve detention conditions is the responsibility of the government.