On July 28, management of the Image News FM in the capital city, all of a sudden, expelled reporter Sandeep Yogi over the news relating to the misbehavior he was meted out by the security persons attending the vehicle of a high ranking official.
A day before, he had photographed the traffic congestion created by the vehicle (it was violating traffic rule) of the Chief of the Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA), Lokman Singh Karki, near the CIAA gate, Tangal, in the capital city.
For photographing, he was attacked by the security persons attending Mr Karki. He was detained for one hour, and the photos deleted.
Instead of protecting its reporter, the FM management expelled Yogi, saying his news created negative image of the media house.
Already hurt by the police persons, reporter Yogi suddenly got the information over phone, "Yesterday news (incident) has tarnished the image of the media house. So, you stop coming to office. Your payment will be handed later."
Such unexpected termination from the job came from Program Manager Anupa Shrestha, he added.
Sharing the plight, reporter Yogi said, his media did not even disseminate the news on security persons' attack on him.
"With this incident befallen me, I worry that the working journalists (reporters) now need to make list of the friends of their media owners and not make news on their activities disregarding they are wrongdoings."
He further lamented that even the senior journalists working in his media house, who always advocated for rights of the journalists, were indifferent to his case. "It was because they were controlled by the media owner," Yogi added.
Both the attack on, and ouster of working journalist Yogi are the gross violations of the press freedom, and against the rights of the working journalist. It is also the case that how media owners are hostile to their own employees, and firing without any reason.
Freedom Forum condemns both attack and ouster of the journalist and strongly urges the media house to unconditionally restore the working journalists and respect his rights.
For More Information
Freedom Forum
Thapathali, Kathmandu
Post Box No: 24292
Phone No. 4102030, 4102022
Website: www.nepalpressfreedom.org; www.freedomforum.org.np
Email: monitoring@freedomforum.org.np; info@freedomforum.org.np;