A special editorial in todays The Kathmandu Post
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Media wonýt surrender

Maoists have persistently resorted to threat, terror, and killings to expand their so-called ýPeopleýs Warý and to minimize the presence of the state. Having crippled security, local politics, administration and the judiciary, the Maoists have now taken recourse to intimidating the Fourth Estate. By murdering reporter Dekendra Raj Thapa, and issuing death threats to nine journalists through their kangaroo court in the western hill district of Dailekh, they have made clear their intentions. The media understands that they are trying to assess the mettle of the Fourth Estate only too well.
The time has now come for the media to not only anticipate whatýs to come, but also to assert firmly what we stand for. We stand for freedom and liberty, and to this end, we have, and will always work relentlessly to ensure peopleýs right to information. The free media will never surrender. And this special editorial minces no words, in driving home this point.

If Maoists think they can confine the media to the capital and to district headquarters through intimidation, as they have done to other organs of the state, they are mistaken. No doubt, the Maoists may have been emboldened after industrialists caved in to their intimidation. But journalism is not just a business; it is a vocation. Mainstream Nepali media has shown enough resilience against any threatý be it from the right, left, or center. It has refused to be cowed into submission, or used as a propaganda tool. The Maoists need to understand this reality.

We will continue to go to the hinterlands and bring information and stories to our readers of Maoist brutality, army atrocities, and the suffering of innocent people. Nothing can stop the media from uncovering the truth of reality. Nothing whatsoever. Let the Maoists understand this.

If the Maoist high command has any sense of responsibility, they have to respond to the killing of journalist Thapa, and the death threat issued to other reporters by their local militias. They owe an explanation to the media and people. We donýt believe that this could have been done without the consent of the Maoist top echelons, yet we want to hear from the horseýs mouth.

If Maoists are mulling the elimination of the Fourth Estate, let them be warned, that such an evil ambition could well be the beginning of their own end. Not because the media is strong enough to fight against their lethal weapons, but because people in the 21st century do not want to forgo their freedom and right to information. We are confident that Nepali people will make the pen mightier than the sword.

If the Maoist high command has any respect for free media, they have to immediately apologize for the incident. We demand assurance from their leaders that not a single militia will ever threaten journalists again. The choice of being pro-people or anti-people is theirs. The ball is in the Maoist court.

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HM