Surkhet, August 23:

The Nepali Press will not fear any force, but will march ahead with all its might for its freedom, the president of the Federation of Nepalese Journalists (FNJ), Bishnu Nisthuri said at a programme here yesterday. He was inaugurating a regional meeting of journalists of the mid and far-western region organised by the South Asian Free Media Association and FNJ, in Birendranagar. He said the movement of the Nepali Press for the restoration of total freedom had been termed a bold movement by all. Nisthuri added the government is conspiring to wipe out the institution of the Nepali Press itself and this had compelled the FNJ to take tough initiatives against the conspiracy.

“If the government interferes in the Press, it will find itself excluded from all other sectors as well,” he said and also accused the government of misusing security forces to control Press freedom. He condemned the government’s attempt to split the FNJ. Chairman of the Nepali chapter of SAFMA, Gopal Thapaliya, claimed the Press cannot be taken over by the extremists. Saying that a pen is mightier than a gun, Thapaliya warned the government and the rebels not to try the pen’s power. He did not hesitate to call the government “criminal” saying it is a crime to deprive the public of its right to information.