Maoists retaliate after allegations of mass rape

Maoists abducted five villagers, killing one, in southeastern Nepal in apparent retaliation for telling the press and human-rights activists that 25 women in their village were raped by the rebels last week, a Nepalese newspaper said yesterday.

The English-language daily Kathmandu Post said that the body of one villager was found on Thursday -- the same day as the kidnappings -- along a river bank near the village of Jagatpur in Saptari district, which lies 220km southeast of the capital, Kathmandu.

The Maoists denied being involved in the mass rape of 25 women last week. Nine of the victims told journalists and human-rights activists earlier this week that Maoists perpetrated the crime and threatened them if they divulged the rapes.

The rebels admitted to carrying out the murder and abductions this week and accused the victims of perpetrating the rapes, the Post said.

Human-rights activists accused the government of being "weak" and unable to protect the villagers, despite Nepalese media reports this week that the people of Jagatpur were living in fear after the accounts of the mass rape hit the headlines.

The abductions were not the only ones blamed on the Maoists in the past few days. They are accused of more than 100 kidnappings across the country, the Nepali-language daily Kantipur reported yesterday.

The Maoists put their kidnapping victims through indoctrination programs and on several occasions have used them as human shields when attacking security posts.