Can we work towards holding the Maoist terrorists accountable according to the US laws? Because they are now in US, I guess they can be held responsible and US courts can issue arrest warrant against them if the law suit is worked out properly. I am not a legal professional. I am a student of communication and Journalism at Georgia State University. I hope the Nepali legal experts in USA will work towards this, because this is really a serious issue. Crimes against humanity must not go unpunished. I am not biased to any political party in particular due to my personal conviction/prejudices; my only intention is to upheld the rule of law in society. I urge to Nepali community (especially legal professionals, professors, victims of Maoists/state(?) in USA) to seriously think over this issue and help establish a norm that the criminals are punished eventually!!!!!!

There can be numerous evidence (and really there are) to prove that the Maoist leaders Suresh Ale and “Prabhakar”(I don’t remember his full name) are personally responsible for ordering, acting and implementing the programs of prosecution and oppression, killings and disappearance, abduction and severe torture in Nepal during the conflict. The evidence is not that difficult I guess. These war criminals directed the indiscriminate campaign of terror against civilians in Nepal. There are numerous instances that the international perpetrators of crimes against humanity are convicted by US courts and tribunals.

Some examples:

1. Yamashita (see 377 US at 14, 66 S. Ct. at 347): a commander of Japanese Armed force in Philippine Islands during WW2. Court held him for pervasive war crime.
2. Forti v. Suarez Mason : Argentine general was held in US.
3. Diana v Gramazo etc.

What are the US legal bases for that?

1. Torture Victim protection Act 1991. there is the provision of enough jurisdiction. 28 USC 1331 –the gross violation of international human rights law “arise under” federal common law. ...any individual, under any color of law, of any foreign nation...subjects an individual to torture shall be liable for damages to that individual (TVPA 2(a) (1). Lets find the victims of torture in US or anywhere else.
2. Torture is under the Jus Cogen norm, non-derogable and thus supercedes any “immunities” to any person and doesn’t allow to remain Mr. Ale and Prabhakar at large in US just because they are foreign. This is an overarching norm that is more than simply a customary law.
3. US has ratified (though with reservation) the UN Convention against torture.
4. Filartiga case has determined that “federal jusrisdiction over cases involving international law is clear”. Maoists have committed summary execution, disappearance, torture, arbitrary detention etc. in Nepal, and there are numerous records and evidences.
5. Alien Tort Claims Act: it gives federal courts an “ORIGINAL JURISDICTION” over any civilian action by an alien for a tort”. The only thing we need to do is to gather tort evidence.