Nepal court orders release of Tibetan leaders
Updated
Nepal's Supreme Court has ordered the release of three senior Tibetan refugee officials recently arrested and accused of involvement in anti-China activities.
The three, officials at the Tibetan Women's Association and the Tibetan Refugee Reception Centre in Kathmandu, were arrested last month and charged with chanting anti-China slogans.
A number of Western governments, including the United States, had demanded their release saying none of them had participated in violent actions.
The United Nations' human rights agency in Nepal is urging the government to either significantly amend the Public Security Act under which they were arrested or to repeal it.
It says the Act should not be used to suppress legitimate exercise of freedom of expression and freedom of assembly.
About 20,000 Tibetan exiles live in Nepal.
