Nepal court orders release of Tibetan leaders

(Adds U.N. comments)

KATHMANDU, July 8 (Reuters) - Nepal's Supreme Court has ordered the release of three senior Tibetan refugee officials recently arrested in Kathmandu and accused of involvement in anti-China activities.

"The court said their detention was illegal," said Til Prasad Shrestha, a Supreme Court spokesman.

Ngawang Sangmo and Tashi Dolma, senior officials of the regional Tibetan Women's Association, and Kelsang Chung, the director of the Tibetan Refugee Reception Centre in Kathmandu were arrested last month and charged with chanting anti-China slogans.

The Nepal office of the United Nations' human rights agency welcomed the release of the pro-Tibet activists and urged Nepal's government to either significantly amend the Public Security Act (PSA) under which they were arrested or to repeal it.

"It is also vital that the powers under the PSA not be used to suppress legitimate exercise of freedom of expression and freedom of assembly or for political reasons," the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights said in a statement.

The freed activists could not be reached for comment, and neither could officials from the Tibetan Refugee Reception Centre nor the Tibetan Women's Association.

A number of Western governments, including the United States, had demanded their release, saying none of the three had participated in violent actions.

Nepal, one of the world's poorest countries, considers Tibet part of China, an important aid donor and trade partner.