Statement

On the occasion of the United Nations International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) welcomes the new opportunities for human rights as a whole, and torture victims in particular, that have arisen out of the historic peoples’ movement in Nepal in April 2006. As the result of widespread […]

Police torture of criminal suspects is commonly accepted in Indonesia. This is the case whether they are suspects of insurgency and violence, or suspects of petty theft. In fact, the police are even known to harass and assault innocent civilians. At the beginning of the year, the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) reported that two […]

Of the 511 Sections in the Indian Penal Code, there is not a single provision to punish a law enforcing officer for engaging in custodial torture.  One hundred and forty six years since the original version of the Penal Code was drafted and fifty nine years since independence, the Penal Code has undergone several changes, […]

On May 9th, 2006, Bangladesh was elected to the new United Nations Human Rights Council, which is currently holding its first session in Geneva. As part of the voluntary pledge the government made prior to the election, it affirmed its “deep commitment to the promotion and protection of human rights of all of its citizens.” […]

As it observes the annual U.N. International Day in Support of Victims of Torture on June 26, the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) notes that fighting the “war on terror” in recent years is now threatening the much longer “war on torture.” For years, the AHRC and others around the world have called upon governments […]

A landmine attack on a bus on June 15 at Kebethigollewa on a remote road near rebel-held territory killed at least 64 persons and wounded many more.  Immediately thereafter there were several air strikes on LTTE positions by the Sri Lankan military.  This follows several months of low intensity conflict which has killed many people […]

The trial of 58 persons charged after the fatal 25 October 2004 protest outside the Tak Bai police station in Narathiwat, southern Thailand is being perverted by the non-appearance of prosecution witnesses who say that they are too busy to appear in court. On June 14, for at least the 11th time, the trial was […]

Attempts to promote Sri Lanka’s executive president as an absolute ruler continued this week through two statements (Daily News June 14, 2006) made by persons very close to the government. First, the illegally appointed Chairperson of Sri Lanka’s Human Rights Commission reportedly told the press he would seek a meeting with President Rajapakse, requesting him […]

Although there are not so many supporters anymore for the President’s appointments to the courts and several commissions, in contravention of the Constitution, there are still a few apologists. One such is Dr. Jinadasa Ilangasinghe, who in an article published in the Island on June 11, 2006 entitled Parliamentarians’ Mandate and the Constitutional Council, puts […]

The Philippines’ legislative branch has taken important steps towards implementing human rights standards in the country. On June 6, the law imposing capital punishment for heinous crimes–Republic Act No. 7659, or the Death Penalty Law–was abolished when the Senate unanimously approved Senate Bill 2254, or an Act Abolishing the Death Penalty Law. The newly approved […]

The judgment of the Court of Appeal on the application of two citizens regarding the recent appointments to the Police and Public Service Commissions by the President of Sri Lanka [CA Application 66/2006] raises some fundamental problems regarding the implementation of the Constitution of Sri Lanka. The issue raised by the petitioners was that the […]

As the government and combined military forces of the United States were cranking up and talking up the global “war on terror” in 2003, the Asian Human Rights Commission warned that deliberate efforts to undermine and relativise the absolute prohibition against torture in international law would spread and mutate into attacks on all vital principles […]

Fifty-nine years since independence, the people of Pakistan are yet to experience true democracy and the rule of law. The Provincial Governors of Pakistan and their governments exploit the opportunity of lawlessness by awarding financial as well as other privileges to the people of their choice. A current example of this is the auctioning of […]

On June 5, the regional office of the Commission on Human Rights in General Santos City, southern Philippines, formally informed torture victim Jejhon Macalinsal and two companions that it would take up their four-year-old complaint of torture against the police, if they decide to pursue it. A lawyer representing the commission told them to execute […]

The Asian Human Rights Commission expresses deep sadness on the occasion of the passing away of Suranjith Hewamanna in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Hewamanna was one of the bravest lawyers in the country during one of the hardest times faced by the judicial and legal professions. He embodied the fearlessness and conviction associated with advocacy at […]

In a recent decision, Sri Lanka’s Court of Appeal refused interim relief in a case challenging recent appointments made by President Rajapakse contravening the Constitution. The court also refuted any challenge to presidential immunity. Among other things, the court held that since the president is not a respondent of the case, the court cannot hear […]

On Monday, June 5, Angkhana Neelaphaijit together with a number of Thailand-based groups submitted in person an open letter to the recently-formed Independent Commission on Justice and Civil Liberties for the Southern Border Provinces. The commission is expected to take a lead role in addressing the continued bloodshed in the south, following in the footsteps […]

In a May 28 interview published in the Bangkok Post newspaper, Kyoto University professor Yoshifumi Tamada expresses concerns over the stability of Thailand’s democracy. Tamada is evidently unsettled by the recent anti-government protests and popular boycott of the April 2 election, which he is quoted as saying amounts to a “constitutional coup”. Tamada holds the […]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 4, 2006 AS-131-2006 A Statement by the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) SRI LANKA: Seventh day of mourning against executive interference into the judiciary and other independent institutions–Good faith and necessity no defence for President’s flouting of constitution In its previous six statements the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has set […]

The numerous appointments to key national commissions by the executive president, contravening constitutional requirements, are a very clear indication of Sri Lanka’s drift from a law-based society to one in which the law plays a significantly reduced role.  While criticism against presidential actions has pointed to matters including the fact that no person is above […]