Statement

It is becoming increasingly obvious that getting away with murder in the Philippines is made easy by the absence of any functioning witness protection scheme. The lack of witnesses also becomes a convenient excuse for investigators to say that they have done their jobs but have no further avenues for action.   In a May […]

The last decade has seen numerous gross human rights violations in Indonesia that have been widely reported by local activists as well as international groups. Of particular concern has been the lack of prosecution of the perpetrators. The Asian Human Rights Commission has previously stated its own alarm at the lack of action taken by […]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE AS-72-2005 June 27, 2005 A Statement by the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) Trauma treatment should be integral to Nepal’s human rights monitoring operation Torture, extrajudicial killings, disappearances and other abuses often result in severe trauma for victims and their families. This trauma outlives the violation, leaving an indelible impression on the […]

Writing to Suwat Liptapanlop, the Minister of Justice of Thailand on June 22, the Asian Human Rights Commission observed, “The question may well be asked as to why Thai police enjoy electrocuting testicles?” The remark was made after the May 24 gruesome torture of Urai Srineh, allegedly at the Chonburi provincial police station. Urai was […]

Much of the public prosecutor’s office in India now functions as a brokerage office where unholy deals are fixed between the police, the defence counsel and the prosecutors. Nothing worse could be expected when the prosecutors are appointed by the state at the whims and fancies of corrupt politicians after a long period of horse-trading. […]

Why has a special day been proposed for the victims of torture? What is its importance? It is hoped that this special day will initiate a movement that can highlight the gravity of torture and establish a support base for its victims. Such efforts, it is hoped, will influence civil society to reject the use […]

Torture is an extraordinary crime. The perpetrators of acts of torture have been recognised as hostis humanis generis , enemies of all humankind. Therefore, all states must ensure that the prevention of acts of torture and the assurance of the right of victims of torture are set forth in their laws.   It has been almost […]

The Philippine government prohibits the use of torture as stipulated in its 1987 constitution. It is also a state party to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT), but the government’s failure to criminalise the practice of torture has virtually shielded the police, military and other public officials […]

Protests against the use of torture by law enforcement agencies are becoming more widespread in countries throughout Asia. These are emanating from a growing popular sentiment against torture as an abuse of power. With greater awareness and a sense of their own dignity, people are openly opposing abuse by law enforcement officers, who are also […]

Strange news has been coming from Thailand, where five police have filed defamation complaints against a reputed forensic pathologist and senior government bureaucrat after they suggested that a man with five bullets in his vital organs probably didn’t shoot himself. The death of Sunthorn Wongdao on May 21 has captured public imagination since the police […]

A recent killing in Thailand has brought to the surface some of the deep contradictions in the country’s criminal justice system. Sunthorn Wongdao was found dead in Bang Yai district, Nonthaburi province, on May 21. Sunthorn is said to have hidden in a house after being accused of shooting his wife and father-in-law in Bang […]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 15, 2005 AS-63-2005 A Statement by the Asian Human Rights Commission Better management could address Sri Lanka’s delays in justice  That Sri Lanka’s criminal justice system has a conviction rate of only about four per cent is often noted. The primary cause for this dismal rate, which is less often noted, […]

On June 6, the deputy director of Thailand’s Central Institute of Forensic Science, Porntip Rojanasunan, was told by senior government officials that the police force has been given the go-ahead to establish the country’s proposed missing-persons centre. This is despite the fact that the proposal for the centre came from Porntip herself, that she has […]

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has been made aware of a broadcast by the Sri Lanka Rupawahini Corporation in their regular program Attha Nattha, (Truth and Falsehood) on the evening of June 6 and repeated on the morning of June 7, called Saukya Sewayata Sambanda Wurthikayange Wagakeema Niwaradi Paridi Ituweda (Do those who are […]

Speaking in Bangkok on June 2, Stephen Toope, chairman of the U.N. Working Group on enforced or involuntary disappearances, said that the Working Group has taken up the case of Thai human rights lawyer Somchai Neelaphaijit, who has been missing since he was abducted on March 12, 2004. He said that the Working Group has […]

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is shocked to learn about the assassination of a high ranking Sri Lankan military intelligence officer Major Nisam Muthalif today in Colombo. The AHRC condemns this murder and further reiterates that Sri Lanka is rapidly heading towards a major breakdown of law and order. The AHRC urge for rapid […]

On May 26, the Danish government announced that it has earmarked 4.5 million Danish Krone (US$ 750,000) for the new office of the U.N. High Commission on Human Rights in Nepal. The office will use this money over the coming two years for active monitoring and investigating of gross rights abuses occurring on the ground […]

On 25 October 2000, more than 25 young Tamils at a rehabilitation centre in Bindunuwewa near Bandarawela in the south-central part of the island were attacked and killed by a Sinhalese group.  Who were the actual culprits?  Who were their masterminds?  To these questions Sri Lanka’s justice system has no answers.   Likewise, after nearly […]

The police have begun investigating a case of alleged negligence resulting in a woman’s leg being wrongly amputated at the Negombo Base Hospital in Sri Lanka. They are pursuing the matter under section 329 of the Penal Code of Sri Lanka, which reads: “Whoever causes grievous hurt to any person by doing any act so […]

From May 12 to 14, 2005 the Asian Human Rights Commission held a consultation in Hong Kong with a group of forensic and legal professionals to discuss the interplay between forensic science and human rights. The participants examined how improved institutions and procedures for forensic investigations are essential to the rule of law and thus […]