Statement

The people of Bangladesh are scared. Incidents of abduction by plain-clothed people, who often claim to be law-enforcing agents of the country, are ongoing, without any indication of being on the want. The people of Bangladesh are scared because their brothers and sons are disappearing. The stories of disappearances are being exposed by the media […]

The Asian Human Rights Commission’s reply to a letter from the Secretary to the Honourable President of Sri Lanka For the full dossier on Rizana Nafeek’s case please see here. We reproduce below a letter from Mr. Lalith Weeratunga, Secretary to the President regarding a background report on Ms. Rizana Nafeek and the AHRC’s reply to […]

Over the past week, thousands of people hurriedly returned to their homes in the northeastern states, fearing for their safety in the rest of the country. The numbers of those fleeing was so high that Indian Railways had to run special trains to meet the sudden upsurge in passenger traffic. To a certain degree, the […]

The Chief Minister of West Bengal is once again in the news. This time the minister is critiqued for her comments on judicial corruption. However, if truth is the best defence, and if such a defence is bona fide, then in public interest none can blame the minister for her ‘expressing opinion.’ In fact, it […]

Men in uniforms of the armed forces went on a rampage of sectarian violence attacking and killing Shia Muslims who make up the second largest Muslim sect after the Sunnis. According to the reports from Gilgit-Baltistan, the northern district of Kohistan, where sizeable numbers of Shia Muslims reside, on three different occasions this year, members […]

On 8 August, the Nepali newspaper The Himalayan Times reported from Myagdi district that the incumbent Attorney General of Nepal, Mukti Pradhan had denounced the current police investigation process of Nepal as a strong obstacle to the proper delivery of justice. He is quoted as having said that “Torture-based investigation is still in practice in Nepal”. He […]

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) congratulates India and the people of this great country on the eve of the 65th anniversary of independence. Occasions like this are opportunity for the country and its people to reflect and introspect on the promises they made, both 65 years ago, when celebrating newfound freedom, and subsequently. The […]

The government is again planning to change the criminal justice mainframe of the country. Again, the ruse is that of justice to the people and national security. The proposal is open; its true purpose clandestine. If the 2007 report of the Committee on National Policy on Criminal Justice, chaired by Dr. N.R. Madhava Menon, is […]

The parliamentarians and leaders of the lawyer’s movement, which restored the judiciary, have come out with the strong criticism against the Supreme Court and particularly against the Chief Justice of Pakistan, Mr. Justice Iftekhar Choudry. They are concerned that he has overstepped the domain of the Constitution and is acting too independently. Besides this, the […]

What was witnessed in Assam is just not communal violence, but opportunities made available to be misused by anti-state elements, for which the State Government of Assam and the Central Government in New Delhi must account for. Pointing fingers exclusively at the Muslims living in Assam, as persons responsible for the violence is without basis, […]

Bangladesh’s law-enforcement agents have a reputation for abusing authority through coercive means. They are and have been the hired thugs of all the ruling regimes. Policing in the country is an industry of producing victims of torture and fabrication of criminal charges against civilians and political opponents since long. Corruption has replaced the chain of […]

A group of human rights lawyers and activists gathered for a two-day seminar on the Rule of Law and Criminal Justice in Dhulikhel, Nepal. This seminar was organized by Advocacy Forum and the Asian Human Rights Commission. Reviewing liberties, opportunities and income, the participants discussed a large number of issues relating to the recent developments […]

The Asian Human Rights Commission greets with cautious optimism the landmark ruling of the Criminal Court in Bangkok to convict five police officers for the murder of a teenager during the “war on drugs” in 2004, and hopes that it will serve as a precedent of sorts for other cases of police and state officials […]

The Sunday Times reported that the Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) has decided to intervene in the contempt of court case filed by seven senior lawyers against Minister Rishad Bathuideen over the threats he is alleged to have made to the Mannar magistrate. Earlier these seven lawyers, Geoffrey Alagaratnam PC, Sunil Cooray, Lal Wijeyanayake, […]

The Asian Human Rights Commission is pleased to learn that the criminal charges brought against Chotisak Onsoong and his friend for allegedly defaming the monarchy have been dropped by the prosecutor. The charges stemmed from the couple’s decision not to stand during the royal anthem and video montage lauding the life of the king played […]

It is devastating for human rights activists the world over and those who stand for religious freedom, practise and tolerance, that the Government of Pakistan is not only stone deaf and dumb but also blind to the continuous murders of the followers of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community. We have received the dreadful news that on […]

We are pleased to forward the full text and the audio of an interview with Mr. Basil Fernando of the Asian Human Rights Commission and ABC Kimberley about the meeting of the parliamentarians held in Hong Kong between July 21-24, 2012. You may listen to the audio recording of the interview here. The full text of […]

Speech given by Abbasi Nusrat Bano, a member of the Provincial Assembly, at the meeting of Asian Parliamentarians On Sunday afternoon, (July 22), Abbasi Nusrat Bano, a member of the Provincial Assembly of Sindh, delivered this speech to great applaus as part of the Meeting of Asian Parliamentarians in the Asian Alliance against Torture and […]

Speech delivered by Pakistani Senator Saeed Ghani as part of the deliberations in the Meeting of Asian Parliamentarians in the Asian Alliance against Torture and Ill-treatment. On Sunday afternoon, the Pakistani Senator, Saeed Ghani, affiliated with the Pakistan People’s Party delivered this speech as part of the Meeting of Asian Parliamentarians against Torture and Ill-treatment. […]

After the sexual assault upon a woman in Guwahati, in Assam state early this month, a shocking event the national media in India competed in telecasting, and the despicable ‘culture’ discussion that followed, the country has scored again, internationally, for similar criminal conduct by Indian men. Impelled by sexual lust and contempt to women, the […]