Statement

Yesterday, we discussed several protests that took place in Asia. They are the students protest in Hong Kong; the protests of the people fighting against eviction from their lands by the Onkareshwar Dam project in Madhya Pradesh, India; the fight against the abuse of blasphemy law in Pakistan in the case of Rimsha, the 14-year-old […]

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is disappointed with the decision taken by the Indonesian Interior Minister regarding the relocation of the Taman Yasmin Indonesian Christian Church (GKI Yasmin) from a land that they are legitimately entitled to, on to a place which will be provided by the government. To a national media, the spokesperson […]

Last week we reported on three great protests taking place in Asia. We will now add a fourth from Pakistan where there was a worldwide protest against the charging of a 14-year-old girl, Rimsha, under the notorious blaspheme law. We can now briefly look at the partial results of these protests. In India the protestors at the […]

It is very heartening that the five member delegation of the United Nations Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances (WGEID) is, at the time of writing visiting Pakistan. The delegation is on a 10-day official mission on enforced or involuntary disappearances and will hold meetings with the federal and provincial government authorities, representatives of […]

After 17 days of daring to stand in neck-deep water, the villagers who are protesting against the unjust compensation package offered for the Onkareshwar Dam in Madhya Pradesh is yet to receive any guaranteed assurances from their government. Yesterday, the Madhya Pradesh State Government has reportedly agreed to reduce the water level in the reservoir, […]

The attached video shows how the police in Sri Lanka are dealing with student protests. Hundreds of policemen surrounded the students and a group of students were forcibly put into a police van and taken away. Further pictures show the police using tear gas and water cannons to disperse the students. For the article and […]

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is saddened that after eight years of the assassination of Munir Said Thalib, there has been no sign from the government that it will take the necessary measures to bring those responsible for the killing to justice. Munir was a prominent and outspoken human rights activist in Indonesia. On […]

The ‘Fair Trial Bill’ which, according to the news report, the government plans to place before parliament will, if passed, virtually make the fair trial impossible in Pakistan. The provisions of the bill are designed for the conviction of persons without fair trial. The direct impact of the proposed law will be to tie the […]

The villagers’ protest against the absence of reasonable settlement for the land and livelihood lost to the Omkareshwar and the Indira Sagar Dams in the Narmada Valley project has thus far fallen upon a blind and deaf government. The agitation, though has received wholehearted support from a section of the Indian civil society, has failed […]

After 13 days of protest, standing in neck-deep water in the catchment area of the Omkareshwar Dam, the protesters have found that neither the Madhya Pradesh state government nor the Government of India have time to listen to their voice. Risking serious aliments and water-borne infections, the protesters have found immense solidarity from the civil […]

The ongoing protest by village communities acting against the increase of water level in the Omkareshwar Dam is unique in several aspects. The protest, which has completed 11 days today, is directed against the Madhya Pradesh state government that has failed to adequately rehabilitate those who have lost their land and livelihood to this ‘development’ […]

On the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances, it is very disappointing that no serious effort has been taken to resolve the issue of enforced disappearances in Pakistan which are carried out by the armed forces, intelligences agencies and other law enforcement agencies. Despite the formation of several judicial and official commissions on […]

Photos depict the Monument for the Disappeared at Raddoluwa Junction, Seeduwa Today, August 30th, is the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances. The International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearances defines enforced disappearances as: “…….the arrest, detention, abduction or any other form of deprivation of liberty by agents of […]

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 […]