Statement

Two years and five months have passed after the Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, promised the nation that India will soon ratify the United Nations Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. While nothing is heard about the ratification of the Convention anymore in New Delhi, the Government of India, […]

Bangladesh ratified the UN Convention against Torture, and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Punishment or Treatment (CAT) on 5 October 1998. Since then the country has kept its obligation under the international law to criminalise torture at the domestic level to be pending. A domestic law criminalising torture will expand the scope of seeking legal […]

An interview conducted by the Asian Human Rights Commission. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the AHRC. Thailand–A woman speaks out views on the elimination of torture Ms. Puttanee Kangkan is from the Working Group on Justice for Peace (WGJP). She is the author or Understanding and Practice of Torture in the […]

BANGLADESH: AHRC urged Bangladesh’s Parliament to legislate pending Bill on criminalisation of torture     The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC ) has written to the Chairperson of the Parliamentary Committee on Private Members’ Bill and Resolution, Mr. Abdul Matin Khasru, a week before urging the Committee to fasten the pace of discussions and debates to criminalise […]

An interview conducted by the Asian Human Rights Commission. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the AHRC. Indonesia–A woman speaks out against bad policing and torture  Maria Katarina Sumarsih was the mother of Bernardus Realino Norma Irmawan (Wawan), a university student who was allegedly shot to death by military personnel in the First […]

An interview conducted by the Asian Human Rights Commission. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the AHRC.   Bangladesh – – A woman speaks out against bad policing and torture   Mrs. Mahfuza Akter, is a widow at the age of 23 with two children aged 4 years and 10 months respectively. […]

An interview conducted by the Asian Human Rights Commission. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the AHRC.   INDONESIA: a human rights activist speaks out about bad policing systems     Ajeng Larasati holds a Bachelor of Law degree and has been working for the Community Legal Aid Institute (LBH Masyarakat) for […]

As the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture is commemorated on the 26th June the Asian governments need to face up to their failure to honour their obligations to eliminate the use of torture in their countries. The use of torture is endemic in Asia and the reason for this is that the […]

As the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture is commemorated globally, the people of Cambodia continue to face serious problems relating to guaranteed rights against torture. As far as legislation is concerned, Cambodia has been a party to all UN conventions relating to civil rights and rights against torture. Recently, it also ratified […]

Since the last International Day in Support of Torture Victims, it is unfortunate that little concrete measures have been taken to put an end to the practice of police torture in Nepal. Even if there has been a noticeable amelioration in the behavior of the security forces and a decrease in the number of torture […]

An interview conducted by the Asian Human Rights Commission. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the AHRC. Sri Lanka–A woman speaks out against bad policing and torture Mrs. Weerasinghe, 63, has a small business selling bed sheets and is a Buddhist. Her sons were 16 and 17 when they were arrested in […]

An interview conducted by the Asian Human Rights Commission. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the AHRC. Nepal- A woman human rights activists speaks out against violence against women Rachana Bhattarai is the Executive Director of the Women’s Rehabilitation Center-WOREC Nepal, a national NGO which has been working in favour of social […]

Can a sovereign in a democratic state claim the right to deny the protection of the rule of law to its citizens? This is the core issue that has come to the forefront over the dispute with the international community and Sri Lanka in terms of the GSP+ issue as well as the appointment of […]

An interview conducted by the Asian Human Rights Commission. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the AHRC. Philippines: “I just don’t trust them when it comes to investigating a complaint” Ms. Josie Obguia is a Bachelor of Arts Major in Mass Communications (AB Mass Com) from the University of Mindanao, Davao City. […]

An interview conducted by the Asian Human Rights Commission. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the AHRC. Philippines: “I never thought that I would be safe in their hands” Ms. Dorris Cuario is the Secretary General of Karapatan-Southern Tagalog region, a local human rights organisation. Dorris has been involved in human rights […]

An interview conducted by the Asian Human Rights Commission. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the AHRC. Nepal – A woman activist speaks out against bad policing Sharmila Lungeli has been working with Nari Bikash Sangh (Women’s Development Center), an NGO bringing education, health and advocacy services to women in need in […]

An interview conducted by the Asian Human Rights Commission. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the AHRC.   Bangladesh–A woman speaks out against bad policing and torture Ms. Shamim Ara is the Chairperson of the Department of Law at the Dhaka International University. She expresses her views about the issues of torture […]

An interview conducted by the Asian Human Rights Commission. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the AHRC. Bangladesh–A woman speaks out against bad policing and torture Ms. Annie Jhumur Halder is the Chairperson of the Christian Development Alternative (CDA), a human rights organisation based in Dhaka. She expresses her views about the […]

An interview conducted by the Asian Human Rights Commission. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the AHRC. Burma (Myanmar) –A woman speaks out against bad policing and torture Hla Hla Win is an ex-political prisoner who had been arrested because of her political activities against the military regime. Since her release, she […]

An interview conducted by the Asian Human Rights Commission. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the AHRC. Sri Lanka –A woman speaks out against bad policing and torture Mrs. Gannoruwa, 80, was a Sinhala teacher in a primary and senior school and she now campaigns against disappearances. Her son was abducted in […]