Urgent Appeal Case

PHILIPPINES: Police’ vehicle used in forcibly abducting a man in General Santos City

Dear friends, The AHRC writes with deep concern regarding the forcible abduction and subsequent disappearance of a man, Arnold Aliman, in General Santos City on 27 May 2007. Witnesses have revealed that the vehicle used by the abductors, who were armed, has been traced to the local police Criminal Investigation Branch (CIB). The whereabouts of […]

INDONESIA: Alleged threats to lawyers in Medan by military personnel

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information regarding the public threats on two advocates from the Medan Legal Aid Institute (LBH Medan) by six members of the Indonesia Armed Forces (TNI-AD) on 5 June 2007, during a court trial at Pancur Batu State Court. It is reported that the military personnel […]

NEPAL: Alleged brutal attack of villagers by police in Dhanusha district

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has been informed by its local partner in Nepal, the Advocacy Forum, of the alleged brutal attack on the villagers in Laxmipur Bagewa VDC, Dhanusha district by a group of the police personnel on 27 May 2007. At least 13 persons were reported to have been seriously […]

BURMA: Man disappears after being taken away to work as army porter

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has learned that a man who was detained by the army in Burma has since disappeared. Although it is more than one year since Maung Ko Kyi was taken away from his workplace, requests by concerned persons to know what has happened to him have not yielded […]

INDIA: Mysterious death of a person not investigated at all by the by the Andhra Pradesh state police

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information from its local partner based in Andhra Pradesh, India regarding the death of a person in mysterious circumstances and the failure of the local police to investigate the case. In fact it is alleged that the local police officers are trying to protect the […]

NEPAL: An alleged rape of a minor by the three policemen and one civilian in Kanchanpur

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has been informed by its local partner in Nepal, the Advocacy Forum, of the alleged appalling rape of a 14-year-old mentally ill girl by three police constables from Zonal Police Office (ZPO) and one civilian in Mahendranagar, Kanchanpur district on 4-5 June 2007. Two of the police […]

BANGLADESH: Arbitrary detention of 7 student activists by joint security forces

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission has received information regarding the arbitrary arrest and detention of 7 student activists belonging to the Bangladesh Students League (BSL) by the joint security forces in May 2007. All the victims were arrested from their residence within a two day period between May 7-9 with the charge of […]

CAMBODIA: Newspaper publishing report on illegal logging is banned by Government

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission has received information that on 8 June 2007 the Minister of Information, Mr. Khieu Kanharith, reportedly issued a warning letter to the Sralanh Khmer newspaper to stop its publication of the Global Witness report on illegal logging. The GW report, released on 1 June 2007, reportedly exposed the […]

INDIA: Seven families illegally evicted from their rented houses

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information from its local partners in Uttar Pradesh – The Peoples’ Union for Civil Liberties [Uttar Pradesh Chapter] and Guria Sansthan – regarding the forceful and illegal eviction of poor and helpless families in Mau city of Uttar Pradesh. It is alleged that the families […]

SRI LANKA: Alleged assault of two men by the Meegahatenna police in Kalutara

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information about an alleged assault of two men, who are relatives each other, by one sub inspector of the Meegahatenna police station in Mathugama district, Kalutara division, Sri Lanka on 5 March 2007. The victims say that the concerned SI was under the influence of […]

CAMBODIA: 74 families face imminent eviction in Sihanoukville

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has learned that on 22 May 2007, 74 families in the Prey Nop district in Sihanoukville received an eviction notice issued by the district governor Ban Sarom, notifying them to leave their land within 10 days. The villagers had previously received a similar notice from the Sihanoukville […]

INDIA: Human rights activist arrested for writing down judge’s name

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information from its local partner, MASUM, a human rights organisation working in West Bengal, India regarding the arrest of one of its activist. It is alleged that Mr. Gopen Sharma, a staff of the MASUM working in Murshidabad district of West Bengal was ordered to […]

SRI LANKA: Denial of right to education to 15-year-old rape victim

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information regarding the denial of the right to education to a 15-year-old rape victim in Ahangama, Galle District, Galle Division, Southern Range, Sri Lanka. From 15 May 2007, the school principal has refused to allow the victim to resume schooling following the rape incident on […]

INDIA: Police Sub Inspector assaults innocent persons in Kerala

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information from Nervazhi, a local human rights organisation based in Thrissur, Kerala regarding an incident where a Sub Inspector of Police assaulted members of a family in public. It is alleged that the police officer was forcing to illegally settle a civil dispute. It is […]

PHILIPPINES: Abducted activist suffers torture and food deprivation in captivity

Dear friends, The AHRC writes to inform you that 27-year-old Gilbert Rey Cardiño (a.k.a. Jing), a political activist who was forcibly abducted and disappeared on 6 June 2007 in Koronadal City, Mindanao, has been released on June 8. Cardiño showed signs of trauma, torture and food deprivation while he was in captivity for two days. […]

SRI LANKA: Alleged torture and fabrication of charges of a man by the Katadeniyawa police

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is deeply concerned by the alleged torture and fabrication of charges against a man by the Kotadeniyawa police. According to the information from the Human Rights Citizens Committee in Gampha district, Mr. T.G. Chaminda Weerawardene, who resides in Divulapitiya, Negombo district was illegally arrested on 2 June […]

SRI LANKA: Alleged illegal detention and torture of two men by police

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received two further alleged torture cases committed by Sri Lankan police. In one case, the 17-year-old victim was illegally arrested by the the Special Investigation Unit (SIU) of the Vavuniya police on 22 May 2007, and subjected to brutal torture. It is reported that the police […]

PHILIPPINES: Supreme Court fails to review death sentences of five torture victims seven years on

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) writes with deep concern regarding the continued failure of the Supreme Court (SC) to review the case of five men, known as the “Abadilla 5”, who were sentenced to death by a local court eight years ago. The five men were sentenced for the murder of an […]

NEPAL: Legal aid NGO is denied access to detainees for filing an application for medical check-up on behalf of a torture vi

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has learned that Advocacy Forum, one of the leading human rights organizations in Nepal providing legal aid services to detainees, has been refused access to detainees at District Police Office (DPO), Banke detention centre since 29 May 2007. The denial of Advocacy Forum’s access to the DPO […]

INDIA: Medical doctor from Dalit community abused at the clinic and the local police refusing to take action

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information from its local partner the People’s Vigilance Committee on Human Rights (PVCHR) in Uttar Pradesh regarding an incident where a Dalit medical doctor was insulted in front of her patients. It is alleged that the doctor was insulted when she refused to prescribe medicines […]