Urgent Appeal Update

Court orders Release of Lalith Rajapakse – 17 May 2002 and UA-18-2002: Urgent medical help needed for torture victim – 13 May 2002) SRI LANKA: Case of Lalith Rajapakse case before the Wattala Magistrates Court; case of Kusumawathi case before the Kalutara Magistrates Court ———————————————————————- Dear Friends Following is an update on the cases of […]

Dear Friends Update on the seven students (dubbed as the ISA7) case: a youth activist arrested in a student march for justice. One youth activist was arrested while he was in the march to support the ISA7 on 17 July 2003. We are forwarding the urgent appeal letter from the Independent Student Resource & Legal […]

Dear Friends Update on Tony Fernando’s case: Select Committee of Parliament- on Contempt of Court Law We are pleased to be able to give you some good news surrounding the case of Mr Michael Anthony Emmanuel Fernando (‘Tony’). A Select Committee has been appointed to inquire into, and report on, the law relating to Contempt […]

Dear Friends We forward to you a Media Statement from Aliran, reagarding the “ISA7”. Media Statement from Aliran Kesedaran Negara (ALIRAN) (National Consciousness Movement) http://www.aliran.com/ The Education Minister Should Show Compassion to the “ISA 7” Students Aliran is deeply disturbed by Education Minister Musa Mohamed’s insistence that the so-called “ISA 7” students should apologise for their […]

Dear Friends, The Hong Kong government delayed a vote on the controversial National Security (Legislative Provisions) Bill that was scheduled for its second and third reading in the Legislative Council (Legco) on July 9, 2003, after a member of the Executive Council (Exco), or cabinet, resigned suddenly on the night of Sunday July 6 over […]

Dear Friends We are forwarding highlights from Aliran Monthly, Vol 23: Issue 4 (http://www.aliran.com). Might Has Overthrown Right Human Rights regression in Asia Oral Intervention by Premesh Chandran The 59th Session of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights Item 9: Human Rights Violation In Any Part Of The World Date: 3 April 2003  Madam Chairperson, […]

Dear Friends We are pleased to update you with the following on Michael ‘Tony’ Fernando: SET ASIDE ‘PATENTLY FLAWED’ DECISION SWIFTLY UN Rappoteur Tells the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka The UN Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers, Date Param Cumaraswamy, in a press release issued from Kuala Lumpur on 28 May […]

Dear Friends On the 20th of May, 1,000 civilian militias arrived at the headquarters of the National Human Rights Commission of Indonesia (Komnas HAM) to threaten violence if the investigation into the 1965 massacre is continued.  Further details are provided below.  We urge you to go to spend 2 minutes to go to AHRC’s online […]

Dear Friends Great news! Professor Salai Tun Than has been released! The Irrawaddy Online (05 May 2003) reported that, on Sunday, 4 May 2003, eighteen political prisoners, including Dr Tun Than, were released. Full story: http://www.irrawaddy.org/news/index.html?#dr, and part below: Dr Salai Tun Than arrived home yesterday (04 May 2003) from Insein Prison after serving 18 months […]

Dear Friends Below is an email from the Free Dr Salai Tun Than group. We cannot, at this stage, verify the information, but we will confirm as soon as we can. Statement on the Hunger Strike of Dr. Salai Tun Than by his daughter Mai Theingi Tun Than Date: Mon, 28 Apr 2003 17:34:11 +0700 […]

Dear Friends Tiananmen Mothers and the Association of Parents of Disappeared Persons (APDP) are both members of the Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD), a federation of organizations concerned about the phenomenon of involuntary disappearances in China, India (Kashmir), Indonesia, Pakistan, Philippines, Sri Lanka and Thailand. They have started a hunger strike to press the […]

Dear Friends, Over 2,800 persons have signed the online petition to the President and Prime Minister of Sri Lanka urging immediate action to be taken to undo the blatant injustice suffered by Michael Anthony Fernando. The Asian Legal Resource Centre made an oral submission at the 59th Session of the UN Human Rights Commission on the […]

Dear Friends, A local solidarity group for Mr. Michael Anthony Emmanuel Fernando (aka Tony) in Sri Lanka has launched a petition for release of him. AHRC has launched a petition on behalf of Tony on 21 March 2003. When you sign this petition on line, your name will be added to the list of signatories […]

Dear Friends, We reproduce below a letter written by the Asian Human Rights Commission at the request of the parents of Mr. Michael Anthony Fernando, to the Sri Lankan authorities. We urge you again to write similar letters may help to save the life of a person facing a very complicated situation, due to several […]

Regarding our previous appeal on the torture case of human rights defender, Mr. Michael Anthony Emmanuel Fernando, who was an applicant in a case of fundamental rights.(Ref: S.C. [F/F] No. 55/20030), he was sentenced to one years imprisonment on Feb. 6, 2003, for alleged contempt of court. He was then severely assaulted while in custody […]

Dear Friends, Regarding the brutal attack on tribal people (Adivasis) at Muthanga Wildlife Sancturary in Wayanad of Kerala State, we are sending you the following list of women and children found missing in the calamity. The atrocious activities of the Kerala police and its crime branch department with support of the Kerala Armed Force has […]

Dear Friends, We have been informed that seven suspects in the rape and murder of Sholamali Umma Devi were brought to the Nawalapitiya Magistrates Court on Feb. 28, 2003. A young Tamil woman, Sholamali Umma Devi, 23, had been abducted, raped and murdered on Sept. 12, 2001, at Kopiwatte, Mallanda, in Nawalapitiya on her way […]

Dear Friends, We are sending you the following translation of a newspaper report on the torture case of Mr. Anthony Michael Emmanuel Fernando (see more details at http://www.ahrchk.net/ua/mainfile.php/2003/408/) that occurred from the hospital to Ananda Dharmapriya Jayasekara. The story was published in Ravaya, a Sinhalese newspaper, on Feb. 23, 2003. We urge you to take […]

Dear Friends, We are sending you the following development of refugee crisis in Nepal. The hunger strike (Dharna) that began in one the verified camp of Khudunabari on Jan. 7, continues into its 21st day and the representatives of Bhutanese refugees has decided to spread the hunger strike to all seven refugee camps to extend […]

Dear Friends, We are forwarding you the following open letter to the president of Sri Lanka from the World Organization Against Torture (OMCT) regarding the eviction of 168 families. In the open letter, OMCT urged the president to take immediate measures to ensure the victims’ rights, which are guaranteed by the International Covenant on Economic, […]