Administration of justice

On the night of October 18, 2007, two blasts occurred at the welcoming procession of thousands of people, arranged for arrival of Benazir Bhutto, the Chairperson of the Pakistan People Party, after her self exile of eight years. More than 130 people were killed and about 550 injured. The government of Pakistan claims that the […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) regrets to inform you that the family of U Than Lwin, who was assaulted in June after leading a prayer meeting in Burma for the release of political prisoners, has been jailed instead of the assailant. Four members of the family and five other people have been […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has been informed that thirteen suspects of the earlier reported extra-judicial killings have been released as their detention period has ended. However, there are still concerns that this case will likely be brought to the military court and a light sentence will be given to those responsible. […]

Dear friends, Further to our previous recent updates on the situation in Burma, this is the first appeal by the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) on specific cases of sentencing and imprisonment arising out of the protests of the last two months. Here we give the details of a man who has been sent to […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) regrets to inform you that six labour rights advocates in Burma have been given long jail terms by a special tribunal in the central prison. They were not represented, as their lawyers quit in protest after being constantly harassed by the prison authorities. Their imprisonment comes after […]

Sixty years before India took a quantum leap in its history from being a colony to that of an independent nation. Soon it was a declared to be a democratic, socialist republic. Wheels of administration started turning in a different direction where administration meant no more exploitation, but managing a country and directing its people […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information from our local partner the People’s Vigilance Committee on Human Rights [PVCHR], a human rights organisation based in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh that Tinni Musahar, a three-year-old boy and Sushila Musahar, a one-year-old girl may die soon from acute malnourishment in Raitara Musahar ghetto of […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has been following with concern the case of six men who were arrested in Burma on May Day for organising some discussions about worker’s rights. The men have been charged with sedition and were finally brought before a judge nearly three months after their arrests. Their arrest […]

In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court of Pakistan today 20 July 2007 declared the suspension of the Chief Justice of Pakistan, Iftekhar Choudry, by the president, General Pervez Musharaff, to be illegal and instructed that he be reinstated.  The Asian Human Rights Commission salutes the Supreme Court of Pakistan for this bold, upright and […]

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 […]

We, the undersigned, express our grave concerns regarding the sudden twist of events in the murder trial of Mongolian national, Altantuya Shaariibuu, which has led to an unfair delay in the court process. The abrupt replacement of the public prosecutors by Attorney-General (AG) Abdul Gani Patail raises a number of disturbing concerns. First: Why was […]

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 […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information regarding the brutal murder of Mr. Suherman, for reasons yet unknown, by Police Officers of the Medan District Police on the 11th April 2007. On the 11th April 2007, at around 3:30a.m., around 30 yet unidentified men claiming to be Medan District Police Officers […]

In the latest move against the supporters of Chief Justice Iftehkar Chaudry a Supreme Court lawyer, Mr. Ali Ahmed Kurd has been detained by the Quetta police at the district court. The detention comes after several attempts by unknown persons to abduct him failed. However, this effort by the government was aborted by the lawyers […]

Dear Friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) would like to share with you the constitutional petition filed by the Chief Justice of Pakistan Mr. Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry in the Supreme Court on April 25, 2007. In the petition, Justice Chaudhry is challenging his humiliation by the president of Pakistan and his detention during […]

A legal professional is not above the law. A solicitor in Hong Kong was sentenced to imprisonment recently. It was alleged that the solicitor’s client who had lodged a complaint about a stockbroker had been persuaded by the solicitor to withdraw the charges as the solicitor was allegedly involved with the stockbroker. A rather similar […]

Shocking details are emerging about the manner in which the Chief Justice, Iftikhar Chaudry, was requested to resign from his post, and how when he refused he was physically restrained form leaving the President’s Camp Office for several hours and finally as to how a reference was cooked up and filed in order to prevent […]

In the midst of the judicial crisis the government has opened yet another front in the hopes of exercising damage control in an attack on a television station that has been airing open discussions on the latest developments with regard to the political situation and also the judicial crisis. For the past several weeks the […]

Over two and a half years have passed since Kietisak Thitboonkrong was found tortured to death and dumped in a rural area of northeastern Thailand. Investigations by the National Human Rights Commission and others have pointed the finger of guilt straight at the Kalasin district police, in whose custody he was last seen a few […]

The grave problems regarding the lack of credible investigations into human rights violations in Sri Lanka continues as the government makes threats to expel foreign diplomats who call for such inquiries as persons meddling in the internal affairs of the country. Whether the government itself has caused such violations is not the issue. The key […]