Administration of justice

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information concerning the kidnapping and rape of four dalit girls in the north Indian state of Haryana. The crime was committed to force dalits from exercising their legitimate right to equal treatment with dignity, and the local village headman is alleged to be one of […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received updated information that no action has been taken against three soldiers who murdered a civilian and terrorized a young couple because the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) is protecting them from prosecution. A military tribunal conducted hearings that absolved the men from responsibility for […]

Dear friends,  We wish to share with you the following statement from Human Rights Watch. Asian Human Rights Commission  Hong Kong ————- FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE AHRC-FST-029-2014 25 April, 2014 A Statement from Human Rights Watch forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission INDIA: Marginalized Children Denied Education [1] Human Rights Watch New Delhi Press Release April […]

The tension between Pakistan’s military and a large section of the country’s media has escalated following the assassination attempt on Geo TV anchor Hamid Mir. On the complaint of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), the Defence Ministry has directed the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) to take action against Geo TV network for levelling allegations […]

According to reports a 37 year old British nurse who arrived in Sri Lanka this Monday (21st April 2014) was taken by a taxi driver to a nearby police station where, according to her, she was harassed by policemen who demanded money from her. She had arrived at the Airport and the immigration authorities had […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) wishes to forward to you the following press release from Martin Ennals Founation. Asian Human Rights Commission Hong Kong ————- FORWARDED PRESS RELEASE AHRC-FPR-012-2014 A Press Release from Martin Ennals Foundation is forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) BANGLADESH: Adilur Rahman Khan is selected for […]

Unethical clinical trials conducted without obtaining informed consent of the participants have struck India again, killing 254 women from the most marginalised sections of society. The deaths, or rather murders, have taken place in the course of a 15-year long United States funded clinical trial for a cervical cancer screening method. The women who perished […]

A prominent journalist and television anchor person, Mr. Hamid Mir, was attacked by plain clothed assailants on April 19 while on his way from Karachi Airport to his television station, the Geo News. He was attacked twice at the Shahrah-e-Faisal, the busiest road of the city which goes from the airport to the down town […]

The Supreme Court of India and its subordinate courts have, over the past six decades, issued more than a dozen directives and orders prohibiting the practice of manual scavenging in India. The evil practice, of literally carrying human faeces or cleaning the same from public toilets, is widespread in the country. In most cases the […]

Recently, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) published its report ranking the country as 3rd “most deadly for journalists,” next to Iraq and Somalia. In another report, the Global Witness ranked the country as the 3rd “most dangerous” for environment and land defenders worldwide, next to Brazil and Honduras, where indigenous people struggle for control of their lands. The […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that brick kiln owners, with the patronage of the Punjab provincial government, have been holding children, women, and men in illegal detention. Women who have been demanding compliance of the minimum wage and social security have been beaten, their clothes stripped, and their children […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that Mr. A.A. Aberathna Bandara was illegally arrested, illegally detained for 39 days and severely tortured by officers attached to the Giriulla Police Station. Aberathna was arrested on 7 February but not produced in court until the 18 March. The police gave the explanation […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that seven persons were arrested and charged with being involved in a fracas that caused the death of one Mr. Renganathen. The confrontation occurred when a group of men tried to intervene in an argument between two men, Moses, a Catholic and Dickson, a […]

Dear friends,  We wish to share with you the following statement from Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). Asian Human Rights Commission  Hong Kong ————- FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE AHRC-FST-027-2014 April 17, 2014 A Statement from Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), an international institute researching into conflict, armaments, arms control and disarmament, forwarded by the […]

Today the AHRC releases the 25th Episode of the Human Rights Asia Weekly Roundup.  In this week’s special programme we report on the AHRC’s Partner’s Meeting, which was held last week in Hong Kong. Human rights defenders from around Asia gathered to discuss future strategies and directions for their work. The theme for this year’s meeting […]

The 30 July 2013 announcement of the Congress Working Committee decision to create a separate Telangana state within the Union of India spurred other statehood demands. In Assam, ethnic groups like the Bodos, Karbis, Dimasas, and Koch Rajbonshis – which have all been fighting for separate states for themselves – unleashed serial agitations and economic […]

The Panadura High Court judge, Kusala Sarojani Weerawardana, found ten Presidential Security Division (PSD) officers who were accused of assaulting two famous songsters Rookantha Gunathilike and Chanta Chandraleka Perera to be guilty of the charges and sentenced them to four and a half years of rigorous imprisonment. The PSD officers entered the living premises of […]

(Note: this article was first published in the April 6, 2014 issue of the Sunday Examiner) Eleven years ago, I was in a small store with a friend in Pikit, North Cotabato, in central Mindanao. We were exhausted after an all day field work of interviewing people about how and why they were evacuated due to […]

Dear Friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received updated information regarding the torture case of Riko Yeyandra, an inmate who was tortured by two prison guards at Solok Correctional Facility, West Sumatra. The prison guards were found guilty of maltreatment by Solok District Court and sentenced to one year of imprisonment. The judges, […]

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) congratulates the people of India for their participation to elect the 16th Lok Sabha. The process has attracted, as usual, considerable media attention across the world. Media claims the process to be ‘the largest democratic exercise of the world.’ Contestants are in what may be termed as a lobbying overdrive. […]