Corruption

NEPAL: Unceasing choreography of injustice

Statement | Nepal | 09-12-2016

A Statement by the Asian Human Rights Commission on the occasion of Human Rights Day Just like 2015 and the years prior, 2016 has been no different in terms of human rights, rule of law, and functioning of justice institutions in Nepal. Rather, the legacy of human rights and justice institution collapse has remained intact, […]

SRI LANKA: Aspirations to justice defeated at all level

A Statement by the Asian Human Rights Commission on the occasion of Human Rights Day In Sri Lanka, what remains widespread in political, social, and cultural life is widespread shameless impunity relating to every form of abuse of human dignity and human rights. This widespread shameless impunity is also widespread in the entirety of the […]

INDONESIA: Two years under Widodo and rights protection still weak

A Statement by the Asian Human Rights Commission on the occasion of Human Rights Day Commemorating Human Rights Day every December 10 reminds us of the importance of human rights protection, which is still lacking in Indonesia. In the last two years, under President Joko Widodo’s administration, the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has observed […]

INDIA: Neither democracy nor justice as core values

A Statement by the Asian Human Rights Commission on the occasion of Human Rights Day The incumbent government has pushed the people to one of the worst living conditions they have faced in recent collective and individual memory. Millions of Indians are repeatedly queuing up before banks and currency dispensing machines, struggling to withdraw legitimately […]

BANGLADESH: Aspirations for democracy and the rule of law cannot be defeated by authoritarianism

A Statement by the Asian Human Rights Commission on the occasion of Human Rights Day Bangladesh’s incumbent government, its law-enforcement agencies, and its Judiciary, complement each other in maintaining the spree of gross human rights abuses. They have operated in tandem to intensify the pattern of human rights violations to a new level in the […]

AHRC TV: Rohingya abuse may be ‘crimes against humanity’, says UN and other stories in JUST ASIA, Episode 150

This week, in its 150th episode, Just Asia begins with Burma, where the crackdown on the Rohingya may amount to ‘crimes against humanity’, says UN’s human rights agency. Since October, the Burmese military have been burning Rohingya homes, shooting people and raping women. According to John McKissick of the UN refugee agency, the government’s “ultimate […]

SRI LANKA: CCD arrests, detains and tortures a man at the behest of a wealthy businessman

Dear friends, Mr. Dissanayaka Mudiyanselage Sarath Dissanayaka of Piliyandala, Colombo District was illegally arrested, detained and tortured by police officers attached to the Colombo Crime Division on 5 May 2016. His son also was arrested and tortured by the same team of police. While he was tortured at the CCD office, he was accused of […]

SRI LANKA: Illegalities and fundamental flaws at the Immigration and Criminal Investigation Departments

Dear Friends, According to information received by the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC), Ms. Thakshila Sumanasiri of No. 92, Vidura Gewatta, Kundasale, Kandy District, has made a formal complaint to the Sri Lankan Immigration Authority that a woman named Raji has made a fake passport under her name, using her birth certificate, and copy of […]

PHILIPPINES: Statement of Support of the World Association for Christian Communication – Asia Region to the Ongoing Peace Negotiations between the Government of the Republic of the Philippines and the National Democratic Front of the Philippines

A Statement from World Association for Christian Communication – Asia Region forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission. “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.” – Matthew 5:9 “Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouth, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, […]

INDIA: Their house demolished, poor family exposed to the elements

Dear Friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information from local activists Anuj Shree Jaiswal and Israr Mohammad Issu regarding the demolition of the house of a very poor family in Pipariya, Madhya Pradesh. The AHRC has also learnt that the family, which includes a nine-year-old girl child, has since been forced to […]

PAKISTAN: The AHRC asks UN working group to re-open the case of Ehsan Arjumandi, missing since 2009

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has been actively following the case of disappearance of human rights defender Ehsan Arjumandi, a dual national of Norway and Iran, who has been missing since August 2009. For the past seven years, after he was picked up by the Pakistani security agencies, the whereabouts of Mr. Ehsan are […]

SRI LANKA: When shall we ever learn?

When shall we ever learn that the nation is more important than the power quarrels and ambitions of this or that person? Last week we saw that we shall never learn. A few politicians led a crowd to the street, not for the sake of the nation but, in fact, against the very idea of […]

INDIA: Save yourselves, women of India, as the Republic will not

Avinash Pandey Delhi, the national capital of India, has witnessed another gory incident involving the rape-murder of a minor. This time, a 16-year-old was allegedly raped, strangled, and then set on fire in her own house in East Delhi. The police reportedly tried to pass off the crime as suicide, filing a case of rape and […]

PAKISTAN: HRCP advises government against reviving POPA

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has expressed concern over moves to revive the Protection of Pakistan Act (POPA), which had expired on July 15, and urged the government to avoid resorting to laws that violate the fundamental rights enshrined in the Constitution. In a statement issued on Friday, the Commission said: “HRCP notes […]

INDIA: Another starvation death at Dumchipara Tea Garden

Dear Friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information from MASUM about yet another starvation death in Dumchipara Tea Garden owned by Duncans group. The tea plantation has been shut down for a while now and this has exposed workers to hunger and starvation. The AHRC demands immediate intervention and urges the authorities […]

PAKISTAN: Journey from Pakistan to Al-Bakistan

Nida Paras Benazir Bhutto, former Prime Minister, once said, “Extremism can flourish only in an environment where basic governmental social responsibility for the welfare of the people is neglected. Political dictatorship and social hopelessness create the desperation that fuels religious extremism.” Mohtarma, being a part of that environment, was well aware of it, where religious […]

INDIA: Cow worshippers chew up the rule of law

Article | India | 15-07-2016

Avinash Pandey A magisterial / judicial order directing the police to register a first information report and investigate a family that lost its provider in a mob lynching would seem impossible for anyone living in a rule of law system. But in the self-designated largest democracy of the world, this is what happened on 14 […]

AHRC TV: JUST ASIA, Episode 130

This week’s episode begins with the death of Abdul Sattar Edhi, a philanthropist known as Pakistan’s “Father Teresa”. Edhi died after a prolonged illness on July 8. Edhi spent his life building up an organization that has fed, clothed, offered medical services, and provided shelter to many Pakistanis. From a single ambulance, the Edhi Foundation’s […]

SRI LANKA: ASPs hold the key to change at police stations

By Basil Fernando The media reported a speech made by the Inspector General of Police (IGP) Pujith Jayasundara., wherein he stated quite openly and categorically that the police should make use of the present opportunity and take steps to change. This is a welcome statement in a climate where any kind of positive development in […]

ASIA: NEW BOOK – CHILDREN AND VIOLENCE; THE POLITICS OF CONFLICT IN SOUTH ASIA

Those charting the history of conflict in South Asia with particular reference to violence against children may be interested in this recently released book edited by an Australian National University (ANU) Senior Fellow, Bina D’ Costa and published by the Cambridge University Press. This volume is based on the premise that children’s diverse experiences during […]