Democracy

President Ram Nath Kovind’s address to the nation, like most of his predecessors at the Rashtrapati Bhavan, took note of persistence of hunger and malnutrition in the country, even more so among the children. He did note that though the republic has made progress in tackling hunger, yet several challenges remain. In his own words […]

By Reema Omer THE European Commission is due to issue a status report this month on Pakistan`s compliance with the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) Plus conditions, which also include an assessment of the human rights situation in the country. The GSP Plus trading status is an instrument of the EU`s trade policy that aims […]

The press conference held by Justices Jasti Chelameswar, Ranjan Gogoi, Madan Lokur and Kurian Joseph on 12 January 2018 is a watershed event in Indian judicial history. Four of the five most senior judges of the Supreme Court of India, appealed to the conscience of the nation, to intervene, failing which the judges cautioned that […]

This week Just Asia begins with Pakistan, which has been engulfed by a wave of agitation after the rape and brutal murder of seven-year-old Zainab Ansari in Punjab Province. Zainab’s body was found dumped on a rubbish heap days after she was abducted. Zainab was the 12th victim of child abuse and murder in the […]

Even as Pakistan was still reeling from the Kasur child rape at the beginning of 2018, octogenarian professor Dr. Hasan Zafar Arif was found murdered on January 14. According to news reports, Dr. Zafar’s tortured dead body was found inside his abandoned car, at a deserted place in Karachi. He was missing since Saturday. Though […]

An article from Daily Times forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission One month ago, the government of Pakistan sparked concern both here and abroad when it expelled some 29 international non-governmental organisations. No concrete explanation was provided beyond the rather vague allegations that these had been both working in unauthorised areas and beyond their […]

In a first for India, the 4 senior-most judges of the Supreme Court called for a press meet. Justices Chelameshwar, Gogoi, Lokur and Kurian Joseph held a press meet at the residence of Justice Chelameswar, the second in line after the Chief Justice of India, Justice Dipak Misra. There was a flurry of speculation on […]

This week Just Asia begins with Hong Kong, where abusive and racist remarks were hurled last week at Principal Magistrate Bina Chainrai after she sentenced police officer Frankly Chu to three months in prison. In response, human rights lawyer Philip Dykes, legal scholar Johannes Chan and four other barristers made a statement saying such “racial […]

This week Just Asia begins with the Philippines, where the police killed two people, including a woman on her way to hospital, after mistaking them for gunmen. The incident occurred on December 28, when police were called to a Manila suburb following an earlier shooting during an argument between residents. The nine policemen involved in the […]

An interview with Dr. Sunil Coorey on delays in the administration of justice The Sectoral Oversight Committee on Legal Affairs (anti-corruption) and Media made its recommendations pertaining to the expeditious and efficient administration of criminal justice on 20 September 2017. The Committee recommended an increase in the number of High Court Judges, State Counsels and […]

By Nagananda Kodituwakku and Basil Fernando It was heartening to hear from the incumbent Chief Justice, Priyasath Dep, that Sri Lanka’s judiciary is free from any interference. This statement comes as a relief, given that we can recall a long period of the most despicable forms of the interference with the judiciary in Sri Lanka […]

By Basil Fernando Thinking purely in symbolic terms, Christmas celebrates a fascinating event. Jesus was born in a cattle shed. This was where sheep slept. From a power point of view, it was so completely different from the way other religious or political leaders are presented to the world. Links to royalty or nobility, or […]

Democracy and judicial institutions in Pakistan have long been strange bedfellows, with the pillars of the state unable to refrain from transcending their area of power. Either the bureaucracy or the judges, who are increasingly toeing the realm of popularism have, never understood the separation of powers, as provided in the Constitution. They are forgoing […]

Glamorizing terrorists as born again saviours of humanity is the new tactic adopted by the state to abet home grown terrorism The month of December in Pakistan is akin to March for the Romans, when an empire was brought down. The historic day of December 16 has been particularly bloody, as it was on this […]

This week Just Asia begins with the Philippines, where extrajudicial killings have been escalating since President Duterte’s declaration of all-out war against government critics. Last week at least 10 persons were killed, including two church leaders, Fr. Tito Paez and Pastor Leovelito Quiniones. Soldiers shot Pastor Leovelito on December 3, accusing him of being a […]

A Statement from International Peace Observers Network (IPON) forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission The repressions against human rights activists in the Philippines have been increasing dramatically. With the end of the peace talks and the declaration to label left-progressive organizations as terrorist groups, President Duterte not only threatens the Communist Party of the […]

Bangladesh celebrates its National Martyred Intellectuals Day today, 14 December 2017. The country recalls the martyrdom of some of its citizens who had high professional integrity at the time–1971. The Pakistani occupying forces and their local collaborators were known to be involved in abducting intellectuals. This included physicians, academics, journalists, and writers. The occupying forces […]

An article by Prof. Upendra Baxi, published in The Indian EXPRESS, forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission State impunity continues for acts of torture. Lawmakers and court have not stepped up to their duty February 19, 2016 was an unusual day in the world history of torture when Ashwani Kumar, a senior advocate and […]

Mrs. Amar Kaur lived a long life and died on 12 December 2017 at the age of 102. What is important about Mrs. Kaur is not just the advanced age into which she lived. Kaur is one of the prime witnesses in a case of disappearance and alleged murder that was reported in 1994 from […]

In 2005, the South Korean-based Pohang Steel Company (POSCO) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the government of the state of Odisha. The MoU involved the building of a steel plant having 12 million tonne annual capacity, along with a captive port and an iron ore mine, for which POSCO required an estimated 4,000 acres of land, including […]