Enforced disappearances and abductions

A Press Releasefrom Gwangju Human Rights Laureates, Imparsial, IKOHI and the May 18 Memorial Foundation (Gwangju, South Korea) forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) On Saturday, Sunday, and Monday (12-14 December, 2015) 8 laureates of the Gwangju Prize for Human Rights, and human rights defenders from Asian region and Indonesia participated in an […]

A Statement from Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission Mr. Thanakorn Siripaiboon, a factory worker in a private company, was arrested from his workplace in Samut Prakan on 8 December 2015. He was accused by Maj Gen Wijarn Jodtaeng and Colonel Burin Thongprapai, legal officers of the National […]

A Joint Statement by the Asian Human Rights Commission and the Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) and the Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD) calls for the return of all disappeared persons to their families. The government of Bangladesh must tell the whereabouts of the disappeared persons, and respond […]

Dear Friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) wishes to share an updated appeal from Protection International about the high-risk situation of Ms. Waewrin Buangern (Jo), coordinator of the Rak Ban Haeng Conservation Group and a community-based Woman Human Rights Defender, who is under constant and surveillance by military authorities. Military personnel have threatened her […]

Dear Friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that a young man named Mehmood Ahmed Kharani has been killed by the police in a fake encounter. Additionally, policemen have abducted Mehmood’s elder brother, Daud Kharani, on 19 May 2014 for not paying the extortion amount and for not robbing the petrol station […]

The Bangladesh Police has again attempted to justify extrajudicial executions with the excuse of “self-defence”. The latest attempt has been made in a media release (original Bangla and unofficial English translation) sent out from the Police Headquarters and circulated to the country’s media on 2 August 2015. In order to hide its crimes of extrajudicial executions, the […]

Dear Friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received updated information regarding the extrajudicial killing of a disappeared person, Mr. Raja Dahir, who was abducted by Pakistan Ranger personnel on June 4. After they raided his house and abducted him his whereabouts had been unknown. Raja Dahir’s corpse was found 20 days ago in […]

An Announcement by the Asian Human Rights Commission This week’s Roundup begins in the Indian state of Kerala. The state government has initiated a process of police reforms. This unique initiative involves enabling the police to undertake scientific crime investigation. AHRC TV interviews AHRC Executive Director Bijo Francis to learn more about the outlook for […]

A Press Release from The China Human Rights Lawyers Concern Group (The Concern Group) forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) ( July 13, 2015) The China Human Rights Lawyers Concern Group (The Concern Group) urgently appeals for the immediate attention of both the Chinese government and the international community on the disappearances of […]

In this week’s Roundup, AHRC TV reports on Ganga Maya Adhikari’s ongoing hunger protest in Nepal. She has given the government a 10-day ultimatum to meet her demands for action against the murderers of her son. AHRC TV interviews Ganga Maya in hospital; the government has yet to begin prosecuting those involved in the killing. Next in […]

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is greatly concerned about the disappearance of an indigenous leader in Sultan Kudarat. The victim and his group were opposed to the operation of logging and mining by big corporations in their communities. He was last seen alive with security guards of the mining firm he was opposing.  CASE […]

Dear Friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information regarding the abduction of Raja Dahir, the son of a prominent intellectual and the writer, from his home by uniformed Pakistan Ranger personnel and those wearing civilian clothes who identified themselves as State intelligence agents. Following Dahir’s abduction, his whereabouts are unknown. Mr. Raja […]

An Article by Basil Fernando  This is a speech delivered by Basil Fernando at  The Fifth  Human Rights Cities Forum-  As the Keynote address for the Special  Session on Asian Human Rights – Human Rights in Asia and Vision of Human Rights City- 16th May 2015. It is useful, I think, to recall the aims […]

by Basil Fernando  Last week, 23 April 2014, the television programme ‘Sathyagaraya’ – a Sinhala language programme telecast by the Independent Television Network (ITN) and produced by Upul Shantha Sannasagala – broadcast a long conversation with Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasignhe. Our concern in this article, is about one particular question raised by the producer, Mr […]

A Statement from the ASEAN People’s Forum 2015, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission If you wish to support and endorse, please send details of your name/organization and country to niabdulghafar@focusweb.org by 12am, Bangkok time on or before May 4, 2015. Enforced disappearances continue to occur unabated in most ASEAN member countries and […]

Dear Friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information regarding the enforced disappearance of Mr. Dedek Khairuddin (30), a resident of Pangkalan Brandan Village, North Sumatra Province, Indonesia. Dedek was forcibly abducted from his home by seven soldiers, and has not been seen since. The government has not conducted serious efforts to locate […]

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information from the People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) regarding the abduction of a Human Rights Defender, Gambhira Prasad, allegedly by policemen wearing civilian clothes. Mr. Prasad was abducted at 7 p.m. on April 20, 2015, from Baba Chauraha in Allahabad District of Uttar Pradesh immediately after […]

It’s been three years after the brutal torture and murder of Aminul Islam and the climate of impunity continues in Bangladesh. The Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD) deeply condemns the murder of Aminul Islam, a human rights defender who helped garment factory workers demand their basic human rights and challenge the unjust system. Abducted, […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information regarding military intervention in academic discourse on the subject of Balochistan. A talk scheduled at the Lahore University of Management Science on Balochistan has been cancelled on the written orders of Lieutenant-General Rizwan Akhter, Director General of Pakistan’s notorious intelligence agency, the ISI. Two prominent […]

Dear Friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information regarding the disappearance of Mr. Sajan Avinash, a young man belonging to the Hindu faith. Sajan has gone missing following his arrest by a contingent of Pakistan Rangers, who raided his house in the early hours of March 28 2015. The reasons for his […]