Fabrication of charges

The name Kondaya is now a household name, following the tragic Sadewmi case, the abduction, rape and murder of a little girl of around 4 years. Discovery of the dead body led to an uproar not only in her village and the neighbouring villages but throughoutthecountry. There was a demand for immediate inquiries and for prosecution and […]

An article from Kissan Committee forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission By Farooq Tariq A massive repression of the peaceful peasant movement, the Anjuman Mozareen Punjab (AMP), is underway. Most of its leadership has been arrested under false anti-terrorist laws. Dozens of members are missing, while over 50 remain behind bars. All have been […]

That the Pakistan Military has been extending its tentacles to envelop the State apparatus is no secret. However, a lesser-known aspect is the economic hegemony it is perpetuating over peasants in the shape of Military Farms Okara. Illegal land grabbing is now being used as a most profitable business for the force, which has anyway […]

This week Just Asia begins with nine mothers cementing their feet in front of the Indonesian Presidential Palace on April 12. The mothers are calling on President Widodo to stop the development of a cement factory in Rembang, Central Java, which will damage a resource rich environment. Just Asia speaks to Mr. Ki Bagus Hadi […]

On 9 April 2016, a massive explosion at the Putingal Temple near Paravur in Kollam, Kerala, resulted in the death of more than a hundred people and injured more than 350 others. A fireworks display had been in operation for the Temple festival, and initial reports suggest that a firecracker fell into a stockpile, causing […]

What would happen in a society where there is no sense that murder is a grave wrong to be prevented by the state and the people? The same thing could be asked about rape, sexual abuse of women, children or anyone else, about robbery and theft, extortion and drug trafficking. Many more wrongs against individuals […]

The Asian Human Right Commission (AHRC) welcomes the release of political prisoners and student protesters in Burma. This is another positive development, and the AHRC will continue to monitor developments and work closely on criminal justice reform in the transitional period toward democracy. On 17 April 2016, Burmese New Year Day, the President of Myanmar, […]

We are sharing with you a discussion conducted between Dr. U C P Perera, Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Medicine, and Head, Department of Forensic Medicine, University of Ruhuna, Sri Lanka, who has also been involved in the investigations into the Chemmanimass grave, and Mr. Basil Fernando, Director Policy and Programmes, Asian Human Rights Commission, Hong […]

Pakistani women, be they young or old, or even dead or alive, suffer rape by perverted elements that use rape as a tool to suppress and oppress half of the country’s population. One cannot fathom the moral bankruptcy of a society where a rape occurs every two hours. Going by the statistics, each day 12 […]

This episode of Just Asia begins with Indonesia, where a public protest called for the dissolution of Indonesia’s Anti-Terror Police Unit. The protest followed the death of Mr. Siyono, one day after being arrested by the Police Unit on March 10. Although the police claimed Siyono died from fighting police personnel, an independent autopsy revealed […]

On March 16, the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva reviewed the situation of human rights in Nepal and gave recommendations to improve it. The Council does that with every member of the UN in a process known as the Universal Periodic Review (UPR). Along with the government, non-government organizations and civil society organizations, […]

Twelve years after the disappearance of Somchai Neelaphaijit, the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) calls upon the Thai authorities to begin a new investigation into Somchai’s case, and to ratify the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance. Somchai Neelaphaijit was a noted a lawyer and human rights defender in Thailand. […]

An article from International Coalition Against Enforced Disappearances (ICAED)forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission The International Coalition Against Enforced Disappearances (ICAED) has published a Primer on the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance for NGOs. Prof. Emmanuel Decaux,President of the Committee on Enforced Disappearances (CED)has written the Preface of […]

A Press Release from Thai Lawyers for Human Rights (TLHR) forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) On 26 March 2016, the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) has ordered military officers to arrest Mr. Worachai Hema, a former MP, at his residence. The officers did not inform his family and relatives of […]

This week’s episode begins with Indonesia, where the trial of 26 human rights defenders began on March 21. The criminal charges against them are believed to be part of the government’s effort to end demands for labour welfare and for the cancellation of Government Regulation No. 78, which supports cheap labor in Indonesia. Just Asia […]

A Statement from Human Rights Lawyer Association (HRLA) forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission The National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) by Gen. Chalermchai Sitthisat, Deputy Chief of Staff of the NCPO, acting on behalf of the Chief of Staff, issued a most urgent letter dated 16 March 2016 addressed to the director […]

Avinash Pandey “A mob is the scum that rises upmost when the nation boils.”  John Dryden, English Poet The picture showing two Muslims – one of them a teenaged boy – hanging by a tree in Latehar, Jharkhandis going to haunt the Republic for a long time. Nothing indicts the failure of a criminal justice […]

The bail finally granted to Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) students Umar Khalid and Anirban Bhattacharya is welcome. Despite the media gaze, it took almost a month for the students, who are accused of sedition on flimsy grounds, to be released. This showcases the nature of Indian Magistracy, and yet the repeated rejection of their bail […]

Just Asia is pleased to announce its new website www.alrc.asia/justasia. All episodes of the news programme can now be viewed there. This week, Burma’s Parliament elected Htin Kyaw as the country’s civilian President after decades of military government. Prevented from becoming president by a constitutional clause, Aung San Suu Kyi has said she will be “above […]

One year after the assassination of human rights defender Mr. Chai Boontonglek, a member of the Southern Peasants’ Federation of Thailand (SPFT), the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has learned about persistent impunity in human rights murder cases. On February 11, the AHRC received information from Human Rights Lawyers Association (HRLA) and Protection International Thailand […]