Human rights defenders

August 30 marks the International Day of the Victims of Enforced and Involuntary Disappearances. Many families of the disappeared await the return of their loved ones; many have waiting for a decade or more. Unfortunately, for families that have had loved ones picked up by security agencies, the ordeal begins when they register a complaint; […]

This report has been prepared on the basis of THRD Alliance Chairperson Dipendra Jha’s field visit to Bhardah, Saptari District. On August 17, a day before the Bhardah police fired shots at the protesters, tensions ran high between the police and the protestors. In the evening, the superintendents of police of the Nepal Police and […]

An article from Hong Kong Free Press forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission In the past year I have met him a few times, both in Yangon, Myanmar, as well as in Hong Kong. In these meetings and in my long discussions with him, I found him a very jovial man. He is bursting […]

A Statement from Pakistan Peace Coalition forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission On 20th August, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif inaugurated the next phase in the construction of two large Chinese supplied nuclear power plants next to Karachi. This project is moving forward with reckless disregard for the safety and well-being of the 20 million […]

An editorial from the Kathmandu Post forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission The killing of the gangster Kumar Shrestha ‘Ghainte’ by the police has aroused a great many passions. Nepali Congress (NC) leaders, to whom Ghainte was close, reject the official version of the event as provided by the police, according to which police […]

(Note: this article was first published in the August 16, 2015 issue of the Sunday Examiner) Temogen (Cocoy) Tulawie, a rights advocate from Sulu, walked out of prison on July 20 after a court in Manila acquitted him of charges of murder and possessing explosives. His acquittal ended nearly four years of imprisonment. But the remaining […]

(Hong Kong, August 21, 2015) What can we do when repression is legal? This question is asked by social activists across the world, fighting against their repressive nations. Concern for the shrinking spaces for civil society and the challenges faced by those working against repression at the grassroots level are explored by Erik Wendt and […]

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 […]

A Press Release from the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and World Organisation Against Torture (Organisation Mondiale Contre la Torture;OMCT) forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) PRESS RELEASE – THE OBSERVATORY BANGLADESH: Judicial harassment against free speech defenders continues Paris-Geneva, August 14, 2015 – The three-year prison sentence handed down to Mr. Mahmudur Rahman yesterday morning by […]

Dear friends,  The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is issuing this urgent appeal received from Protection International Thailand, regarding the on-going intimidation by local authorities and security forces against Rak Ban Haeng Conservation Group in the Lamphang Province for opposing the granting of concessionaire rights to rock quarry mining for a period of over five […]

A Press Release from Christian Solidarity Worldwide forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) For Immediate Release 20 July 2015-United Nations human rights experts, the European Union, UK, US and other voices from the international community have expressed their concern regarding the detention of over 200 lawyers and activists in China since 10 July. […]

This week’s Roundup reports on the encouraging re-opening of a three-year-old crime investigation relating to the death of Sri Lankan rugby player Wasim Thajudeen. While it was initially determined to be an accidental death, allegations of it being a murder committed by former President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s son have long circulated. The body has now been […]

A Statement from Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Centre forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights  Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights condemns statements by Bangladeshi police targeting human rights organizations Contact: Daniel Cronin (917) 284-6356 | Email: Cronin@rfkhumanrights.org (August 5, 2015 | Washington, D.C.) Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights condemns the recent […]

The verdict allows for extrajudicial killings by legalising military courts Today, 5 August 2015, will be remembered as a black day in the constitutional history of Pakistan. It will be commemorated as a sad day, a day when the apex court validated military rule once again. The establishment of military courts has been upheld by […]

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 […]

A Press Release from Cambodian Civil Society Groups forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) We, the undersigned civil society groups, condemn the Cambodian People’s Party’s unanimous approval yesterday of the repressive and unnecessary Law on Associations and Non- Government Organizations (LANGO) and call on the Senate to reject the law. The vote at […]

On Thursday, July 23, police in Indagaw Township in Bago (Pegu) Region of Myanmar arrested human rights defender Ma Su Su Nwe and took her to the local court, where she was remanded in custody charged with trespassing under section 447 of the Penal Code: a section of law now being used with monotonous regularity […]

This Week’s Roundup begins in the Indian state of Kerala where AHRC follows up on the unique police modernisation process underway. Featured in the programme is footage of Member of the State Legislative Assembly V.T. Balram, debating this critical reform process in the Kerala Legislative Assembly. The programme then revisits events in China where more […]

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 […]

On 12 June 2015, international NGO Save the Children, with over three decades of presence in Pakistan, was given a 15-days ultimatum to wind up its operations in the country. Following immense international pressure, the Pakistani government subsequently backtracked from the order. The ban came in the wake of accusations linking the aid agency to […]