Impunity

Dear Friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) deeply regrets to inform you about the killing of civilians in two separate encounters by the military. Three civilians were killed in Camarines Sur, while one teenager was killed in North Cotabato, with the military claiming him to be a child soldier. CASE NARRATIVE: Based on the […]

This week Just Asia begins with terror attacks in Indonesia. The country’s second largest city of Surabaya saw yet another suicide bombing on Monday morning, at the police station. On Sunday, three churches were attacked, killing at least 11 persons, and injuring 41 persons during Sunday mass. This was one of the worst attacks on […]

Despite all the tall claims of development by authorities in India, the data from Government bodies shows that there are little, if any, improvements in tackling alarmingly high levels of malnutrition. Add to this the worrisome fact of a sharp increase in the indebtedness of households and the situation becomes even bleaker. The data from […]

This week Just Asia begins with India, where the government has cleared an ordinance introducing the death penalty for those committing sexual assault of children younger than 12 years. The ordinance has come under fire as such a serious change in the law has been attempted without proper debate and consultation in parliament. Furthermore, the […]

A Joint Statement by the Asian Human Rights Commission and the Terai Human Rights Defenders Alliance The proposed draft of Nepal’s National Integrity Policy (NIP)1 has created havoc among the Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), International Non-Governmental Organizations (INGOs) and the wider human rights community in the country. It has been reported that the National Integrity Policy drafted […]

This week Just Asia begins with Nepal, where April 25 marked the third year since the devastating Gorkha-centered earthquake. The 2015 earthquake killed 8,979 people and destroyed around 900,000 homes. It is a tragedy that many victims continue living in tattered makeshift camps and tents. As yet another monsoon nears, people hope that the new […]

This week Just Asia begins with India, where an 8-year-old girl from Kashmir was gang-raped and murdered. Her family reported her missing in January this year, and only a week later was her body found. According to the charge sheet filed in April, the girl from the Bakarwal Muslim community was gang-raped and murdered by […]

An article from The Sunday Times, written by Kishali Pinto-Jayawardenaforwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission Some weeks ago, a ruling party politician in the Gampaha District was captured on national television becoming incandescent with rage on being asked to produce his identity card by a police officer. Working himself up to a veritable frenzy, that worthy representative of […]

This week Just Asia begins with Burma, where two journalists face up to 14-years imprisonment under the country’s colonial era secrets act. The two Reuters reporters, U Wa Lone and U Kyaw Soe Oo, brought to light a massacre of 10 Muslim Rohingya men in Rakhine State’s Inn Din village. They were subsequently arrested in […]

Dear Friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received updated information from the Commission for the Disappearances and Victims of Violence, KontraS (a national human rights organization). It concerns the results of a Police Ethic Mechanism lodged against three Police Officers of the Sula Police Station (Polres Sula), North Mollucas Province. After carrying out […]

By Urmila Pullat On Mar 20, 2018, in Dr. Subhash Kashinath Mahajan vs. The State of Maharashtra And Anr., the Supreme Court of India held that there is no absolute bar on granting anticipatory bail for complaints under the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 (hereinafter the SC/ST Act). Further, […]

An article from The Hindu, written by Neera Chandhoke. forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission by Neera Chandhoke The onus of battling discrimination must not fall on the shoulders of Dalits alone  On the morning of April 3, the front pages of newspapers told us of violent protests by Dalits in northern India the day before. […]

Dear Friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received updated information regarding the East Java High Court sentencing of Mr. Heri Budiawan, alias Budi Pego, an environmental activist, to 10-months imprisonment. Despite the fact that Budi’s lawyer had presented evidences and witness testimony explaining that the original banners with a Communist logo have never […]

This week Just Asia begins with India, where a nationwide strike has resulted in nine deaths so far. The strike was called on Monday, to protest the changes to the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes prevention of Atrocities Act by the Supreme Court. The changes will make it difficult to file cases against public servants for caste atrocities. Next, […]

A Statement from by Dr. Umakant of JNU forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission April 02, 2018, JNU, New Delhi We must remove inequality, Ambedkar said, or our political structure will be in peril http://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/sc-st-act-we-must-remove-inequality-ambedkar-said-or-our-political-structure-will-be-in-peril-5122076/ This protest was unprecedented because it was largely led by ordinary Dalits and Adivasis, while political parties and their leaders played […]

This week Just Asia begins with India, where social activist Poipynhun Majaw’s body was found near a bridge in Meghalaya. According to the police, the preliminary inquiry suggests he was hit on the head with a wrench, leading to his death. While the motive for his murder has not been ascertained yet, Majaw had recently […]

Dear Friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information regarding the case of violence against Mr. Ali Nurdin, the chairperson of Gempur, a non-governmental organization (NGO), in Pariaman Lima Koto Kampung Dalam sub-district, Padang Pariaman regency, West Sumatera province. Nurdin was brutally attacked after filing a police report against the misuse of funds […]

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is deeply concerned by the foreseeable displacement of Khokana residents due to the Kathmandu-Terai Fast Track Project, one of Nepal’s ‘national pride’ projects. The 76-km long Fast Track is proposed along the Bagmati River corridor, and is expected to considerably reduce travel time and distance from Nepal’s capital Kathmandu, […]

This week Just Asia begins with Rohingya refugee camps in Bangladesh, where young girls are being trafficked into prostitution. A BBC News investigation team went to Cox’s Bazaar, Bangladesh, for an undercover investigation, and found that foreigners seeking sex can easily gain access to children who have fled conflict in Burma. The Rohingya refugee crisis […]

In 2011, two manual scavengers died while cleaning a sewer in Delhi’s Bawana Industrial area. Finally, on 27th February 2018, in the case of Rajesh and Another v. Delhi Jal Board and Ors (W.P.(C) 7030/2012), the High Court of Delhi brought relief to the families of these victims. Though prohibited, the dehumanising and hazardous practice of manual […]