Institutional reform

The suicide of a young Dalit scholar, Mr. Rohith Vemula, in the University of Hyderabad is not merely the death of an individual. The sordid saga behind what made Rohith take this extreme step exposes all the pretensions of the Indian state and its institutions. It shows how six decades after independence, elitist Brahminical domination […]

It is just over a year since the Peshawar Army Public School carnage of December 2014, where some 135 teens were killed by terrorists. The subsequent promulgation of Pakistan’s National Action Plan (NAP) to combat terrorism, as well as the lifting of the moratorium on death penalties, has shown no sign of decreasing terror attacks […]

In this episode of Just Asia, AHRC TV continues its coverage of the saga of the missing Hong Kong book publishers. One of the five abducted men, Gui Minhai, has turned up on Chinese State television making a “confession” for a years-old alleged drink driving offence. Gui vanished three months ago from holiday in Thailand […]

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has been closely monitoring incidents in Nepal’s Terai. The AHRC had been eagerly waiting for the government and the agitating forces to strike a deal. However, today, even after 6 months of standstill, there is no progression. The government has not discarded its killing attitude; protests and killings are […]

A Press Release from the Kachin Women’s Association Thailand (KWAT) and Legal Aid Network (LAN) forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) New report exposes systematic cover-up of Myanmar Army involvement in Kachin rape-murder case A new report exposes the systematic cover-up of the Myanmar Army’s involvement in the rape-murder of two Kachin teachers […]

“मैं लिखना चाहता था, हमेशा से, विज्ञान के बारे में, कार्ल सागां की तरह. और आखिर में बस यह एक ख़त (आत्महत्या का) है जो मैं लिख पा रहा हूँ.” हैदराबाद विश्विद्यालय में पढ़ रहे दलित शोधार्थी और छात्र नेता रोहित वेमुला ने कभी मरना नहीं चाहा होगा. उम्मीदों और सपनों के साथ जीने वाला […]

Sri Lanka Citizens’ Organisations ව්‍යවස්ථා සංශෝධන කමිටුව වෙත ඉදිරිපත් කරනු ලබන අදහස් හා යෝජනා මෙම ලේඛණය ඉදිරිපත් කරනු ලබන්නේ මෙහි අගදී සඳහන් වන ශ්‍රී ලාංකීය රටවැසියන් හා සංවිධාන මඟිනි. ව්‍යවස්ථා සංශෝධන කමිටුව ඉදිරියේ පැවරි ඇත්තේ බැ?රුම් වගකීමකි. එම වගකීම ඉටු කිරිම සඳහා උපරිම සහය දීම සියළුම රටවැසියන්ගේත් රටේ පවතින සියළුම සංවිධාන වලත් වැදගත් යුතු කමක් […]

“I always wanted to be a writer. A writer of science, like Carl Sagan. At last, this is the only letter I am getting to write.” – Rohith Vemula Rohith Vemula, a young Dalit research scholar and student activist of the University of Hyderabad, was interested in life, not death. This is how it is […]

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) condemns the suicide bombing and explosion that took place in Sarinah shopping center, Jakarta, Indonesia on 14 January 2016. We express our deep condolences to the victims and the families of those who died as a result of the terrorist attack. Approximately 23 people were victims of the explosion, […]

“AFSPA was imposed after declaring the state a disturbed area. You mean to say that in 35 years of Army presence in the state, the situation has not improved to remove the disturbed area tag from the state? Has nothing changed on the law and order front for the last three decades?” The Supreme Court […]

In this episode of Just Asia, AHRC TV reports from Sri Lanka where the police still appear to consider themselves above the law. Police officers in Embilipitiya killed a young man and authorities responded by simply re-locating the perpetrators to other stations rather than investigating the crime. Just Asia continues to report about the missing […]

Children with sunken eyes and protruding bones, struggling to breathe; mothers watching haplessly as their children die in front of their eyes; this sad reality was not happening in Somalia or Ethiopia, but in a country that is the seventh atomic power of the world. The ongoing drought in Pakistan’s Tharparkar district, Sindh province has […]

Bangladesh’s Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha has made a rare public statement; he has said the Executive is usurping all the powers of the Judiciary. He called upon all the judges and lawyers to come forward and fight against the Executive’s attempt to control the entire State and its institutions and thereby usurp all the […]

We are publishing today a statement by JayakumarThangavelu ,a retired senior police officer, who held the rank of DIG in charge of legal division about his experiences as an investigator into political crimes and in witness protection. He writes, “In addressing this subject, I put down my experience of forty years in the Sri Lankan […]

The Government has announced another attempt at constitution making in Sri Lanka which, this time is to begin, with the hope to complete the process, by the end of this year. A resolution to this effect has already been introduced in the Parliament and a Drafting Committee has been named. A valid question that begets […]

In this first episode of Just Asia in 2016, AHRC TV covers stories of disappearances and shrinking spaces for the freedom of expression. However, first up, the programme reports on the conclusion of a rape case in Sri Lanka, more than 14 years after the case began being heard. Rita, unlike many other rape victims, […]

A Statement from Front Line Defenders forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission On 5 January 2015, the transgender human rights defender Adnan (also known as Adnany), was shot and critically wounded near the Pir Zakori Bridge in the city of Peshawar. Adnan is a transgender human rights defender and co administrator of theTransAction Page, […]

Being a Christian in Sri Lanka is a book with a striking cover, showing the view from theSigiriya Rock Fortress (built 477 – 495 AD, a UNESCO World Heritage Site). Leonard Pinto, an ecologist and an author of works on ethics and social justice, has taught and researched at universities andindustry in Australia, the Philippines and […]

Since the Association of Southeast Asian Nations [ASEAN] established ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR), on October 23, 2009, public expectations towards the promotion and protection of human right have increased significantly. Although ASEAN was established in 1967, in terms of development of the regional human rights mechanism, ASEAN lags behind the other regional human rights bodies, namely […]

This week, JUST ASIAhighlights activities conducted by AHRC and it’s partners in the region to mark Human Rights Day, December 10. In Sri Lanka, German Ambassador Dr.JurganMorgardspoke to survivors in Kandy, and in Nepal, AHRC’s Dr.RajatMitra conducteda workshop on Violence and Human Rights. Indonesian human rights defenders marked the Day by gathering in front of […]