Military

Yesterday, 6th January 2015, the National Assembly of Pakistan passed an amendment to the Constitution allowing the formation of military courts. The Pakistan Senate adopted the same amendment with a limiting clause that the amendment will be valid only for a period of two years. In responding to the 16th December 2014 massacre of 148 […]

by Javeria Younes The year 2014 bids us adieu, as the government of Pakistan gears up to set up military court “come what may”. The military machinery at GHQ is at full swing these days as hurried consultation between the government and the military officials take place over amendments in the constitution to pave way […]

Everyone knows that Pakistan’s government and military have failed to deal with the widespread terrorism in the country. All Pakistanis would agree that this problem needs to be addressed and that it should be addressed urgently and thoroughly. However, the government’s suggestion of enabling the military to try terror suspects in military courts is no […]

On Monday, 29 December 2014, at 9 am in the Criminal Court on Ratchadaphisek Road in Bangkok, Patiwat Saraiyaem and Pornthip Munkhong will appear before the court for the first time since being formally charged on 25 October 2014. They have been charged with violating Article 112 of the Thai Criminal Code in relation to […]

Almost a week has passedsince the brutal terrorist attack on the army administered public school, in Peshawar, which killed 132 students and nine staff members including the principal – all of whom were shot dead, one after the other, by Taliban gunmen.  The government of Pakistan instead of holding an investigation into the massive lapseof […]

The Pakistan Government should take the military to establishment to task, for failing to protect the 141 innocent children and staff killed by the Taliban The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) unequivocally condemns the attack by the Taliban on 16th December in a school in Peshawar, killing 132 children and nine staff members. The world […]

On 19 and 20 November, student and other activists carried out a series of peaceful, symbolic protests against the dictatorship in Thailand.  In response, the military and police acted to swiftly end the protests and arrest eight of the activists under the terms of martial law. The position of the National Council for Peace and […]

The Asian Human Rights is gravely concerned about the resurgence of military summons of activists and human rights defenders. According to information provided by Thai Lawyers for Human Rights, 16 activists and human rights defenders (HRDs) in northeastern Thailand have been summoned to report to the local military authorities. The summons to report came after […]

(The following article was originally published in the Ethics In Action, a bi-monthly publication devoted to discussing how movements and leaderships claiming to uphold ethics and morality have failed to promote and protect human rights. Click here to read the latest issue of the journal   ) The word ‘rights’ very often seem so wrong—politically,  socially […]

On 10 October 2014, the independent online media outlet Prachatai reported on three instances of torture of persons held in military and police custody which have taken place since the 22 May 2014 coup by the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) in Thailand (Read the entire report by Prachatai in English here and […]

To date, no credible investigation into the disappearance of Prageeth Eknaligoda has taken place. Prageeth Eknaligoda disappeared on 24th January 2010 and to this day there has been no credible investigation into his disappearance, despite many interventions by the United Nations Human Rights agencies, other international organizations, and by local Sri Lankan organizations. The wife […]

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is gravely concerned about the ongoing detention without charge of Patiwat (last name withheld) and Pornthip (last name withheld), who are being held in relation to a complaint filed against them for alleged violation of Article 112 of the Criminal Code in Thailand. Patiwat, age 23, a fifth year […]

The fifth Congress of Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD), held in Manila from 22-25 September and attended by participants from ten countries – Bangladesh, Indonesia, Jammu and Kashmir in India, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Sri Lanka, South Korea, Thailand and Timor-Leste renewed its commitment to fight against impunity and build a world without disappearances. AFAD […]

Conference Statement September 17-20, 2014, Manila, Philippines– We, the participants in the conference on “Sharing Best Practices in Advocating for Legislation Against Enforced Disappearances” coming from organizations fromArgentina, Bangladesh, Belarus, Chile, El Salvador, Guatemala, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Lebanon, Nepal, Philippines, Thailand, Timor-Leste and the United States of America are convened in Manila, Philippines, the […]

The Asian Human Rights Commission wishes to express grave concern about the arrest, interrogation, and harassment of four academics and three students during a public lecture on 17 September 2014 at Thammasat University in Bangkok. This is the latest in a series of actions by the authorities in the four months since the National Council […]

TEXTS ADOPTED Provisional edition P8_TA-PROV(2014)0024 Human rights violations in Bangladesh PE536.999 European Parliament resolution of 18 September 2014 on human rights violations in Bangladesh (2014/2834(RSP)) The European Parliament, –    having regard to its previous resolutions on Bangladesh, –    having regard to the EC-Bangladesh Cooperation Agreement of 2001, –    having regard to Articles 33 and 35 […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has learned that the judicial harassment of Pornpen Khongkachonkiet and Somchai Homlaor, long-standing and prominent human rights defenders and director and chairperson, respectively, of the Cross Cultural Foundation (CrCF) in Thailand, is ongoing. They have been accused of defaming the army and face potential legal prosecution for […]

Two years ago on 11th September  2012 a third degree fire broke out at the Ali Enterprises, garment factory in the industrial area of Karachi, where  259 workers perished – burnt alive. It was one of the most devastating tragedies known in the history of the garment industry. The tragedy sparked a debate but on a […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received updated information that twenty-one more farmers from Kanbalu Township have been convicted regarding an attempt to defend their rights to their land, with sentences ranging from 3 months to 4 years. More farmers are being prosecuted this month and others are still facing trials. CASE […]

Dear friends,  The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) wishes to forward an appeal from the Human Rights and Peace for Papua – the International Coalition for Papua (ICP) regarding risks of persecution by the authorities of Indonesia against a French journalist and Papuan indigenous leader in Papua. For more information, please visit: http://humanrightspapua.org/  Thank you.  […]