Military

PAKISTAN: Women are headed towards a dark tunnel

International Women’s Day 2014  A pact with the Taliban will destroy what little freedoms remain for women The shadow of darkness shrouds Pakistan. In a country that already has a repressive attitude towards women; the possibility of upholding women’s rights shrinks further. In an environment in which a woman’s worth is considered to be only […]

PAKISTAN: The government ignores the historical long march for the recovery of disappeared persons

Statement | Asia | 04-03-2014

The historic long march of the Baloch family members of missing persons ended in Islamabad after covering 2800 kilometers. The 20 member’s contingent of long march created history in the sub-continent by continuously walking 104 days from Quetta, the capital of the Balochistan province, to Islamabad, the capital of the country via the Sindh and […]

ASIA: Call for Nomination for the 4th Truth Foundation Human Rights Award

An Announcement forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission The Asian Human Rights Commission wishes to forward the following announcement from the Truth Foundation, South Korea calling for nominations for their Human Rights Award in 2014. The announcement and proposal form can be downloaded here. For inquiries please contact Mr. Kim Jung-Min whose contact details are […]

PHILIPPINES: SELDA forms People’s Claims Board, demands recall in BS Aquino’s appointment of PNP general to recognize ML victims

SELDA announces the formation of the People’s Claim Board, in protest of the Pres. Benigno Aquino III’s appointment of a PNP general in the Human Rights Victims’ Claims Board (HRVCB) to implement the law. The Samahan ng Ex-Detainees Laban sa Detensyon at Aresto (SELDA) has repeatedly urged the BS Aquino government to immediately form the […]

ASIA: AHRC TV- Human Rights Asia Weekly Roundup Episode 17

The AHRC releases today the 17th Episode, of the Human Rights Asia Weekly Roundup(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xHaCNO_VGRY) In this week’s programme, we bring you stories from India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Nepal and in our segment, Voices of Survivors, we talk to a survivor from Indonesia. In a special feature from India we talk about India’s politics and the violence […]

ASIA: AHRC TV – Human Rights Asia Weekly Roundup, Episode 16

The AHRC releases today the 16th Episode, of the Human Rights Asia Weekly Roundup.  In this week’s programme we bring you the following stories from across Asia; In the news from Kerala, India, fundamental questions are raised about the police participating in a traditional religious procession. The AHRC speaks to activists in Thrissur, Kerala, to explain […]

INDIA: Letter from Prashant Rahi on Imprisonment and Toruture, and Appeal for Campaign Against Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA in short)

Letter from Prashant Rahi on Imprisonment and Toruture, and Appeal for Campaign Against UAPA – See more at: http://sanhati.com/articles/9031/#sthash.1yVgsvrX.dpuf, January 29, 2014 Dated : January 07, 2014 Dear friends, Heart-felt greetings at the onset of yet another tumultuous years of struggle for civil and democratic rights, which are increasingly threatened the world over by police atrocities […]

PHILIPPINES: CA decision strengthens anti-torture charges against military/police torturers of security guard Panesa

Press Statement January 29, 2013 Reference: Cristina “Tinay” Palabay, Secretary General, 0917-3162831 – Angge Santos, Media Liaison, 0918-9790580 CA decision strengthens anti-torture charges against military/police torturers of security guard Panesa http://www.karapatan.org/CA+decision+strengthens+anti-torture+charges+against+military/police+torturers+of+security+guard+Panesa “The recent resolution of the Court of Appeals denying the motion for the re-arrest of security guard Rolly Panesa strengthens the anti-torture case he […]

PHILIPPINES: ‘Wheel of torture’ is tip of the iceberg

The discovery of a ‘torture wheel’ “inside a private subdivision in Laguna,” which is under the control of intelligence officers in Biñan, Laguna, where detainees arrested for illegal drugs are tortured and held, drew outrage as to how the police conduct its investigation into crimes. The “torture wheel” was discovered by the Commission on Human Rights […]

SRI LANKA: Authoritarianism or Democratic Governance?

The Friday Forum 2, Greenlands Avenue, Colombo 5, Sri Lanka E-Mail; chandraj111@gmail.com Telephone; 0773634444   Fax; 2504181 PRESS RELEASE 27th January 2014. There has been, in recent times, public discussion in regard to whether our country is moving towards an authoritarianism that undermines democratic governance. The President, Ministers and government spokespersons have consistently denied this allegation. They refer in particular to the […]

CHINA: For Freedom, Justice and Love – My Closing Statement to the Court

For Freedom, Justice and Love – My Closing Statement to the Court Xu Zhiyong, 22 January 2014 This is Xu Zhiyong’s closing statement on January 22, 2014, at the end of his trial. According to his lawyer, he had only been able to read “about 10 minutes of it before the presiding judge stopped him, […]

ASIA: AHRC TV – Human Rights Asia Weekly Roundup, Episode 15

The AHRC releases today the 15th Episode, of the Human Rights Asia Weekly Roundupwith special reports from Cambodia. In this week’s programme we bring you the following stories from across Asia; In Cambodia four persons were killed and many others wounded after police opened fire at protestors demanding an increase of the minimum wage. The AHRC […]

PAKISTAN: The total number of deaths in 2013 reached to 5665 in different incidents of violence

A report by Center for Research and Security Studies (CRSS) The month of December saw a moderate reduction in the number of casualties related to militant, sectarian and politically-motivated violence plaguing Pakistan. The overall death toll was at around 275 while up to 325 people were wounded in these hostilities bringing the total number of […]

PAKISTAN: More than 100 dead bodies from three mass graves were found in one district of Balochistan

The UN and international human rights organisations must send fact finding missions to probe the illegal disposal of Baloch people in mass graves The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) expresses shock and deep concern over the discovery of mass graves in Balochistan; it is suspected that these graves are of Baloch missing persons who were […]

PAKISTAN: The taliban are on the attack as the government continues to formulate its security policy to combat terrorism

A media house issuing adverse reports on the Taliban is attacked and three employees were killed The Pakistani Taliban, a brutal and bloody organisation, has accelerated its attacks in different parts of the country. During the last four days from January 15, a total of 52 people have been killed in suicide attacks and targeted […]

SOUTH KOREA: Legal actions against workers of Korean overseas factories must stop

The Military Special Command Unit 911 in Cambodia firing live ammunition at garment factory workers asking for the increase of the minimum wage has been internationally condemned. The firing led to the deaths of four persons and injuries to at least 39 more. Nonetheless, on a subsequent day, the military arrested 23 people, including human […]

CAMBODIA: Stop the Violence: A Call for Release, Investigation and Reparation

We, the Cambodian and International Civil Society Organizations represented in this statement, condemn the use of armed force and escalating violence against the Cambodian people. At the start of 2014, following three weeks of peaceful demonstrations in Phnom Penh, tensions increased dramatically as authorities brutally cracked down on garment factory workers, who were demonstrating for […]

INDIA: Interim Report Assam Public Hearing on Sexual Violence

Guwahati:  January 13, 2014 Interim Report: Introduction The insanity of the vicious and tragic violence over the years in India has always been masked and at the best ‘managed’ (read suppressed) by brute force and fear. There is no dearth of evidence to speak of the grave consequences on women and children in particular. The […]

INDIA: Paramilitary Still Squats in Chhattisgarh Schools

Statement | India | 11-01-2014

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information from CGNet Swara, an organization promoting community journalism in India, regarding the continuing occupation and use of educational institutions in Chhattisgarh by the Indian paramilitary. AHRC has learnt that two companies of the Border Security Force (BSF), deployed at remote Kodapakha village of Kanker district, about […]

AHRC TV – Human Rights Asia Weekly Roundup, Episode 12

The Asian Human Rights Commission is pleased to announce the release of the 12th episode of the Human Rights Asia Weekly Roundup. We start this episode with a special AHRC report on the sham Bangladesh national elections which were boycotted by the main opposition party. The elections were marred by violence and the lack of legitimacy […]