Right to fair trial

Dear friends,  The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has obtained the details of the judgment in which two human rights defenders Mr. Park Lae-Gun and Mr. Lee Jong-Hoi were given a three-year and one month jail sentence suspended for four years and a two-year jail sentence suspended for three years respectively. They played a role […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that a 10 year-year-old girl was the victim of attempted rape by an influential person. The child was admitted to the Nawalapitiya Hospital and later transferred to the Kandy Teaching Hospital for treatment because of the severity of her injuries. She was subsequently treated […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) brings you details of the latest case in which a group of democracy and human rights activists has been accused of involvement in a series of bombings. The seven were already sentenced to over 30 years in prison in 2008 and have again been sentenced to another […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that a 9-year-old girl was raped by a influential wealthy businessman. The child was admitted to the Kandy Teaching Hospital for treatment and the Judicial Medical Officers also examined the child. Powerful people behind the suspect are trying to suppress justice by making a […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that a 13-year-old school child, Amuwaththe Mudiyanselage Lahiru Ruwan Chamara of R/Galagama Vidyalaya in Belihul Oya in the Rathnapura District, was tortured by a teacher. The child suffers from a rare affliction known as keratoconus and underwent surgery for a lens transplant at the […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that Mr. Waharagedara Ranjith Sumangala was arrested by officers attached to the Mirihana Police Station and detained for a period of five days during which time he was tortured. He was assaulted on his leg with a pole in front of his wife and […]

Sri Lanka will be celebrating its independence from the British Empire on February 4, 2011. The lamentation that independence has not meant a great deal to the people of Sri Lanka is commonly heard. However, the causes that created this situation have often not been examined. The very meaning of independence for citizens of any […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has obtained the details of a case in which six men in 2010 were accused of having contact with an insurgent group in the east of Burma. Soldiers and police arrested five of the six villagers, the other one getting away. Of the five men detained, one […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that a Police Constable (PC) P G W G Jayarathna was tortured by an Inspector of Police which resulted in the perforation of his ear drum. PC Jayarathna was assaulted by Inspector of Police (IP) Nishantha Alwis the OIC of Zone-14 of Vavuniyava District […]

FOR PUBLICATION AHRC-ART-010-2011 January 27, 2011 An Article by the Asian Human Rights Commission PHILIPPINES: Defects in legal practice and legal aid for the poor Correspondence with a public attorney exposed the country’s defect in legal practice and legal aid OVERVIEW: On October 12, 2010, the AHRC wrote to Ms. Persida Acosta, the chairperson of […]

The integrity of a republic and the determination of its people depend upon the legitimacy of their government. Since declaring the Union of India to be a sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic republic that assures its citizens justice, equality, and liberty and to be a nation that endeavours to promote among them all fraternity, 61 years […]

Dear friends,  The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has been closely following the case of a father and son both of who have been imprisoned because the latter was arrested while taking photographs of a bombing in Rangoon during April 2010. The authorities have accused the two of intending to send the photographs abroad and […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has learned of another case of 12 persons in Burma given long jail sentences for alleged anti-government activities. In fact, the state prosecution had no evidence against the accused and the judge convicted them, as in other cases of this sort, on the say-so of the police. […]

Sofie Rordam Sri Lankan citizens are protected against torture and arbitrary arrest in sections 11, 12 and 13 of the Constitution of Sri Lanka. In addition Sri Lanka has ratified the United Nations Convention against Torture and Cruel and Inhuman Treatment in 1994. While the legislation is there, the effectuation is not. The gap between […]

No action has been taken against the high ranking police officials responsible for hiring the killer of Salman Taseer and for allowing him to be a part of the assassinated governor’s security detail. Similarly, no questions have so far been raised amongst the killer’s colleagues, including the high police officials, about how they listened to […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that a law student Mr. Dasanayaka Mudiyanselage Thushara Jayarathna of No: 4/8, Edirisinghe road, Nugegoda, a final year student of the Sri Lanka Law College, has complained to the Keselwatte Police Station and other law enforcement agencies of the country regarding a malpractice which […]

We hope that wishing for a happy new year in Sri Lanka is not just mere wishful thinking. We wish: 1. That Rizana Nafeek, facing a death sentence in Saudi Arabia, will be released as soon as possible. This wish can become true only if the Sri Lankan government makes all the diplomatic efforts to […]

The Asian Human Rights Commission wishes everyone a merry Christmas and a happy new year. In all countries of Asia, this Christmas and new year will be celebrated in very difficult conditions. We extend our wishes to all families who are struggling in the midst of these difficulties to fight for their rights. We particularly […]

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) welcomes with reservations President Benigno Aquino III’s order to withdraw the charges against 43 health workers, collectively known as ‘Morong 43′, as reported today. We strongly believe, based on the documents and information that we have also obtained, that they should have not been arrested, detained, and forced to […]

Dear friends, An Indigenous Papuan man, Tuanliwor Kiwo was arbitrarily detained and tortured in May 2010 by the Indonesian military. Mr. Kiwo survived by escaping two days after being detained. Despite the significant international attention that the case received after a video of the torture was published by the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) in October 2010, […]