Right to fair trial

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, […]

An Open Letter to Atty. Joseph Jev L. Palomar, Public Attorney II, Public Attorney’s Office (PAO), Kidapawan City District Office Atty. Joseph Jev L. Palomar Public Attorney II Public Attorney’s Office (PAO) Hall of Justice, Kidapawan City PHILIPPINES Dear Atty. Palomar: The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has acknowledged receipt of the copy of your […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that a woman, who received a stay order from court over a dispute on ownership of her house, was picked up by policemen and their informers and taken to a private detention centre where she was gang raped for more than 50 days. The […]

Dear friends, We wish to share with you the following statement from Judge Soliman M. Santos, Jr. of the 9th Municipal Circuit Trial Courts (MCTC) in Nabua-Bato, Camarines Sur. Judge Santos is the former legal counsel of two of the Abadilla Five detainees–Lenido Lumanog and Augusto Santos, before his appointment as trial court judge. The […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received updated information regarding the custodial death of Mr. Mizanur Rahman, who was extrajudicially killed by the Gulshan Police in Dhaka after having been kept in arbitrary detention for two days (For further details, please see our original appeal here: AHRC-UAC-107-2010). The AHRC has received the statement […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that a German philanthropist staying in Sri Lanka has been illegally arrested and detained by the officers attached to the Special Task Force (STF) of the Sri Lanka police on 17th August, 2010 at Siyambalanduwa. He was travelling with his son and his companions […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has been closely following the case of a young man whom the authorities in Burma have accused of involvement in a bombing during April. Phyo Wai Aung has alleged that he was brutally tortured for nine days to force him to confess. He has also been held […]

Abhisit Vejjajiva Prime Minister c/o Government House Pitsanulok Road, Dusit District Bangkok 10300 THAILAND Fax: +66 2 288 4000 ext. 4025 Tel: +66 2 288 4000 E-mail: spokesman@thaigov.go.th or abhisit@abhisit.org Dear Mr. Abhisit THAILAND: Chaining of wounded detainees under Emergency Decree The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is writing to you regarding the treatment of detainees under the […]

(Hong Kong, June 18, 2010) To mark the 14th year of their imprisonment the families of the ‘Abadilla Five’ detainees once again held a demonstration in front of the Supreme Court in Metro Manila to renew their calls for justice. They are asking the court to resolve at once the detainees’ appeal convicting them for […]

Dear friends,  The Asian Human Rights Commission is pleased to report strong progress in the complaint of a road accident victim, whose case was wilfully mishandled by police and a judge. The judge allowed himself to be misled by police officers and when the victim complained, he closed the case. This is now being thoroughly […]

Danilo Reyes The story of two elderly farmers, Marilyn Lanotes, of Hacienda Tres Hermanos and Uldarico Nalipay, of Hacienda Manuela, both in Cadiz City, Negros Occidental, are just two of the many examples that can illustrate the inequality before the law between farmers and landowners and how the application of the law is abused to […]

Dear friends,  The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that police officers are failing to act on a report made by a young girl, who was abducted and raped on 27 April. The girl knows her attacker and has presented evidence of the crime, yet no substantive action has been taken by the local police station.  CASE DETAILS: (based […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) writes to inform you regarding further delays in the conclusion of the Petition for Review on Certiorari that the Abadilla Five has filed. We previously reported that the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) was required by the Supreme Court to submit their comment on the petition; […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) writes to inform you that a man, whom a prosecutor had falsely charged for committing acts of terror, has been continuously held in detention for six months to face a trial on an offense that has not been substantially proven. CASE DETAILS: (According to information from the Task […]