Right to life

It is well-known that systemic abuse of draconian Laws is an established practice in Bangladesh. The incumbent Government has weaponised a number laws, including the Digital Security Act-2018, to intensify its campaign of curbing freedom of expression and opinion. The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has compiled publicly available information obtained from the mainstream media. The data shows […]

A Written Submission to the 44th Regular Session of the United Nations’ Human Rights Council Jointly Submitted by the Asian Legal Resource Centre and Lawyers’ Rights Watch Canada The United Nations (UN) Human Rights Council (Council), during its 41st Session, adopted Resolution A/HRC/41/L.20, Promotion and protection of human rights in the Philippines (Resolution 41/L.20)1, requesting […]

 ආසියානු මානව හිමිකම් කොමිසම – හදිසි අභියාචනා වැඩසටහන ලංකාවේ  මූලික අයිතිවාසිකම් පිළිබද නඩුවක් විභාග කර එහි තීන්දුව දුන් ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරනයේ ත‍්‍රිපුද්ගල විනිශ්චය මණ්ඩලය ලංකාවේ බලධාරීන්ට පහත සදහන් නියෝගයද කරන ලදී.  ‘මෙම අධිකරණය ඉදිරියේ ගොනුකර ඇති මූලික අයිතිවාසිකම් නඩු ප‍්‍රමාණය අනුව පොලිස් ප‍්‍රචණ්ඩත්වය, අත්තඩංගුවේදී  වදහිංසා පැමිණවීම හා මරණ හෙළිදරව් වී ඇත. මෙයින් පෙනී යන්නේ රජය මෙම ප‍්‍රශ්ණය විසිදීම සදහා හෝ එය අඩු […]

After the murder of George Floyd, the world has seen some of the most powerful protests demanding police reforms. The government of the United States has made some minor reforms, but also responded with force. The larger issue of police reform is now one of the most visible demands, and it calls for much more […]

Manila/Hong Kong/Paris/Dhaka/Washington, D.C./Geneva, 25 June 2020: On the occasion of the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture (26 June), the Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD), the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC), the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), Odhikar, Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights, and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) remember […]

(Jakarta, 17 June 2020) – The Thai government’s inadequate response to the enforced disappearance of pro-democracy activist Wanchalerm Satsaksit demonstrates its failure to protect human rights defenders and other dissenting voices, Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA) and Asia Democracy Network said today. Unidentified assailants abducted Wanchalerm in front of his residence in […]

नेपाल सरकारले साउदी अरबलगायतका मध्यपूर्वी देशहरुका कार्यरत आफ्ना नागरिकहरुको स्वास्थ्य र जीवनरक्षाका लागि प्रयाप्त पहल गर्न सकिरहेको छैन । साउदी अरेबीयाको रियादस्थित एक कम्पनीमा कार्यरत पाल्पा रैनादेवी छहरा–३ का रामप्रसाद (३५)लाई जुन १२ मा कोभीड–१९ संक्रमण प्रमाणित भएको थियो । उनी रियादको आग्री न्यू खर्ज सडकस्थित एक उद्योगमा सवारी चालकका रुपमा कार्यरत थिए । संक्रमणका […]

By Basil Fernando SINHALA VERSION Sunil Jayawardene was a representative for three-wheele drivers. He who went to make a representation to a finance company on behalf of one of the vehicle owners, whose three-wheeler had been taken by agents of that company. Sunil was assaulted by eight or more people in front of the company […]

 මේ දින වල ලොව පුරා ප්‍රචලිත පුවත වන්නේ ඇමරිකාවේ සුදු ජාතික පොලිස් නිලධාරියෙකු විසින් කළු ජාතික සාමන්‍ය පුරවැසියකුගේ බෙල්ල මත දණහිස තබා මරණයට පත් කිරීමේ සිදු වීමයි. එම මරණය සිදු කල ආකාරය ඡායාරූප ගත කර ඇති හෙයින් එය කාටත් දැක ගැනීමට අවස්ථාව උදාවී ඇත. මෙම සිද්ධියත් සමඟ ඇමරිකාව පුරා බලවත් විරෝධතා ඇති වීමත්, එම විරෝධතාවයන්ට […]

सन् १९८०, १८ मे कोरीयाका लागिमात्र नभएर संसारका लागि एउटा गौरवपूर्ण दिन हो, जुन दिन सिँगैं सहरहरू र दक्षिण केरियाली नागरिकहरू सैन्य कुका विरूद्द उभिएका थिए । यो यस्तो किसिमको दुर्लभ एक्यवद्दता थियो कि धेरै दिनसम्म नागरिकहरू एकाकार भएर सहरकब्जा गर्न हिँडेको शैन्य बटालियनलाई सहरभित्र पस्नबाट रोक्न सफल भएका थिए । धेरै दिनपछि, सैन्य बटालियनहरू […]

 The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights submitted report to the UN Human Rights Council on 4th of June. It is a very comprehensive report on serious violations of Human Rights that have been taking place in the last few years. In her concluding remarks, the High Commissioner’s report says… “The legal, constitutional and […]

Phnom Penh, 13 May 2020 – Without urgent and substantial amendment, the new Law on the Management of the Nation in State of Emergency (“State of Emergency Law”) grants the Royal Government of Cambodia (“RGC”) powers to restrict the fundamental freedoms of the Cambodian people without limit. The recently promulgated State of Emergency Law was impulsively […]

The Bangladesh government has resorted once again to its notorious Digital Security Act-2018to muzzle freedom of expression, suing 11 individuals and arresting four of them following criticism of in the governments’ handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. Four people have been detained since 5 May 2020 under the draconian digital law, including cartoonist Ahmed Kabir Kishore, writer Mushtaq […]

By Shanthikumar Hettiarahchi Time and again the rhetoric of war comes to the frontline conversations and debate in international relations. The North American, as well as the European power blocks are in shock and dismay about what has befallen on their secure and comfortably wealthy economies. Deaths in thousands even though less emphasis laid on […]

By Basil Fernando For the purpose of this short essay, I use ‘folk school’ to mean the ideas of the folk school which were developed in Denmark by NFS Grundtvig and the folk school movement. The same methodology was also followed by Myles Horton of the United States. After spending several years in Denmark visiting […]

By Basil Fernando  Church bells will ring and lights will be lit to remember the 2019 Easter Sunday tragedy. Meanwhile, people have also been putting up a fight against the deadly coronavirus. For some, both events will only have a political meaning, depending on what political loyalties they are committed to. In that way, the […]

A Joint Statement by the Asian Human Rights Commission, Shasthya Andolon, Odhikar, Jonoshasthya Sangram Parishad, Sramabikash, and Anti-Tobacco Women Alliance Bangladesh government’s inadequate measures to address the COVID-19 pandemic has put the citizens’ right to health into a serious danger. The lack of preparedness, failure to assess the potential outbreak in a densely populated country and reluctance to […]

Just what do you teach your students?   Vice-Chancellor & Chairperson of the Grants Commission University of Sri Jayewardenepura  Sri Lanka Dear Vice-Chancellor & Chairperson of the Grants Commission People are shocked by the following tragic incident. A first-year student of the management faculty of the University of Sri Jayewardenepura, PASINDU HIRUSHAN, suffered serious injuries. […]

30 years ago, Richard de Zoysa was abducted and disappeared. His dead body was later found on a beach. During the same period, literally tens of thousands of persons throughout the country were also disappeared, and none of the cases relating to such disappearances have been resolved through genuine investigations and prosecutions. Indeed, the process […]

A Written Submission to the 43rd Regular Session of the United Nations’ Human Rights Council by the Asian Legal Resource Centre The Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC) draws attention of the United Nations Human Rights Council and its Special Procedures about the institutionalised practice of torture in Bangladesh, which is an incumbent member of the […]