Rule of law

Dear friends,  Mr. Basil Champika and Sunethra Kumari of No: 100, Kandy Road, Manikhinna in Kandy district are the parents of a 15- year-old girl, Malathi. Malathi was abducted on 2 June 2011, by her school van driver and the parents made a complaint to the Manikhinna Police Station in Kandy. Basil and Sunethra were […]

Dear friends,  A six and a half year old girl was abducted by dacoits, said to be the henchmen of a tribal leader four years ago and her whereabouts remain unknown. All the persons involved in the abduction who were named in the First Information Report (FIR) were released on bail by the Supreme Court […]

Dear friends,  Mr. Saliya Chandrasena and Padma Jayanthi are the parents of an 11 year child, Aruna Dinujaya Chandrasena. They wanted to admit their child to a better school for his education so in May 2011 they admitted their child to Lakpahana Adventist College Mailapitiya to year 6. During the process of admitting the child […]

Dear friends,  The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information regarding alleged illegal arrest and torture of a 21-year old man whose spine was broken as a result of the abuse. Mr. Nijamuddin Sekh was arrested on 21 July 2011 in Nepalgunj from police officers from the District Police Office, Banke under allegations of […]

Dear friends,  The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information regarding the torture of a woman, Ms. Harkali Pun, by two policewomen following order from a higher-ranking officer in District Police Office, Banke, on 12 July 2011. The victim’s hand was broken as a result of the torture but the police have consistently refused […]

Dear friends,  Mr. Madasamy Vishwanadan (42), was the principal at Rosella Tamil Maha Vidiyalaya. When his mother died in 2008 he informed his brother who lived in Kilinochchi but the man failed to attend the funeral. However, his nephew was able to come and he stayed a few days in Vishwanadan’s home. On his way […]

Dear friends,  Mr. Sathiyaseelan Jegadishan (24) of Sogana Upper Division, Pussellawa in the Nuwara Eliya District was illegally arrested by officers of the Pussellawa Police Station on 2 June 2010. Jegadishan, an employee of the Pussellawa Post Office received a message that there was a commotion in his village. Accordingly he to the police station […]

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) takes exception to the information that the government of Nepal has asked the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) in writing to halt investigations it had undertaken into allegations of gross human rights violations dating back to the time of the conflict. The AHRC is seriously concerned by this additional […]

The long struggle of a female worker has drawn the attention of both the local and international community. Ms. Kim Jin-suk, a member of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) has been occupying the cabin of Crane No. 85, which is 35 metres high, in the shipyard of Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction (HHIC) […]

Basil Fernando  In Plato’s Republic Glaucon narrates a story about a ring of invisibility.  The man who found the ring used his power to enter the palace, rape the queen, kill the king and to take over the throne. ‘They’d have the scope I’m talking about especially if they acquired the kind of power which, […]

According to reports yesterday, July 5, 2011, about 2,000 persons from the Kahawatte area participated in a protest demanding the removal of the police working in the area. The reason behind this protest is the inability of the police to effectively investigate the murders of seven women who were killed in separate incidents. The people […]

Keynote address delivered at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Citizens Movement for Good Governance (CIMOGG) — June 29 2011 by Kishali Pinto-Jayawardena, Attorney at Law, Media Columnist and Author.  Introductory Comments Mr Chair, members of CIMOGG and friends, when Dr A.C. Visvalingam initially spoke to me in regard to delivering the keynote address […]

On April 19, 2011, a 14-year-old tribal girl was gang-raped by four alleged security force officers in Narayanpatna of Koraput district, where there is an ongoing conflict between the government and Naxalites over land and power. Additionally, Operation Green Hunt has increased hardship for the villagers following greater incidents of police violence. In November 2009 […]

Dear friends,  Ms. Q. Mahendra Devi (42) is a widow and the mother of three children. She resides at No: 100/36, Dharmaraja Road, Kandy and works as a cleaning labour working for a private company. After the death of her husband she built a house in above mentioned address. Several years later a senior police […]

Dear friends,  Mr. George Jayakody (55) of No: 24, Kundalagama, Kundasale, Kandy is a businessman. In 2008 he wanted to sell his land he came to an agreement in the presence of a lawyer. The second party who happened to be the relative of a police officer reneged on the contract and instead of abiding […]

Months after the 18th Amendment: Is the Executive really more accountable to Parliament? The 18th Amendment, we were told, would make the President more accountable to Parliament. The Editorial of the Sunday Observer noted back in the day. By making it mandatory for the President to attend Parliament at least once in three months to […]

The Asian Human Rights Commission has received information from Faisalabad city of Punjab province, the second largest industrial and commercial city of the country that a plan has been chalked out to kill the owners and their family members of 36 commercial and industrial establishments belonging to Ahmadiyya community. The plan includes the people working […]

(Hong Kong, June 11, 2011) This is a discussion on the serious crisis of law in Sri Lanka. 33 years of the promulgation of the present Constitution, what is legal and what is not has been obliterated in Sri Lanka. As an illustration of the crisis of law, three incidents are discussed:  • The killing […]

(Hong Kong, June 10, 2011) The people of Pakistan were stunned when they watched the video showing Rangers personnel killing a young man in cold blood in a public place during the night of 8 June 2011. Passers-by gathered around the scene and made videos of the incident. The videos were then supplied to different […]

People of Pakistan were stunned when they watched the video showing Rangers personnel killing a young man in cold blood in a public place during the night of 8 June 2011. Passers-by gathered around the scene and made videos of the incident. The videos were then supplied to different television channels who broadcasted them immediately. […]