Rule of law

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that the Detective Branch of the Dhaka Metropolitan Police illegally arrested a female labour rights activist named Ms. Moshrefa Mishu (46) on 14 December 2010. She has been arbitrarily detained in three fabricated criminal charges since her arrest. Ms. Moshrefa Mishu, is a leftist […]

A YouTube presentation recently found on the internet shows Mumtaz Quadri, the assassin of the slain governor, Salman Taseer, singing in the custody of the police during his interrogation. The officers are seen standing by and sitting next to him, enjoying the performance. Quadri was reciting ‘Naat’, a poem in praise of the Prophet Mohammad, […]

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. […]

The act of solidarity by Egyptian Muslims towards Egyptian Copts is a glowing example for countries and communities around the world. And it must be particularly noted that Pakistan could be one of the main beneficiaries of this attitude. As Egyptian Copts prepared to attend mass at churches across the country, thousands of Muslims, including […]

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 […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission received information that on 9 January 2011 according to police officials over 40,000 people gathered in the streets of Karachi, the capital of Sindh Province for a rally. The speakers of the rally announced over their public address system that anyone showing support for the amendments to the […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received updated information regarding the torture case of Gyan Bahadur Balami (Gyanu), Hermin Ratu Lama and Makar Bahadur Gharti Magar (Iman) at the hands of a police team from the Metropolitan Police Crime Division in Kathmandu. Following their arrest under allegations of theft and drug smuggling […]

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 […]

The nation has suffered a great loss due to this tragic murder. A voice of sanity has been silenced. This has happened at a time when the kind of political leadership provided by Salman Taseer is most needed. He stood for basic values which are essential for the stability of Pakistan. His shocking death should […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information from a local human rights organization based in Manipur, the Human Rights Alert (HRA), concerning the case of a journalist who has been detained by the state police in an alleged attempt to silence the local media in the state. The Manipur State Police […]

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 […]

Dear friends,   We wish to share with you the following statement from Networking for Rights (NfR) Sri Lanka.   Asian Human Rights Commission Hong Kong   ————-   NfR expresses its serious concern about the deterioration of the law and order situation in the Northern Districts of Sri Lanka. The series of killings that […]

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 […]

On 22 December 2010, after three years and four petitions, the Federal Shariat Court (FSC) of Pakistan declared several critical clauses of the Protection of Women (Criminal Laws Amendment) Act of 2006 unconstitutional. In place of this act that created protections for women, the FSC supports the reinstatement of the Hudood Ordinances VII of 1979, […]

The 83rd Plenary Session of the Indian National Congress (INC), held in New Delhi has declared that eradicating corruption would be a priority for the INC and thus for the national government, formed under the banner of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) and led by the INC. The President as well as other leaders of […]

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) appreciates the effort taken by the Home Minister of India in undertaking a visit to Manipur. Manipur is one of the states in India with a poor human rights record. During the past three years the number of encounter killings reported from the state has steadily increased, until the […]

Over six-and-a-half years after police abducted and presumably killed human rights lawyer Somchai Neelaphaijit, no one has yet been punished. The one police officer among five accused who was found guilty of a relatively minor criminal charge and sentenced to three years in jail appealed the conviction and while out of prison on bail himself […]

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 […]

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is encouraged by the ongoing public discussion and debate on the internet to a Statement that we have issued, titled: Philippines–Broken and lawless nation–killing in front of families. We are also not surprise by the statement of Chief Superintendent Agrimero Cruz Jr., spokesman of the Philippine National Police (PNP); and […]