Rule of law

As the violence has escalated within the last few days and the lives of many are affected by the actions of all sides, the issue that comes to the forefront is the absence of any human rights monitoring mechanisms in Sri Lanka. The Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRC) became defunct with the expiry […]

[RE: UP-089-2006: BANGLADESH: Government names the head of the judicial probe commission into the police brutality on journalists; UA-128-2006: BANGLADESH: Journalists beaten by the police at the Chittagong stadium] —————————————————– UP-095-2006: BANGLADESH: Government names District Judge to conduct a judicial probe into the police brutality on journalists BANGLADESH: Torture; intimidation; threat; deprivation of professional duty; […]

The meaning of a Constitution is to be found, not in slavish adherence to the letter, which sometimes killeth, but in the discovery of its spirit, which giveth life…”[1] The general dismay voiced over the non-functioning of the Constitutional Council for over a year is shared by the Civil Rights Movement (CRM). Many have observed […]

Transparency International Sri Lanka (TISL) notes with shock and dismay the appointment of the members to the National Police Commission and Public Service Commission, in violation of the constitutional provisions to protect the integrity of those institutions. It is the Constitutional Council that should select and screen members of all of these commissions established under […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) writes to inform you that the Sri Lankan Cabinet has decided to appoint a working committee of judicial officials and lawyers to consider solutions to the problem of court delays in Sri Lanka. A memorandum in this regard was submitted by Justice and Law Reforms Minister, Amarasiri […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) writes to inform you of the escalating violence that is occurring in Nepal and the government’s decision to impose a curfew on the capital, Kathmandu, for the third consecutive day, as well as other areas, in an attempt to try to halt widespread protests. As reported in […]

We are bringing to your notice a news item that has appeared in several papers recently regarding a girl of 18 years who is said to be a victim of the tsunami tragedy and who, for the lack of any suitable child care institution, has been put in a prison as there is nowhere else […]

Today, March 30, 2006 the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has nominated three outstanding widows of human rights defenders to receive jointly the prestigious 2006 , awarded by the May 18 Memorial Foundation, Korea. The three are: Angkhana Neelaphaijit, wife of disappeared Thai human rights lawyer Somchai Neelaphaijit; Suciwati Munir, wife of murdered Indonesian human […]

The Asian Human Rights Commission welcomes the landmark ruling by the Supreme Court of Nepal on Monday February 13, 2006, which declared the controversial Royal Commission for Corruption Control (RCCC) unconstitutional and ordered it to be scrapped immediately. This has paved the way for the release of ousted Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, who had […]

North of Bangkok, the Angthong Provincial Court this morning found a farmer guilty of running an illegal community radio station. Sathien Janthorn was given a suspended jail term of six months and fined 60,000 Thai baht (USD 1500) for having broadcast from a community radio transmitter that was paid for by the Finance Ministry, through […]

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has recently secured a pardon for opposition leader Sam Rainsy and his colleague Cheam Channy, who were respectively given a jail sentence of 18 months for alleged defamation and seven years for allegedly organising an illegal army. He has promised to restore their parliamentary immunity. He has also withdrawn his […]

[RE: UP-013-2006: BANGLADESH: Three persons tortured by the Chapainawabganj police; UA-041-2006: BANGLADESH: Eight people killed and at least one hundred injured by police fire in Chapainawabganj district; UA-013-2006: BANGLADESH: Two people killed and thirty-five injured by police fire in Chapainawabganj district] ———————————– UP-016-2006: BANGLADESH: Three detained and tortured leaders have been released from prison in […]

[RE: UP-011-2006: NEPAL: Further arrests occur in Nepal’s escalating crisis; UA-036-2006: NEPAL: Further arrests in Nepal’s worsening political, security and human rights crisis; UG-002-2006: NEPAL: Immediate intervention required in Nepal’s deepening political, security and human rights crisis; UP-012-2006: NEPAL: Widespread repression and mass arrests continue to take place in Nepal] ———————————————————————- UP-017B-2006: NEPAL: A further […]

[RE: UA-112-2004: BURMA: Complaints against forced labour blocked and victims punished issued on 3 September 2004; UP-11-2005: BURMA: Four officials sentenced to prison for forced labour in Kawmhu Township, Yangon Division; UP-63-2005: BURMA: Local officials seek revenge against villager who obtained first successful forced labour prosecution; UP-68-2005: BURMA: Preliminary hearing against villager who obtained first […]

This February 1, 2006, the case of Ma Su Su Nwe will come before the Supreme Court of Burma. The court will be asked to decide whether or not to admit an appeal against Su Su Nwe’s imprisonment on charges of having abused and intimidated members of a local government council. In effect the court […]

The Criminal Court in Bangkok on January 12 found that missing Thai human rights lawyer Somchai Neelaphaijit had been abducted and that a police officer was among a group of persons, all suspected to be police, who were responsible. The prime minister subsequently said that Somchai has been murdered, and insisted that the Department of […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information from the People’s Vigilance Committee for Human Rights (PVCHR), a local human rights group working in Uttar Pradesh, India stating that corrupt officers, particularly those from the local police, are conniving with the feudal landlords thereby facilitating extreme exploitation of the tribal community in […]

A strange notion prevails in Sri Lankan legal circles that presidential immunity extends even to constitutional violations. This is despite the fact that one of the grounds for the impeachment of a president is ‘intentional violations of the Constitution’, as set out in article 38(2) a(i). A judgment made by the Indian Supreme Court on […]

The promise made by Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen to withdraw criminal defamation lawsuits against five human rights activists is welcomed by the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC). The five activists are Mr Kem Sokha, President of the Cambodian Centre for Human Rights (CCHR), Mr Pa Nguon Teang, CCHR Deputy Director and Radio Director, Mr […]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 13, 2006 AP-001-2006 A Paper by the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) SRI LANKA: Institutional reform: An alternative approach to the resolution of Sri Lanka’s continuing anarchy (A note: The Asian Human Rights Commission presents this paper for discussion for all those who are seriously concerned about the continuing anarchy in […]