Rule of law

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is gravely concerned to have learned that Pravit Rojanaphruk, journalist for the Nation newspaper and freedom of expression advocate, is being detained in an undisclosed location by the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO). The conditions of his detention are arbitrary and a clear derogation of the Government […]

An Article published in the Hong Kong Free Press, on 11th September 2015, forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission By Basil Fernando Perhaps the most touching moment broadcast through international media in recent times is the warm welcome people fleeing Syria through Hungary received from large German crowds on arrival. When citizens of one country […]

September 11, 2012 will remain etched in the collective memory of Pakistan. On that day 259 labourers were burned alive inside a garment factory. The incident is unprecedented in the industrial history of Pakistan, and was termed a 9/11 for the laboring class of Pakistan. The fire was caused by a short circuit and quickly […]

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is concerned about the prolonged general strike that has made life very difficult in the southern plains of Nepal. Curfews have been set in Terai Districts to deter any untoward incidents. There is severe shortage of essentials and medicines. Shops and factories are closed. Daily wage earners have difficulty […]

A campaign has been launched in Myanmar demanding an end to the practice of the appointment of military officers as judicial officers to the court of Myanmar. This movement demands the end to militarisation of the legal system. In Myanmar, four out of the seven Supreme Court judges are former military officers. Their names are […]

Article on 3rd anniversary of the fire at two factories where 325 workers were burnt alive Abbas Haider Occupational Safety and Health (OHS) has become a focus of workers organizations and media in Pakistan following the two factory fires that resulted in the death of more than 325 workers in September 2012. These accidents were […]

Dear Friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information from the Advocacy Forum (AF) that a group of human rights defenders, namely Mr. Ajit Thakur from the National Human Rights Commission, Mr. Raj Kumar Mahaseth from Advocacy Forum – Nepal, Mr. Dev Kumar Mahato from WOREC-Nepal, Mr. Dipendra Das from Manav Adhikar Surakshya […]

A Statement from Hong Kong Campaign for the Advancement of Human Rights and Peace in the Philippines (HKCAHRPP) forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission As human rights and peace advocates in Hong Kong, we are outraged by the spate of killings perpetrated against the lumads (indigenous people) in Mindanao, Southern Philippines. The heightened militarisation […]

A new wave of target killings of journalists and attacking on the media houses have again started. With in the span of 24 hours two media persons were killed by, as usual, “unknown persons”. The score comes to five during the current year. According to Dunya Tv during the last five years 65 journalists were […]

An Article published in the Ceylon Today, on 9th September 2015, forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission BY Ruwan Laknath Jayakody All observers agree that policemen in Sri Lanka are poorly paid, poorly equipped and very poorly trained, the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) explained. Director of Policy and Programmes of the AHRC and the […]

The number of hangings in Pakistan has already crossed the 200 mark in 2015, and there are still about four months left in the year. If killing human beings were a race, Pakistan is winning hands down. And still there is room for improvement. An estimated 8,000 people, the largest in the world, are on […]

Mr. Joko Widodo  President of the Republic of Indonesia Jl. Veteran No. 16, Jakarta Pusat, INDONESIA Tel: +62 21 3458 595 Fax: +62 21 3484 4759 E-mail: webmaster@setneg.go.id Dear President Widodo: On 7 September 2004, the Intelligence Agency (BIN) killed prominent Indonesian human rights defender, Mr. Munir Said Thalib, onboard a Garuda Indonesia flight from Jakarta […]

Dear Friends, According to information received by the Asian Human Rights Commission, Mr. Anthony Kingsley, a casual labourer living in Hantana Estate, Kandy had been arrested by police officers attached to the Crime Branch of the Kandy Headquarters Police Station. This took place during a church procession in full view of the public. He was […]

Iqbal Ahmed Detho The debate around legislating child protection laws and creating institutional mechanisms has got sympathetic constituency both among public and policy makers after the gory incident of raping the children and making their videos in Kasur, Punjab. Before this incident became public, Federal Government had moved a draft bill in the parliament for […]

Kishali Pinto Jayawardena One might easily be lulled into a sense of complacency for having kept the barbarians at bay, first in Sri Lanka’s presidential polls in January this year and then most decisively in last month’s general elections. Striking a cautious note Heartening signs are certainly evident such as the assumption of the United […]

Who will account for the death of three year old Aylan whose dead body was washed up at the Aegean beach in Turkey, the photo of the toddler called upon world’s conscience. The photo that went viral over social media sparked a fresh debate on the Syrian refugees facing civil strife since 2011. As mentioned […]

This week’s Roundup begins in Nepal where the violence that has plagued the small Himalayan nation during the last few weeks has intensified. Clashes between Tharu protesters and police in Kailali District resulted in the death of a 2-year-old child and the lynching and burning of 8 policemen. Next, AHRC TV reports from China. Following […]

In response to the calls for proposals from the public for the 2016 Budget, by the Ministry of Finance, Sri Lanka, the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) submitted proposals calling for adequate financial allocation towards the modernisation of the policing institutions, the judicial institutions, the creation of an effective agency to control bribery and corruption, […]

An interview conducted by ‘MayZine’, The May 18 Memorial Foundation, Gwangju, South Korea, forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission 1. You have been active in human rights and social action issues continuously since you were young, did you have any personal experience since you were childhood that makes you devoted your life and time […]

A joint statement by the Commission for the Disappearances and Victims of Violence (KontraS) and the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) The Indonesian government is planning to provide an Rp 781 Billion (USD 62 Million) loan to PT Minarak Lapindo Jaya (MLJ), a national company, to complete the compensation to victims of the mudflow disaster […]