Rule of law

At dawn today, Jovito Palparan Jr., a retired military general, wanted on charges of kidnapping and serious illegal detention, was arrested by the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), in Sta. Mesa, Metro Manila. Palparan is the principal accused in the abduction, illegal detention, torture and rape of Sherlyn Cadapan and Karen Empeno. Jovito Palparan Jr. […]

For more information or media inquiry, please contact People’s Committee for the Sewol Ferry Tragedy (Ms. Gayoon Baek, sewolho416@gmail.com, +82 (0)2 723 5051). We oppose the agreement between the rival parties that squashed the family’s requests The Sewol Families Committee held a press conference in front of the National Assembly main building today on August […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information from the Terai Human Rights Defenders Alliance (THRD Alliance) regarding an incident of police torture on 31 July 2014. Following, a verbal spat, which turned violent, Mahabir Bishwokarma was detained and tortured by the police till he fell unconscious at the Gadda Chauki Police […]

Eighteen days have passed since the tragic incident where the arms of a 10-year-old boy were severed from his body by a landlord and to-date, no positive developments have been taken nor has there been any progress in the case against the perpetrators of this horrific crime.  According to reports, doctors are being tight-lipped to […]

More than a Policy, Children Need Commitment! On 10th June 2014, Pawan Korku (4 years) and Durgesh Korku (6 years) climbed into an iron drum in their house along with their toys presumably as part of a game they were playing, in their house in Harrai village, District Betul, a tribal dominant district of Madhya […]

International Solidarity Week to Re member the Sewol Ferry Tragedy – The Truth Shall Not Sink with Sewol! Period: 8 August 2014 (Fri) ~ 14 August 2014 (Thu) On April 16, 2014, hundreds of desperate voices cried out for rescue – but most of those cries went unanswered. The tragic sinking of the Sewol ferry cost the lives of […]

Lawyers Collective urge Ministry of External Affairs Responding to a statement made by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on 5th August 2014 on the   incident at CSR, the Lawyers’ Collective cautions the public not to be misled by the inaccurate contents of the statement of the MEA. (see the MEA statement at the end […]

Urges credible probe into the actions of the mob attack on 4th August Lawyers witnessed an event of a mob disrupting a peaceful meeting to discuss issues of disappeared families, held at Center for Society & Religion, located in the premises of a Catholic Church in Colombo 10, on 4th August 2014. This meeting was […]

During the three days of Eid holidays about three dozens people were drowned at the beaches of Karachi, the majority drowned at a beach run by Military, its commercial outlets and Clifton Cantonment, which are run directly under the Pakistan military. . Four persons drowned at two different beaches that were under the city government. […]

The fast-unto-death hunger strike of Nanda Prasad and Ganga Maya Adhikari, better known as the Adhikari couple, has reached 278 days and counting. Their only demand is an investigation and prosecution of those who killed their son, Krishna Prasad Adhikari. In other words, they demand justice. Krishna Prasad was abducted and brutally murdered in June […]

Dear Friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that on 9 May 2014 Mr. Edirisinghe Devayalage Sanjeewa Edirisinghe, 29 years of age, a resident of No.164, Heen Agara, Panirendawa, Chilaw, Puttalam District, was illegally arrested and tortured by police officers attached to the Chilaw Police Station Headquarters. He was detained in a […]

Today we are releasing the 37th episode of Human Rights Asia Weekly Roundup. This week we are drawing attention to how various governments are restricting the work of NGOs. Through legislation and other means numerous governments are trying to reduce critical opinion, hampering human rights work across Asia. In Sri Lanka, NGOs are being advised not to […]

An Open Letter from the Asian Human Rights Commission to the Inspector General of Police We reproduce below a letter sent by the Executive Director of Asian Human Rights Commission to the IGP about two cases of torture by a team led by Sergeant Basnayake, who is an OIC in the Unresolved Crimes Division of the […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that the arms of a 10-year-old child were chopped off by a landlord over a minor issue with his father’s payment of electricity bills. His hands were tied and were put in a harvesting machine. Police did not take action for two days and […]

Adding to a series of unconstitutional restrictions placed on the legitimate activities of the Non-Governmental Organizations, the Director General of the Department of External Resources (DGDER) has now published a Notice, “advising” the public on the legitimate activities of the NGOs. Having examined carefully the contents of the Notice, we state that the Notice is […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information from Centre for Social Development and Women Action for Development – two human rights organisations based in Manipur, India – that local politicians are targeting them for exposing corruption in administration. On 12 July, a small mob gathered in front of the office of […]

During the three year period of new Myanmar Government, new political reforms have been taking place. The authorities stopped censoring the media in June 2012 and also allowed private news media groups to print newspapers in April 2013. As people in Burma only had state owned newspapers for the previous decade, elderly journalists and society […]

French philosopher Michel Foucault, in his book Madness and Civilization, reveals the other side of madness. He links our narrow understanding of madness with the development of civilization, emphasizing that deviance and transgression are all mirrors of society and hence, should be analyzed properly to understand the society we live in. Foucault’s objective was also […]

(Hong Kong, July 21, 2014) On June 23, we reported that Fernando Obedencio, a torture victim, was released after the court dismissed the fabricated charges laid on him for possession of illegal drugs. He was detained for nearly nine years. Photo: Fernando Obedencio The Moro Women Centre (MWC), the local group who documented and provided […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that a young couple was murdered after they married in a court on their own choice. The local Panchayat decided to kill both, groom and bride, and father of the groom was ordered to handover a girl to the father of bride. The Panchayat […]