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Urgent Appeals

Extended Introduction: Urgent Appeals, theory and practice

A need for dialogue

Many people across Asia are frustrated by the widespread lack of respect for human rights in their countries. Some may be unhappy about the limitations on the freedom of expression or restrictions on privacy, while some are affected by police brutality and military killings. Many others are frustrated with the absence of rights on labour issues, the environment, gender and the like. Yet the expression of this frustration tends to stay firmly in the private sphere. People complain among friends and family and within their social circles, but often on a low profile basis. This kind of public discourse is not usually an effective measure of the situation in a country because it is so hard to monitor. Though the media may cover the issues in a broad manner they rarely broadcast the private fears and anxieties of the average person. And along with censorship – a common blight in Asia – there is also often a conscious attempt in the media to reflect a positive or at least sober mood at home, where expressions of domestic malcontent are discouraged as unfashionably unpatriotic. Talking about issues like torture is rarely encouraged in the public realm. There may also be unwritten, possibly unconscious social taboos that stop the public reflection of private grievances. Where authoritarian control is tight, sophisticated strategies are put into play by equally sophisticated media practices to keep complaints out of the public space, sometimes very subtly. In other places an inner consensus is influenced by the privileged section of a society, which can control social expression of those less fortunate. Moral and ethical qualms can also be an obstacle. In this way, causes for complaint go unaddressed, un-discussed and unresolved and oppression in its many forms, self perpetuates. For any action to arise out of private frustration, people need ways to get these issues into the public sphere.
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UPDATE (Burma): Villagers given six-months’ jail term for alleging forced labour

Urgent Appeal Update | Burma (Myanmar) | | October 11, 2004

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received news from the Yoma-3 news service that on 7 October 2004 the Henzada Township Court convicted U Ohn Myint and Ko Khin Zaw for crimin...

SRI LANKA: Alleged illegal detention and torture of a man by officers at Kuruwita Police

Urgent Appeal Case | Sri Lanka | | October 11, 2004

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information of the alleged torture of Mr. Ranawaka Arachchige Hemasiri (40) by Police Constable Sunil and another police constable (...

PAKISTAN: A dual murder of 16-year-old girl and a 19-year-old boy on the pretext of honor killing

Urgent Appeal Case | Pakistan | | October 11, 2004

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received another honor killing case from Sindh Province, Pakistan. According to the information received, a 16-year-old girl, Gulzar, and her...

INDIA: A group of human rights defenders in Tamil Nadu illegally arrested by the Cuddalore police

Urgent Appeal Case | India | | October 10, 2004

Dear friends, ———————————–<BREAKIING NEWS>———————– Just as the following u...

INDIA: A suspicious death of a man who was in custody of the Belghoria police

Urgent Appeal Case | India | | October 7, 2004

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information from its partner organization in West Bengal, Manabadhikar Suraksha Mancha (MASUM), about the custodial death of Mr. Bar...

SRI LANKA: A young man brutally tortured by the Veyangoda police after his illegal arrest

Urgent Appeal Case | Sri Lanka | | October 7, 2004

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is gravely concerned by a case regarding the severe torture of Mr. Horathelpedige Vijitha Dammika Nimalasiri (25) by the Veyangoda police on 5 Se...

UPDATE (India): Delay in forwarding court records adds to a ten year wait for justice

Urgent Appeal Update | India | | October 7, 2004

Dear friends, It has come to the attention of the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) that the Lower Court Records required to prosecute police officers allegedly responsible for the forced disappear...

SRI LANKA: Victim suffers from the inaction of the Panadura Police about his complaint

Urgent Appeal Case | Sri Lanka | | October 6, 2004

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that Halwitapaththinige Mahinda Perera (39) is suffering from the inaction of the Panadura police about his complaint wh...

SRI LANKA: A man allegedly killed in police custody at the Polonnaruwa Police Station

Urgent Appeal Case | Sri Lanka | | October 4, 2004

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that a man named Mr. Herman Quintus Perera was allegedly killed by the Polonnaruwa police while in the police custody on...

UPDATE (Sri Lanka): Urgent protection is necessary for the torture victim

Urgent Appeal Update | Sri Lanka | | October 3, 2004

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is deeply concerned by the safety of a torture victim, Mr. Channa Prasanka Fernando, and urges the local authorities to provide full protection t...

NEPAL: A 14-year old Dalit girl raped and murdered by a group of upper caste men

Urgent Appeal Case | Nepal | | September 29, 2004

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that Sita Sada, a 14-year old Dalit girl, was raped and killed by upper caste men on 17 May 2004. According to our infor...

NEPAL: Three cases of arbitrary detention by security personnel

Urgent Appeal Case | Nepal | | September 29, 2004

Dear friends, Three separate cases of illegal arrest and detention have come to the attention of the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC). Bharat Poudel, 25 and Dil Bhadur Baniya, 19 were both arreste...

NEPAL: Two cases of immediate re-arrest of detainees after the court ordered their release

Urgent Appeal Case | Nepal | | September 27, 2004

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is gravely concerned by the continuous attempt by the security forces to weaken the judiciary by ignoring court orders. Advocacy Forum, a local h...

SRI LANKA: A man tortured and prosecuted with false charges by the Samanalaweva Police Post

Urgent Appeal Case | Bangladesh | | September 23, 2004

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that a man named Heeralu Mohottalalage Punchi Banda (39) was illegally arrested and tortured by the Sub Inspector (S.I.)...

PAKISTAN: A young woman killed by her husband with false allegation

Urgent Appeal Case | Pakistan | | September 23, 2004

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that a 20-year-old woman named Saran has been killed by her husband Nawab in the pretext of honor killing on 8 September...

SRI LANKA: A 10-year-old girl has been sexually harassed by a group of people

Urgent Appeal Case | Sri Lanka | | September 22, 2004

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that a 10-year-old girl (name withheld) has been raped by six persons including her stepfather for over one year. The in...

INDIA: A man arrested with fabricated charges and paraded in under-clothed condition

Urgent Appeal Case | India | | September 22, 2004

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information by MASUM in West Bengal that a man named Mr. Madhusudan Seth was allegedly arrested with false charges and ill-treated b...

SRI LANKA: Second torture of a torture victim who was kidnapped by the perpetrator

Urgent Appeal Case | Sri Lanka | | September 21, 2004

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that a torture victim, S. Channa Prasanka Fernando (27) was kidnapped and tortured for three days by Sergeant Subasinghe...

NEPAL: A young man facing torture and disappearance while in illegal custody at Majaha Gaon Army Barrack

Urgent Appeal Case | Nepal | | September 20, 2004

Dear friends, The AHRC has received information that the life of Mr. Man Bahadru Budhamagar (22) is in great danger. On 16 September 2004 Mr. Man Bahadru Budhamagar was illegally arrested by army pers...

NEPAL: 14-year-old Dalit girl and her mother sentenced 20 years of imprisonment for a murder they did not commit

Urgent Appeal Case | Nepal | | September 19, 2004

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is gravely concerned of 14-year-old Dalit girl, Saraswati Bishwakarma and her mother Shirkumari Bishwakarma, who were sentenced to life imprisonm...

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