Statement

On 25 October 2000, more than 25 young Tamils at a rehabilitation centre in Bindunuwewa near Bandarawela in the south-central part of the island were attacked and killed by a Sinhalese group.  Who were the actual culprits?  Who were their masterminds?  To these questions Sri Lanka’s justice system has no answers.   Likewise, after nearly […]

The police have begun investigating a case of alleged negligence resulting in a woman’s leg being wrongly amputated at the Negombo Base Hospital in Sri Lanka. They are pursuing the matter under section 329 of the Penal Code of Sri Lanka, which reads: “Whoever causes grievous hurt to any person by doing any act so […]

From May 12 to 14, 2005 the Asian Human Rights Commission held a consultation in Hong Kong with a group of forensic and legal professionals to discuss the interplay between forensic science and human rights. The participants examined how improved institutions and procedures for forensic investigations are essential to the rule of law and thus […]

After discussions with the Central Institute of Forensic Science in March, Thailand’s new justice minister Suwat Liptapanlop announced that a missing-persons centre would be established with the institute’s guidance. Its deputy-director Porntip Rojanasunan has fought during the last eight years for an independent agency to oversee the collection of information on the thousands of persons […]

Asian Tribune joins the smear campaign against the victim of negligent amputation and In a article, purportedly written by Sunil C. Perera, to the Asian Tribune the author attacks the story of Sitthi Naseera, the woman whose leg was amputated allegedly due to the negligence of doctors at Negombo hospital  Prior to the publication of […]

The increase in death threats and intimidation to activists and journalists in Sri Lanka are alarming. In particular, there is concern that the situation may degenerate into that similar to the terror of the late 1980s. The law enforcement authorities have lost all semblance of control, with extrajudicial killings and death threats being made openly. […]

The agreement this April to establish a United Nations monitoring mission in Nepal, which was endorsed in a resolution passed at the 61st Session of the U.N. Commission on Human Rights (E/CN.4/2005/L.90), has helped to temporarily pull the country back from the brink. The mission is being established in response to rising demands for protection […]

In a landmark judgment, the U.N. Human Rights Committee has held that Sri Lanka, as a state party to the Optional Protocol of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, violated one of its citizen’s rights by arbitrarily detaining him for one year because of alleged contempt of court. The Committee, in its decision […]

Within the last two weeks alone, the Asian Human Rights Commission has reported on three cases of alleged gross medical negligence in Sri Lanka. First, a 48-year-old mother alleged that her healthy leg was accidentally amputated at the Negombo Base Hospital. Secondly, a 45-year-old mother reportedly died after receiving a transfusion of the wrong blood […]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE May 4, 2005 AS-48-2005 A Statement by the Asian Human Rights Commission  Lack of police discipline a threat to Sri Lanka’s national development Some of the views expressed by Inspector General of Police (IGP) Chandra Fernando, at a discussion with Professor Carlo Fonseca over the national radio (SLBC) on Monday, 3 May […]

This April 28, 46-year-old Sivaram Dharmeratnam became the latest victim of abduction and murder in Sri Lanka. Sivaram, a highly-respected journalist for the Daily Mirror newspaper–where he was known by his pen name, Taraki–was abducted while coming out of a restaurant in front of the busy Bambalapitiya Police station. The perpetrators allegedly parked their vehicle […]

The U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan is visiting India at a crucial time. His proposals for reform of the United Nations remain high on the international agenda, and their fate rests on the support given by key parties in the global community. India is among these. It also has a big stake in the proposed […]

The Philippines Commission on Human Rights (PCHR) is an independent body in the Philippines that has the authority under the 1987 constitution to initiate an investigation and make recommendations based on its findings. In its decision about the eviction of 157 families in the Dacudao Compound in Davao and the demolition of their homes on […]

There are two expressions the use of which brings about abject fear among all sectors of society in Bangladesh.  These terms are, ‘cross-fire’ and ‘Rapid Action Battalion’.  While the government use cross-fire to mean gun fights between any section of the armed forces and civilians, such as criminal gangs and terrorists, the popular meaning of […]

The case of Don Wijerathna Munasinghe, who was arrested on 10 April 2005 and subsequently died of injuries allegedly received at the Maharagama Police Station, received wide publicity in the media.?The alleged reason for his arrest was that he did not stop his three-wheeler vehicle when instructed to do so by the police.?The following morning […]

The arrest of a suspect in the killing of Fr William Tadena has given a little emotional relief and glimpse of hope to the relatives of human rights defenders and political activists killed during recent weeks in the Philippines. If media reports that Tadena’s killers were hired and have links to the police and military […]

On April 11, staff of the West Bengal-based human rights group Banglar Manabadhikar Suraksha Mancha (Masum) went by appointment to raise their concerns over attacks on Gopen Sharma, a local human rights defender, before the West Bengal Human Rights Commission. Gopen Sharma, who was present with one of his children, is being pursued by the […]

Since January 2005, at least 18 human rights and political activists have killed or disappeared in the Philippines. The latest reported attack was on Alden Ambida, a provincial coordinator of the opposition Bayan Muna party in Eastern Samar this April 11. He is now fighting for his life in hospital. In March, three other Bayan […]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 11, 2005 AS-39-2005 A Statement by the Asian Human Rights Commission So where are Thailand’s judicial bodies? Speaking last Friday, April 8, the head of Thailand’s newly-formed National Reconciliation Commission Anand Panyarachun said that the commission would not be acting to investigate the mass killings in the south of the country […]

In an announcement this week, Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra of Thailand stated that the proposed reform of some hundreds of the country’s laws would concentrate on those that violate its 1997 Constitution. Perhaps it can be concluded from this announcement that criminal defamation will be among the laws in breach of both the Constitution and […]