Human rights defenders

Dear friends,  The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information from Guria, a local human rights organisation working against women trafficking in Uttar Pradesh, regarding the case of child prostitution beside a police outpost in Allahabad. It is reported that under the jurisdiction of Kotwali Police Outpost, Meerganj red-light area of Allahabad, minors are […]

To mark the fifth anniversary of the police abduction and forced disappearance in Bangkok of human rights lawyer Somchai Neelaphaijit on 12 March 2004, the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is distributing a series of three extracts from the newly-released English translation of a book by his wife, Angkhana, first published in Thai to mark […]

Geneva, 10 March 2009 — The Working Group on Justice for Peace met with the UN Working Group on Enforced and Involuntary Disappearances (WGEID) today to deliver a statement by Angkhana Neelapaijit on the fifth anniversary of the disappearance of her husband and human rights lawyer Somchai. In the statement, Angkhana welcomed the attention given […]

Dear Friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) writes with deep concern that a labour lawyer and several other activists, who had already been released after they were exonerated from questionable charges, have been charged with another murder complaint. Had they not been informed by a colleague, they would have not known that they had […]

Dear friends,  The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information from the Working Group on Justice for Peace (WGJP) that a group of soldiers and police raided the branch office of WGJP in Pattani province in the South. It took place after the Internal Security Operations Command (ISOC) made a report, which in fact […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) writes to inform you that the police had assaulted and laid false charges on another officer for his involvement in working against illegal logging. The policemen had his house searched without court orders. He was threatened and the police ignored the complaints he had made against the […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) regrets to inform you that another activist has been arrested and charged with subversion over his role in organizing a peaceful protest two months ago. His arrest took place as he and his colleagues had just concluded a press conference calling for the release of an activist […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) deeply regrets to inform you of yet another killing of a peasant activist. Witnesses to the incident reported that when the shooting took place, local police had no men deployed there and the police who responded did not pursue the fleeing attackers. CASE DETAILS: (According to information […]

Dear friends, After closely following the case of Razzak and Shankar (please see further: AHRC-UAU-065-2008 and AHRC-UAU-067-2008), the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has been informed that Razzak and Shankar are now detained in the Khulna District Jail, since the evening of 8 November. UPDATED INFORMATION: The Paikgachha police produced Mr. F M A Razzak and Mr. Shankar […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) deeply regrets to inform you regarding the continuing arrest of political and human rights activists over fabricated charges of murder. Three of the 20 activists named as accused have been arrested in separate incidents recently, one in November 6. They are the co-accused of a labour lawyer […]

Dear friends, As earlier reported the fabricated charges against Mr. Razzak and Mr. Shankar and their risk of torture in police custody (AHRC-UAU-065-2008), the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has obtained information today that the police asked detainee’s relatives to pay more bribes so that they will not be tortured. The officers also threatened that […]

Dear friends,  The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has obtained information that Yosias Syet was found dead in his house on 17 October 2008. The autopsy confirmed that he had been murdered and it is alleged that the murder was designed to threaten the Head of the Papuan Customary Council, Fokorus Yaboisembut, since Yosias Syet […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has been informed that the Paikgachha police of Khulna district arbitrarily arrested and detained two human rights defenders on false charges and allegedly ill treated them on November 3. It is reported that the police had already received a bribe from the wife of one detainee and […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) writes with deep concern regarding the continued detention of a labour lawyer after having been arbitrarily arrested from his house on murder charges. He first briefly disappeared on October 23 but was later found to be in police custody. Apart from the murder, he was also falsely […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) writes with deep concern about the continuing threats to four union leaders, including a union president, and dozens of other workers. Others preferred not to divulge their names. The soldiers had deliberately warned them, one after another that they would suffer consequences if they not stop their […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) writes to inform you that the whereabouts of an activist who disappeared on 17 September 2008 remains unknown. The victim’s disappearance took place after he had shared with his family that he noticed vehicles routinely following him from his house to his work. CASE DETAILS: (According to information […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received updated information that Mr. Akash, a human rights defender as well as journalist, has been facing unfair trial in an allegedly false extortion charge against him in Rajshahi. During the court proceedings the prosecutor was seen assisting to the alleged complainant providing information on what […]

The International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) strongly condemns the grenade attack on 27 September against prominent Sri Lankan human rights lawyer, J.C Weliamuna, and calls on the Government of Sri Lanka to launch a prompt, independent, impartial and transparent investigation. At around 11.30 pm on the 27 September a grenade exploded on Mr. Weliamuna’s balcony […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) wishes to bring to your attention a serious threat to the lawyers who practice their profession independently and particularly those who appear for victims of human rights abuses and in corruption cases in Sri Lanka by way of attacks, death threats and other forms of intimidation. On […]

(Hong Kong, September 28, 2008) Last night at 11:40 pm in Colombo, Sri Lanka a grenade was thrown inside the house of the leading lawyer J.C. Weliamuna, who is the Executive Director of Transparency International in Sri Lanka, and a well- known human rights lawyer. Severe damage was caused to a part of the upper […]