Human rights defenders

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) deeply regrets to inform you that two activists were shot dead respectively by armed group. One activist was shot dead in front his wife and children on 17 July 2007. Another activist was dead after a shot on June 15 2007. CASE DETAILS: (based on the Alliance for […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) writes with deep concern that Gilbert Rey Cardiño (a.k.a. Jing), an activist who was abducted, tortured and subsequently released on June 8 (For details, please see UA-185-2007), had been charged with rebellion. It is reported that Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG XII), an investigating unit of the […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received credible information of ongoing attacks, intimidation, surveillance and threats, including death threats, against human rights defenders from West Papua that occurred in mid-June 2007, following their meeting with Ms. Hina Jilani, the UN Special Representative to the Secretary General on Human Rights Defenders. It is […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) deeply regrets to inform you that no action has been taken against the soldiers, including a lieutenant, accused in killing youth leader Nelson Asucena, six months ago in Rizal, Cagayan. No investigation was conducted despite the filing of criminal charges against them in court. In a separate […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is gravely concerned about the situation of a group of Burmese human rights defenders who were assaulted with the backing and involvement of local authorities and the police last April (UA-135-2007). Six have been charged upsetting public tranquillity and have been refused bail (UP-062-2007). Meanwhile, the criminal […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has learned that Advocacy Forum, one of the leading human rights organizations in Nepal providing legal aid services to detainees, has been refused access to detainees at District Police Office (DPO), Banke detention centre since 29 May 2007. The denial of Advocacy Forum’s access to the DPO […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information about threats to which human rights defender Mr. Jitman Basnet of Solukhumbu District, Nepal, was subjected on May 21, 2007, giving rise to serious concerns for his physical and psychological integrity. Mr. Basnet was arrested on February 4, 2004 by plain-clothed army personnel from […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information from a reliable source regarding the alleged serious threats and intimidation against a human rights defender and journalist Mr. Jahangir Alam Akash for broadcasting news on the attempted extra-judicial killing of an alleged terrorist on a private television channel. CASE DETAILS: On 2 May […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received disturbing information from a local human rights group ODHIKAR that their acting director, Mr. ASM Nasiruddin Elan, had been seriously threatened and verbally abused by a naval captain at the Navy’s headquarters in Banani, Dhaka on 3 May 2007. The officer subjected Mr. Elan for […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received important news about the group of Burmese human rights defenders who were attacked on 18 April 2007 with the backing and involvement of local authorities and the police (UA-135-2007). Members of the group have been charged with causing a public disturbance and must appear in […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received updated information regarding the uninterrupted campaign of the District Magistrate against the human rights organisations within his jurisdiction in Leh district of Jammu and Kashmir. The AHRC has been informed that the Magistrate is now forcing the public media to refuse dissemination of any information […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received updated information regarding the recent naming and detention of two more suspects in the ongoing, yet highly unpredictable, investigations into the murder of human rights activist Mr. Munir Said Thalib. Mr. Munir died of arsenic poisoning during the course of his journey aboard a Garuda […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is happy to inform you that Advocacy Forum, one of the leading human rights organizations in Nepal providing legal aid services to detainees, now feely accesses to prisoners at the Kanchanpur detention centre.  Advocacy Forum, had been refused access to prisoners at the centre since 7 February […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that several non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and human rights activists in Leh district of Jammu and Kashmir are allegedly harassed by the District Magistrate of Leh Mr. M. K. Dwivedi. It is alleged that the Magistrate has issued arbitrary orders forcing the closure of some […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is concerned that over two weeks after the police chief in Thailand made an unwarranted verbal attack on human rights defender Angkhana Neelaphaijit no action of any kind was taken against him. Furthermore, the chief has appointed another senior officer as a deputy who was responsible for […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that one renowned trade union activist and human rights defender namely Mr. Phani Gopal Bhattacharya, has allegedly been implicated along with 25 persons in a false case by the Bally police station, Howrah district, West Bengal state, India on 10 March 2007. Mr. Bhattacharya […]

The acting police chief of Thailand on Monday, 12 March 2007 made a verbal attack on . The Manager online newspaper quoted Pol. Gen. Seripisuth Themiyavet as saying that Angkhana should be taught to “shut up” about the case of her husband, lawyer Somchai Neelaphaijit, who was abducted by police three years ago and whose […]

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has requested the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration to permit the construction of a small marker at the site of the 12 March 2004 abduction of human rights lawyer Somchai Neelaphaijit, who after three years remains missing (AHRC-OL-010-2007). As noted in the letter to the governor of Bangkok, the making of […]

You will be familiar with the case of Somchai Neelaphaijit, the human rights lawyer who was forcibly disappeared in Bangkok on the night of 12 March 2004 after he had publicly alleged that five of his clients were tortured. The Criminal Court, former prime minister and head of the Council for National Security have all […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has learned that Advocacy Forum, one of the leading human rights organizations in Nepal providing legal aid services to detainees, has been refused access to prisoners at the Kanchanpur detention centre since 7 February 2007.  The organisation has been allegedly accused of meddling with police matters for […]