Institutional reform

The Prime Minister of India, Dr Manmohan Singh, addressing the sixth annual convention of Information Commissioners in New Delhi has said that the government will be critically reviewing the Right to Information Act, 2005 so that the legislation does not “affect the deliberative process in the government”. In his speech delivered on 14 October, addressing […]

At 5 pm Indian standard time today (14 October), the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Ms Mayawati, will inaugurate a park in Noida, that Mayawati claims is a Dalit memorial to symbolise Dalit liberation and power in India. Noida is close to New Delhi, the national capital. It is reported that the park, constructed at […]

A Joint Statement by Vikas Samvad and the Asian Human Rights Commission Despicable it might be, yet it is a relatively irrelevant incident in India. The latest is the case of Firoz, a 12-year-old boy who is now reportedly suffering from serious psychological trauma after being forced by a Head Constable of the Railway Protection […]

(This is the text of a presentation at A Consultation on Peace and Security in Asia and Ecumenical Responses held on August 1-6, 2011, organized by WCC and CCA) As a start we may try to reflect on some of the concerns expressed by the participants of this meeting who have spoken so far. One […]

Basil Fernando  In Plato’s Republic Glaucon narrates a story about a ring of invisibility.  The man who found the ring used his power to enter the palace, rape the queen, kill the king and to take over the throne. ‘They’d have the scope I’m talking about especially if they acquired the kind of power which, […]

Dear friends, We wish to share with you the following article from the Prachatai website, written by Mr. Pokpong Lawansiri. Asian Human Rights Commission Hong Kong ————- An article from the Prachatai website forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission By Pokpong Lawansiri Released on Sun, 06/03/2011 – 13:12 | by prachatai On 28th February […]

The 83rd Plenary Session of the Indian National Congress (INC), held in New Delhi has declared that eradicating corruption would be a priority for the INC and thus for the national government, formed under the banner of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) and led by the INC. The President as well as other leaders of […]

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) welcomes with reservations President Benigno Aquino III’s order to withdraw the charges against 43 health workers, collectively known as ‘Morong 43′, as reported today. We strongly believe, based on the documents and information that we have also obtained, that they should have not been arrested, detained, and forced to […]

An Open Letter to the International Coordinating Committee of National Institutions for Human Rights by the Asian Human Rights Commission   Rosslyn Noonan Chairperson International Coordinating Committee (ICC) Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights Attn. Mr. Vladlen Stefanov National Institutions Unit 8-14 Avenue de la Paix CH-1211 Geneva 10 SWITZERLAND Tel: + 41 […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) wishes to forward to you the following joint press release from the following organistions in Indonesia: ICJR, IDSPS, Imparsial, INFID, KontraS, Lesperssi, Praxis, and Propatria. Asian Human Rights Commission Hong Kong ————- A Joint Press Release from Indonesian rights groups for the 2010 Anniversary of the Indonesian […]

Basil Fernando The picture above speaks for itself. It depicts what happened to a young man who went to get police assistance to stop illegal gambling happening near his house. When the man went to police station to find about what action had been taken on his complaint the police sergeant who had earlier taken […]

The contempt of court proceedings initiated against Advocate Prashant Bushan in the Supreme Court of India for the allegations he made against some of the former Chief Justices of the country will test the maturity of India’s judicial system and that of its democratic framework. Indeed the Court has a statutory right to initiate proceedings […]

The 8th September will mark the end of an historical period and begin that of a dark dictatorship   Today, the 18th Amendment to the Constitution of Sri Lanka will be passed by a fast-track-procedure which has effectively disallowed public participation and discussion. The opposition has announced that it will boycott the proceedings as mark […]

Dear friends, We wish to share with you the following statement from a group of Sri Lankan citizens. Asian Human Rights Commission Hong Kong ————- A Statement from a group of Sri Lankan citizens forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission SRI LANKA: An appeal made to all members of parliament of Sri Lanka by […]

On September 8 (tomorrow) the government will move 18th Amendment to the Constitution, which is to be voted on that day itself to remove the constitutional limitation of two terms on the president and to pass several amendments to the 17th Amendment so as to bring all public institutions under the direct control of the […]

A simple way of understanding the 18th Amendment is to compare it to the situation in the United States of America. The president of the United States is elected for a term of four years and is entitled to remain in power for a maximum of two terms. This is an absolute limit. Suppose this […]

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) wishes to forward to you the following press release from The Free Media Movement of Sri Lanka. Asian Human Rights Commission Hong Kong ————- A Press Release from The Free Media Movement of Sri Lanka forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) SRI LANKA: Media organizations […]

Basil Fernando Sri Lanka has turned out to be a land of many quarrels but no debates. Often quarrels turns into violence, sometimes murder and even worst. And the violence itself leads to new quarrels and the circle goes on. Sadly however, hardly anything ever turns into a debate. Debate has become a lost art […]

Today, the Union Home Ministry, the Chief Ministers of Manipur and Nagaland and a handful of Naga and Meitei nationalists are celebrating the 61st day of their successful enforcement of an indefinite economic blockade organised against the ordinary people living in Manipur state. In tribute to the strenuous effort of the All Naga Students Association […]

Dear friends,  The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has obtained the details of the case against a journalist who has been imprisoned in Burma for sending video footage abroad. Ngwe Soe Linn was sentenced to 13 years in jail for supposedly sending illegal clips and going illegally into Thailand, even though there was no evidence […]