Rule of law

INDIA: Woman raped by Railway Protection constable in vacant train compartment

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information about the rape of a 30-year-old woman in a vacant train compartment at the Hasanabad Railway station, West Bengal on 18 August 2004. The woman was raped by a Railway Police Force constable while a fellow constable held a rifle pointed at the woman’s […]

SRI LANKA: Brutal force used to disperse unarmed and peaceful workers

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that Mount Lavinia police severely assaulted numerous Bata Shoe Company workers in Colombo on 12 August 2004, to break up a 52-day long protest. Male and female workers were seriously injured in the police assault, after which the police arbitrarily arrested 13 of them. […]

INDIA: Father dies after ten years of waiting for justice for his son

  Dear friends, It has come to the attention of the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) that while the Calcutta High Court granted leave on 28 July 2004 to prosecute police officers allegedly responsible for the forced disappearance of Bhikari Paswan in 1993, Bhikari’s father, a chief witness in the case, who had struggled for […]

UPDATE (Pakistan): Jirgas and feudal lords continue undermining rule of law in Pakistan

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received updated information regarding the murder of two teenage girls in Pakistan, Aabida and Tahmeena for visiting their grandparents without permission. (Refer to FA-12-2004 and UP-23-2004.) The victims’ families have been given about Rs. 20 0000 and ten acres of cultivation land as compensation, and are being pressured to […]

NEPAL: Army denies release of detainee despite court order

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information from the Advocacy Forum, a local human rights NGO in Nepal about another attempt by the army to weaken the judiciary by ignoring court orders. For the last several months, the army and the police in Nepal have been repeatedly re-arresting people immediately after […]

UPDATE (Malaysia): Authorities continue to refuse victim’s family access to post-mortem report in case of suspicious death

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received updated information regarding the case of G. Francis Udayapan, whose body was found in the Klang river on 23 May 2004, more than a month after he was arrested by the police. Brickfields police officers claim that Udayapan jumped out of the police station window […]

SRI LANKA: Police control of magistrate courts

Dear friends The Asian Human Rights Commission has been informed of a letter sent by the Bar Association to the Wattala police station, in which the lawyers complained that police officers have been interfering in their work to the extent that they are unable to conduct their professional duties towards their clients in the proper […]

UPDATE (Nepal): Seven people who faced returned home safely

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is happy to inform you that seven persons who faced re-arrest by the police after their release from Banke Prison Nepalgunj on 23 June 2004, went back to their home safely on June 24. AHRC has previously issued an urgent appeal on this case on June 23 […]

PAKISTAN: Teen tortured in madrassa

Dear friends, A number of human rights groups have informed the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) that 19-year-old student Javaid Anjum was abducted on17 April 2004 and then severely tortured for five days at the Jamia Hassan Bin Murtaza madrassa (Islamic religious school) in Toba Tek Singh, Punjab Province. The perpetrators accused him of theft and refusal to denounce […]

UPDATE (India): Post mortem procedures in West Bengal and the case of Mousumi Ari

Dear friends Further to the letter by the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) on defective post mortem procedures in West Bengal (see http://www.ahrchk.net/ua/mainfile.php/2004/639/) and Urgent Appeal on the case of a young woman whose murder was covered up by the judicial and government authorities (see http://www.ahrchk.net/ua/mainfile.php/2004/647/), the Executive Director AHRC has today sent a second letter on […]

INDIA: Police, magistrate and doctor cover-up murder of 17-year-old girl

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information on the attempt to cover up the murder of 17-year-old girl Mousumi Ari by the police, magistrate and the doctor.  Mousumi Ari, of Narayanpur Village, West Bengal, was murdered by her in-laws in October 2003. However, as her father-in-law is connected with the police, […]

PAKISTAN: A young woman killed by her husband on the pretext of honour killing

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that a 30-year-old woman named Ms. Hidayat was allegedly killed by her husband, Mr. Momin Ali Mahar in Dal village, Lakhi Ghulam Shah Town, Shikarpur District, Sindh Province, Pakistan on 29 February 2004. The case was registered at the Chak Police Station. However, a human […]

NEPAL: Four men arbitrarily detained and suspected of being seriously tortured

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that four individuals were arbitrarily arrested on 1 February 2004 by the security forces in Bajura (west part), Nepal, and are suspected of being seriously tortured while in custody. The four individuals, Messrs. Tula Thapa, Rajendra Adhikary, Ram Bhadur Rana and Man Bahadur Shah […]

SRI LANKA: Man tortured by drunk policemen from the Mahiyanganaya Police Station

Dear friends The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information regarding the torture of Mr. Tennakoon Mudiyanselage Gunesekera by six policemen from the Mahiyanganaya Police Station on 31 December 2003. The victim was severely assaulted by the perpetrators with wooden bats solely because he did not see one policeman’s bicycle parked near the hotel. […]

SRI LANKA: Brutal attack of the police on the people in Baddegama village in Madahapola who campaigned against crime

Dear friends, The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is gravely concerned about the brutal attack by the police on the people of Baddegama village, Madahapola on 31 December 2003. When the torture victim’s mother went to the Gokarella Police Station to lodge the complaint, about 200 drunken policemen and their supporters who had gathered at […]

SRI LANKA: A 15 year old boy tortured by officers from the Department of Excise and falsely charged

Dear friends The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information about the torture and false charges against a 15 year old boy in Sri Lanka. This is another example of brutal custom of torture and disregard for the rule of law in Sri Lanka. AHRC calls for your solidarity to pressure the local authorities […]

UPDATE(Republic of Korea): Send your petition letter to the South Korean government requesting release Mr. Song Du-yul immediately

Dear friends The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) requests your urgent solidarity for Mr. Song Du-yul, who was arrested and indicted for violating the National Security Law of Republic of Korea. Mr. Song has received intensive investigations about his alleged pro-North Korea activities by the prosecution of the Republic of Korea for two months since […]

SRI LANKA: Arbitrary arrest and torture of 22 year old Shiron Jeewantha Pallekanda at the Katugastota Police Station

Dear friends The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information about another severe torture case from Kandy, Sri Lanka. According to the information received, Shiron Jeewantha Pallekanda, 22, was severely tortured after being arrested by the police from the Katugastota Police Station on 7 December 2003. The police have not provided any medical treatment […]

SRI LANKA: Torture victim tortured again and remanded on fabricated charges by the police after lodging a complaint against police

Dear friends The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is gravely concerned that torture victim Mahadura Pandula Sri Thaminda was arrested by police officers from the Kandy Police Station on fabricated charges on 10 November 2003, after he refused to withdraw his complaint against the police. According to the victim’s family, the victim received threats from […]

UPDATE (REPUBLIC OF KOREA): Scholar Song Du-yul indicted for violating the National Security Law

Dear friends The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information that Korean-German scholar Song Du-yul, 59, was indicted by the prosecution for violating the National Security Law on 19 November 2003. Mr. Song has received intensive investigations about his alleged pro-North Korea activities by the prosecution of the Republic of Korea for two months […]