Columns

Events have made clear that neither Prime Minister Hun Sen and his ruling Cambodian People’s Party, despite their control over state institutions and the national wealth, nor Mr. Sam Rainsy and his opposition Cambodian National Rescue Party, despite increasing popular support, has sufficient leverage to finesse the other. My last article in this space, “A […]

The 1946 Constitution of the World Health Organization (WHO), preamble states that, “the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health is one of the fundamental rights of every human being without distinction of race, religion, political belief, economic or social condition”.  The WHO further states that the right to health means that governments must […]

Contributors: Dr. Gaffar Peang-Meth In my last article I wrote about Cambodians who longed for a Khmer Mahatma Gandhi or a Khmer Aung San Suu Kyi. Some believe the struggle against the violations of rights and justice of the Khmer people is slow because of the absence of a Khmer equivalent to such figures. Yet, […]

Contributors: Amir Murtaza Amir Murtaza The protection of human rights defenders, community and health workers and NGOs staff have become a serious issue in Pakistan as incidents of violence against them has been reported in regular intervals.  Unfortunately, the government officials have so far not devised any mechanism to provide protection to those who are […]

Contributors: Dr. Gaffar Peang-Meth Prime Minister Hun Sen swore before the body of the late King Father that he remains a loyal defender of the monarchy. But during the period of national mourning for the late King Father, Hun Sen let a golden opportunity slide by, failing to implement the King Father’s last wish – […]

The year 2013 brings fresh hopes for the children of Pakistan’s Sindh province as Members of the Provincial Assembly have passed into law the “Sindh Protection of Breastfeeding and Child Nutrition Bill 2013”.  The immensely important law suggests adequate and appropriate nutrition for infants and children by promoting and protecting breastfeeding in the province of […]

Contributors: Interview with Dr. Rajat Mitra by Ms. Malavika Vyawahare the New York Times Dr. Rajat Mitra, a clinical psychologist, is the director of the Swanchetan Society for Mental Health, a nongovernmental organization in India that provides counselling and support services to survivors of violence, abuse and trauma. He is one of the few people […]

An open letter by Hartoyo published by the Asian Human Rights Commission. The Honourable Arief Hidayat Judge of the Indonesian Constitutional Court Term of office 2013-2018 Assalamualaikum wrb. Dear Mr. Arief, I wish to congratulate you on your appointment as a judge of the Constitutional Court for the term of office 2013-2018. According to information […]

Contributors: Mr. Abbas Kassar A Hindu girl, Wijenti Meghwar, 6 years of age and a student of class-1 was raped in Ghulam Nabi Shah town of Sindh province in Pakistan on December 2, 2012 while playing in street. She was admitted in critical condition, first to the Mirpurkhas civil hospital then transferred to the Karachi […]

Happy New Year 2013! The New Year brings each of us a new beginning. What has happened in the past year is behind us; neither the good nor the bad can be erased. Instead, we confront 365 days of opportunity to demonstrate that we have learned from the successes and challenges of the year — […]

Many opposition politicians, NGO personnel, students, researchers, taxi drivers, vendors and city dwellers expected US president Barack Obama, who attended the 21st ASEAN Summit in Phnom Penh, to push the Cambodian government to better respect human rights and democratic principles, especially free and fair elections in the Kingdom. They hoped for a US pressure to […]

Contributors: Dr. Gaffar Peang-Meth In my adult life, even as a political scientist conscious of the use petitions as a method of nonviolent action and persuasion, I have signed only three. I signed a first petition a few years ago. The text comprised opposition to land grabbing in Cambodia. In the second and third, I […]

In “The Lost Generation,” Columbia University’s Earth Institute Director, Professor Jeffrey D. Sachs, economist, posited: “A country’s economic success depends on the education, skills, and health of its population. When its young people are healthy and well educated, they can find gainful employment, achieve dignity, and succeed in adjusting to the fluctuations of the global […]

Initially, I planned to write about US President Barack Obama’s visit to Cambodia, during which he reportedly spoke forcefully to Cambodian premier Hun Sen regarding the administration’s abysmal record of human rights violations. But e-mails from Cambodians in the country and abroad reoriented my focus, hence, today’s article. Don’t like to read Last week, a […]

An article by Dr. Gaffar Peang-Meth published by the Asian Human Rights Commission It’s useful once in a while to recall that I am not a politician and have no desire to be one. I am not here to tell people what they like to hear nor to disparage. I believe in the principles and […]

November 1, 2012 On October 15, an e-mail from a ranking member of Cambodia’s royal family, a good friend from 1970, landed in my box: “Dear Gaffar, I am very sad to inform you that former King Norodom Sihanouk had just passed away on early Monday morning, 15 October 2012 at 1:30am in Beijing. He […]

An article by Mahtab Alam published by the Asian Human Rights Commission The court granted bail to Dayamani Barla, the journalist turned anti-displacement, tribal, woman activist from Jharkhand, on Thursday afternoon. Her friends and colleagues, however, were in for a rude shock when they reached Jail to receive Barla, better known as the Iron lady […]

October 17, 2012 An article by Tahir Hasnain published by the Asian Human Rights Commission Rural women are affected differently, and often more severely than men, by polluted environment and modern agricultural technologies. Factors that increase the intensity of vulnerability of rural women to environmental issues are gender-based discrimination against women; unequal power relations between […]

An article by Dr. Gaffar Peang-Meth published by the Asian Human Rights Commission Two days ago, I gave an address to the Cambodian National Conference in Arlington, Virginia, on the topic of Cambodians Must Help Themselves, a topic assigned by the Conference organizers. Today’s article is an adaptation of that speech. I was born to a […]

Contributors: Dr. Gaffar Peang-Meth An article by Dr. Gaffar Peang-Meth published by the Asian Human Rights Commission A Khmer proverb, Chaul stung tarm bawt, says if you travel a river you must follow its bend. In contemporary Cambodia, the behavior represented in the ancient proverb is cast aside in favor of conduct expressed through a saying, Thveu […]