ASIA: ALRC and IMADR highlight concerns for minority rights in Pakistan, Indonesia and Nepal

date: March 23, 2012 document id: ALRC-COS-19-14-2012 HRC section: Item 3 – Interactive Dialogue with the Independent Expert on Minority Issues Speaker: Mr. Daisuke Shirane A Joint Oral Statement to the 19th Session of the UN Human Rights Council from the International Movement Against All Forms of Discrimination and Racism (IMADR) and the Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC), a non-governmental organization in general consultative status ASIA: ALRC and IMADR highlight concerns for minority rights in Pakistan, Indonesia and Nepal Thank you Madam President, The ALRC and IMADR warmly welcome the Independent Expert’s first report, including the focus on the double discrimination faced by minority women. In Pakistan, extremist Islamic groups […]

THAILAND: Political repression, disappearances and attacks on activists highlighted during Thai UPR outcome adoption

date: March 22, 2012 document id: ALRC-COS-19-13-2012 HRC section: Item 6 — consideration of UPR reports — Thailand Speaker: Mr. Norman Voss An Oral Statement to the 19th Session of the UN Human Rights Council from the Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC), a non-governmental organization in general consultative status THAILAND: Political repression, disappearances and attacks on activists highlighted during Thai UPR outcome adoption Thank you Madam President, The ALRC welcomes Thailand’s UPR, which has highlighted many shared human rights concerns, including torture, forced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, freedom of expression and lèse majesté, prison conditions, corruption, impunity, violations in the southern provinces, as well as the need for review of problematic […]

BURMA: Council warned of new challenges and a lack of progress concerning the protection of human rights

date: March 21, 2012 document id: ALRC-COS-19-12-2012 HRC section: Item 4 – Interactive Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar Speaker: Mr. Norman Voss An Oral Statement to the 19th Session of the UN Human Rights Council from the Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC), a non-governmental organization in general consultative status BURMA: Council warned of new challenges and a lack of progress concerning the protection of human rights Thank you Mr. President, The ALRC would like to warmly welcome the Special Rapporteur’s report and work. While much attention is focussed on political developments in Myanmar, the ALRC is gravely concerned by the lack of […]

ASIA: Increasing efforts by Asian states to ensure impunity for abuses of human rights

date: March 21, 2012 document id: ALRC-COS-19-11-2012 HRC section: Item 4 — General Debate Speaker: Mr. Norman Voss An Oral Statement to the 19th Session of the UN Human Rights Council from the Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC), a non-governmental organization in general consultative status ASIA: Increasing efforts by Asian states to ensure impunity for abuses of human rights Thank you Mr. President, The ALRC wishes to highlight States’ increased efforts to engineer systems of impunity and to undermine work to protect human rights in the Asian region. The case of Bangladeshi human rights defender FMA Razzak, who was severely tortured by members of the military, including having his eyes […]

SRI LANKA: Abductors threaten the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 28, 2012 ALRC-CWS-19-10-2012 Language(s): English only HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL Nineteenth session, Agenda Item 4, General Debate A written statement submitted by the Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC), a non-governmental organisation with general consultative status SRI LANKA: Abductors threaten the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka The Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC) is gravely concern about the abduction of Ramasamay Prabhakaran, 42, who was bundled into a white van by seven men armed with assault rifles and hand guns. This was two days before a fundamental rights case filed by him was to be taken up at the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka. In a written statement to […]

NEPAL: Council action required to prevent blanket impunity for conflict-era violations

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 27, 2012 ALRC-CWS-19-09-2012 Language(s): English only HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL Nineteenth session, Agenda Item 4, General Debate A written statement submitted by the Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC), a non-governmental organisation with general consultative status NEPAL: Council action required to prevent blanket impunity for conflict-era violations The Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC) and Advocacy Forum wish to alert the Human Rights Council to multiple attempts by the government of Nepal to shield perpetrators of human rights abuses committed during the conflict from prosecution, which promote impunity and threaten the development of functioning rule of law institutions, in violation of Nepal’s obligations under the ICCPR. The gains achieved […]

PHILIPPINES: Human Rights Council must act on widespread arbitrary dismissals of torture complaints and resultant impunity

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 24, 2012 ALRC-CWS-19-08-2012 Language(s): English only HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL Nineteenth session, Agenda Item 3, Interactive Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on torture A written statement submitted by the Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC), a non-governmental organisation with general consultative status PHILIPPINES: Human Rights Council must act on widespread arbitrary dismissals of torture complaints and resultant impunity The Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC) wishes to inform and seek the intervention of the Human Rights Council and the Special Rapporteur on torture concerning the frequent dismissals of complaints of torture, which speak to a system of legal and procedural obstacles and systemic institutional failings that are ensuring that […]

NEPAL: The ALRC and Advocacy Forum call for international action concerning the rise of torture and ongoing impunity

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 23, 2012 ALRC-CWS-19-07-2012 Language(s): English only HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL Nineteenth session, Agenda Item 3, Interactive Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on torture A written statement submitted by the Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC), a non-governmental organisation with general consultative status NEPAL: The ALRC and Advocacy Forum call for international action concerning the rise of torture and ongoing impunity The Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC) and Nepalese human rights organisation Advocacy Forum wish to bring to the Council’s attention the continuing and significant increase in reports of torture in Nepal over the last two years, as well as ongoing delays by the state in implementing the policing […]

INDONESIA: National laws and policies are resulting in violations of the right to food

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 22, 2012 ALRC-CWS-19-06-2012 Language(s): English only HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL Nineteenth session, Agenda Item 3, interactive dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on the right to food A written statement submitted by the Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC), a non-governmental organisation with general consultative status INDONESIA: National laws and policies are resulting in violations of the right to food The Asian Legal Resource Center (ALRC) wishes to bring the Council’s attention to the deterioration of farmers’ and indigenous peoples’ food security in Indonesia as the country’s laws and policies fail to ensure their fundamental rights and let human rights violations committed by national and multinational corporations go unpunished. […]

THAILAND: Continued impunity for enforced disappearance in Thailand

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 21, 2012 ALRC-CWS-19-05-2012 Language(s): English only HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL Nineteenth session, Agenda Item 3, Interactive Dialogue with the Working Group on enforced or involuntary disappearances A written statement submitted by the Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC), a non-governmental organisation with general consultative status THAILAND: Continued impunity for enforced disappearance in Thailand The Asian Legal Resource Center wishes to bring the importance of continued action to end enforced disappearance in Thailand to the attention of the Human Rights Council. While the signing of the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance on 9 January 2012 by the Government of Thailand is a positive […]