FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ALRC-STM-001-2013 April 25, 2013 A Joint Statement by the Asian Legal Resource Centre and Odhikar BANGLADESH: UPR Working Group should make the Review Process useful for Victims of Rights Abuse In the lead-up to the UN Universal Periodic Review, Bangladesh finds itself offering its citizens an environment amongst the most inimical to human rights since the nation’s inception. At the UN Human Rights Council’s UPR process on 29 April 2013, during the 16th Session of the UPR Working Group in Geneva, Bangladesh’s human rights record will be up for review. Human rights conditions in Bangladesh have deteriorated rapidly since the Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC) and Odhikar, […]
Tag: Countries
BANGLADESH: Government suppressed truth to the UPR Session
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ALRC-STM-002-2013 April 29, 2013 A Joint Statement by the Asian Legal Resource Centre and Odhikar on Universal Periodic Review on Bangladesh BANGLADESH: Government suppressed truth to the UPR Session Bangladesh participated in the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) process at the UN Human Rights Council on 29 April 2013 in the 16th Session of the UPR Working Group in Geneva, Switzerland. The Government’s delegation led by Foreign Minister Dr. Dipu Moni presented Bangladesh’s national report during the second cycle of the UPR process under the UN human rights mechanisms. The Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC) and Odhikar participated in the UPR Session and found that the Government in […]
BANGLADESH: Rights groups urge the international community to make UPR a meaningful process
(Dhaka/Hong Kong: 17 February 2013): After a series of consultations held in Dhaka, Bangladesh, the Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC) and Odhikar has urged the international community to participate in their fullest during the upcoming Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of Bangladesh. The UN Human Rights Council in Geneva will hold the UPR in April, this year. The participants discussed key issues concerning democracy, rule of law and fundamental human rights in Bangladesh that should be reviewed in the UPR. The participants reviewed documents, including the state party report filed in advance to the UPR. Reiterating the importance of the UPR, the participants agreed that the process could be made more […]
BANGLADESH: Citizens and the UN deceived
Contrary to the assurance to the UN and against the domestic law in Bangladesh, negating due process, the Government of Bangladesh has thus far withdrawn 6855 cases of murder, rape, robbery, corruption, extortion and the keeping of illegal arms. The excuse cited while executing the ‘crown prerogative’ by the government is that all these cases are ‘politically motivated.’
PHILIPPINES: Barriers to human rights – How complaint and protection mechanisms fail, and why
The manner how these justice institutions operates, notably in the process of complaint making and protection, have largely denied or prevented any sort of remedies for the victims. The lack, if not absence of protection and of security to complainants and witnesses seeking remedies, are clear examples of the government’s pledge making its protection mechanism for human rights being hollow.
NEPAL: NGOs hold event on the need for greater international action on chronic human rights situations, with a focus on Nepal
This has resulted in a monitoring gap, at a time when Nepal’s political and constitutional future looks bleak. Limited implementation of its recommendations and concerns about the newly adopted NHRC Act curtail the NHRC’s independence and mandate and cast serious doubt over its capacity in this regard.
SRI LANKA/FRANCE: Torture in Sri Lanka — when arbitrariness prevails
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE PRESS RELEASE ALRC-PRL-002-2012 A Joint Press Release by ACAT France and the Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC) SRI LANKA/FRANCE: Torture in Sri Lanka — when arbitrariness prevails (Hong Kong, June 26, 2012) Paris — Hong Kong, 26 June 2012. On June 26th, the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, ACAT-France, in collaboration with the Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC), releases “When arbitrariness prevails” a new report providing an overview of the phenomenon of torture in Sri Lanka. The findings are devastating: three years after the end of the conflict between governmental forces and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) the use of torture and […]
PAKISTAN: UPR report calls for UN action on widespread torture, forced disappearances, killings, corruption, and attacks on women, minorities and human rights defenders
Under the UPR, the human rights situation in each UN member-state is considered under a state-led peer-review system every four years. Pakistan’s record will be reviewed by the UN Working Group on the UPR on October 30th, 2012, on the basis of a report submitted by the government, one prepared by the UN, and another comprising the input of civil society organisations.
BURMA/MYANMAR: Bar councils exhorted to support Burmese lawyers
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE PRESS RELEASE ALRC-PRL-004-2011 A Press Release by the Asian Legal Resource Centre BURMA/ MYANMAR: Bar councils exhorted to support Burmese lawyers (Hong Kong, December 23, 2011) The Asian Legal Resource Centre on Friday issued an appeal to bar councils worldwide to support lawyers in Burma who have had their licences revoked for political reasons. In a special appeal to the International Bar Association, International Council of Jurists and bar councils around the world, the director of the Hong Kong-based regional research and advocacy group asked that the professional bodies write to urge the Supreme Court in Burma to review the circumstances under which 32 lawyers lost their […]
THAILAND: International community urged on impunity of “drug war” killers
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE PRESS RELEASE ALRC-PRL-003-2011 A Press Release by the Asian Legal Resource Centre THAILAND: International community urged on impunity of “drug war” killers (Hong Kong, October 6, 2011) The killers of thousands of persons during the “war on drugs” conducted in Thailand from 2003 to 2005 continue to enjoy impunity for their crimes over six years on, a relative of one teenage victim of extrajudicial killing said at the United Nations (UN) in Geneva on Monday. Mrs. Pikul Phromchan told delegates participating in an event convened by non-governmental organizations FORUM-ASIA, the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) and the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) at the UN, two […]