Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development

UN Human Rights Council fails to act on Tibet

Tuesday, 01 April 2008
FORUM-ASIA deplores the failure of the UN Human Rights Council to address human rights violations occurring in Tibetan regions of China. Despite repeated calls by more than 70 NGOs from Asia, the HRC took no action on the call for a special session to deal with human rights violations in the “Tibet Autonomous Region” and other areas in China.

Suharto dies, impunity lives

Friday, 15 February 2008
For most Asian dictators, death seems to be the most convenient escape route out of prosecution for past misdeed. It was no different for Indonesia when former President Suharto died on 27 January; but was Suharto a great leader and a hero to the people of Indonesia? What does his death mean to the whole of Asia?

Civil society in Asia welcomes ASEAN human rights body “cautiously”

Friday, 08 February 2008
During the second meeting of the Solidarity for Asian’s People Advocacy (SAPA) Working Group on ASEAN in Bangkok recently, civil society groups agreed that the ASEAN Charter must be popularised, and the process of drafting the terms of reference for the human rights body must be transparent.

The Human Rights Council creates a new expert mechanism on indigenous issues

Friday, 21 December 2007
In the last session of the UN Human Rights Council a new mechanism on indigenous issues was created. This follows the series of positive developments for international recognition of indigenous people’s rights.

Journalist alliance calls for an end to violent acts against the media

Thursday, 08 May 2008

In the past year, there have been more 60 recorded cases of violence against journalists in Indonesia. In a press release issued to coincide with World Press Freedom Day on 3 May, Aliansi Jurnalis Independen (AJI), a FORUM-ASIA member based in Jakarta, has called on law-enforcement agencies to stop their persecution of the media as it threatened press freedom and the public’s right to information.

Sharp rise in extrajudicial killings and rapes, NGO reports

Tuesday, 06 May 2008
Odhikar, a FORUM-ASIA member in Bangladesh, has expressed concern about the increase in the number of extrajudicial killings during April, in which the death toll was more than double that of the previous month. The NGO also reported alarming increases in incidences of violence against women.

Civil society calls for immediate release of people detained without trial

Monday, 05 May 2008

The Abolish ISA Movement (GMI), a coalition of 83 non-governmental organisations, trade unions and political parties, including FORUM-ASIA member, Suara Rakyat Malaysia (SUARAM), and the Human Rights Committee of the Malaysian Bar Council have called on the Malaysian Government to release all persons detained without trial, to repeal all laws which allow for the detention of persons without trial, and to close all detention camps where detainees are held without trial.