Myanmar: EU urges ‘inclusive’ charter review, ‘zero tolerance’ for violent extremism
The European Union has expressed hope that the constitutional review underway in Myanmar will help to bring peace and national reconciliation and pave the way for free and fair elections in 2015.
In a wide-ranging statement, the EU’s Foreign Affairs Council also said it looked forward to a nationwide ceasefire...
Burma: It is time to free all human rights defenders and stop ongoing arbitrary arrests and imprisonment
Paris-Geneva, December 17, 2013. The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint programme of FIDH and OMCT, welcomes the latest release of prisoners of opinion in Burma/Myanmar but deplores the re-arrests of human rights defenders Ko Htin Kyaw and Aye Thein within hours of their “release”.
On...
Myanmar’s Speaker of Parliament calls on ASEAN Officials
JAKARTA, 17 December 2013 - On the sidelines of his official visit to Indonesia, the Speaker of Myanmar’s Parliament Rt. Hon. Thura U Shwe Mann met with high-ranking officials of ASEAN Secretariat at the Association’s headquarter in Jakarta. He was accompanied by a group of parliamentarians from Myanmar.
Deputy Secretary-General...
Lao PDR: Government Must Account for Fate of Sombath Somphone
The ICJ today urged the Lao PDR government to reverse its inaction in determining the fate of community activist Sombath Somphone, who was allegedly subjected to enforced disappearance a year ago.
In a legal memorandum on the one-year anniversary of Sombath’s enforced disappearance, the ICJ called on the Lao authorities...
Laos: Anniversary of ‘Disappearance’ Demands Action
For Immediate Release
Laos: Anniversary of ‘Disappearance’ Demands Action
Government Should Disclose Whereabouts, Account for Sombath Somphone
(Bangkok, December 15, 2013) – The Lao government should immediately disclose the fate of prominent social activist Sombath Somphone, who was apprehended at a police checkpoint in Vientiane one year ago, Human Rights Watch...
Myanmar Military’s Land Grabs ‘Cast Doubt’ on Commitment to Reform
An Asian rights group has accused Myanmar's military of grabbing land and hiding the seizures under a false veneer of legality, saying the actions cast doubt on the country’s commitment to political reform after decades under military rule.
Citing a slew of land disputes with displaced residents across the country...
Indonesia: Don’t worry, we don’t look back: ICC President ensures
The House of Representatives Commission I, tasked to deliberate the ratification of the Rome Statute, is apparently unconvinced of the urgency of the treaty’s ratification. Some worry that the treaty might be used to bring those allegedly responsible for past human rights abuses to justice, which according to some...
Dismal rights record blocks Philippine Army from US aid – HRW
MANILA, Philippines -- Its involvement in human rights abuses and the failure of the government to prosecute these violations have blocked the Philippine Army from receiving a share of the $40 million in military aid US Secretary of State John Kerry pledged, Human Rights Watch said Wednesday.
Kerry announced the...
Rights groups question Singapore’s swift deportations of 52 Indians and Bangladeshi
Activists called on Singapore to ensure due process and address migrant worker grievances after the government said it would deport 52 Indians and one Bangladeshi for their alleged involvement in a rare riot in an Indian enclave.
(Pictured, arrested South Asians avoid the press cameras as they are brought to...
For the sake of a better Thailand, we must put our differences aside
Twe Bunnag - As a Thai I have dreamed of democracy since becoming politically aware in my teens; a corruption free society, respect for human rights, free and fair elections, economic justice, care for the environment…basic qualities of a decent society that none of the string of governments we...
