- Category: Statements
FOR SEVEN YEARS, the fate and whereabouts of Sombath Somphone, a prominent civil society leader, a community development worker, and a human rights defender, remain undisclosed by the Lao government. Sombath was forcibly disappeared in Vientiane on 15 December 2012. His disappearance was recorded in a police surveillance video, when police stopped him in his vehicle at a checkpoint on the outskirts of Vientiane.
- Category: Statements
Dhaka/Manila/Hong Kong, 10 December 2019: On International Human Rights Day, the Asian Federation against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD), the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC), and Odhikar pay tribute to and stand in solidarity with the victims and survivors of human rights violations.
- Category: Statements
10 DECEMBER 2019
MANILA, Philippines - On the 71st anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), the Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD) stands with the human rights community in its pursuit of a world of true justice for all persons. At the heart of the UDHR is the recognition of human dignity and respect for persons. Human rights are not just for the privileged – they are for everyone, regardless of status in life. It is thus a sad but glaring reality that human rights violations persist across the world. Those who do not have the means to defend themselves are the most vulnerable to human rights abuses.
- Category: Statements
Manila: The Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD) extends its solidarity to Rama Ramanathan, Spokesperson of Citizens Against Enforced Disappearances (CAGED), a human rights organization based in Malaysia.
Ramanathan has recently faced intimidation by the Royal Malaysian Police for writing an article about activist Jufazli Shi Ahmad who was arrested in March this year for allegedly insulting the Prime Minister of Malaysia. The article mentions that the sister of Jufazli may have prevented his disappearance owing to her awareness of her rights and suspicion of police efforts.
- Category: Statements
“Carve your name on hearts, not tombstones. A legacy is etched into the minds of others and the stories they share about you.” ― Shannon Alder
TODAY, November 2 in the Philippines, marks the All Souls’ Day where families come together to visit the graves of their loved ones. But for many families of the disappeared, who are clueless about the fates and whereabouts of their loved ones, a visit to the cemetery is no option. They refuse to recognize the disappeared as dead.
- Category: Statements
THE HAGUE, September 26, 2019 – On the fifth year of the disappearance of the 43 students of Ayotzinapa, Mexico, the Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD) calls on the Mexican government to ensure that the new rounds of investigations are properly conducted in accordance with international legal norms. As the whereabouts of the 43 students remain unknown, and in light of the courts ordering the release of 77 out of the 142 identified suspects, the Mexican government has a long road ahead in resolving one of its worst human rights tragedies in recent history.
- Category: Statements
30th August 2019
Manila: Today, on the occasion of the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances, the Asian Federation Against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD) brings attention to the global issue of enforced disappearances that violates the fundamental rights to life, liberty, and security of the disappeared individual and the family.
- Category: IDD-AFAD-MO
Dhaka/Manila, 30 August 2019: The International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances is observed globally on 30 August every year and this gives us the opportunity to remember the numbers of people who were disappeared due to armed conflict, war, occupation, xenophobia, authoritarianism and political turmoil; and to show solidarity with the victim-families. While commemorating this day, Odhikar and AFAD remember the victims of enforced disappearance and respect the struggles of the families of the disappeared persons around the world.