South Asia Citizens Web

We, the undersigned welcome the release of prominent Sri Lankan Human Rights Defenders (HRDs) Ruki Fernando and Fr. Praveen Mahesan on 19th March 2014. We however strongly condemn their arbitrary arrest and detention by the Terrorism Investigation Division (TID) in Kilinochchi (Northern Province) on 16th March 2014. We also note, that this release was an exception to the general pattern, and was only made possible by sustained pressure and efforts by a wide range of individuals, organizations and Governments advocating with the Sri Lankan Government to secure their release.

Toyota Motor Corp’s Indian unit has declared a lockout of its workers at two car plants after strained salary negotiations spurred workers to stop production lines. Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) in a statement said it has locked out workers at the plants near Bangalore since Sunday. It did not state for how long the lockout will continue.

South Asians for Human Rights (SAHR), a network of human rights defenders based in seven countries in South Asia, strongly condemns the arrest and detention of Mr. Ruki Fernando and Rev. Praveen Mahesan, prominent Sri Lankan human rights defenders, on 16 March 2014 in Kilinochchi.

Survivor of the 2002 carnage and widow of eminent Parliamentarian Smt Zakia Ahsan Jafri has filed a Criminal Revision Application before the Gujarat High Court challenging the Order of the Magistrate rejecting her Protest Petition seeking to arraign powerful accused Narendra Modi, chief minister Gujarat and 59 others on charges of criminal conspiracy, abetment etc to commit mass murder, arson and rape and also tamper with evidence and destroy valuable records of the Gujarat home department. The Revision appeal was filed on Saturday, March 15, 2014 and will come up for hearing on March 20, 2014.

our eldest, Vikram, is now a criminal, an unapprehended felon. This is because, like many millions of other Indians, he is gay; and last month, two judges of the Supreme Court overturned the judgment of two judges of the Delhi High Court that, four years ago, decriminalized homosexuality. Now, once again, if Vikram falls in love with another man, he will be committing a crime punishable by imprisonment for life if he expresses his love physically. The Supreme Court judgment means that he would have to be celibate for the rest of his life - or else leave the country where he was born, to which he belongs, and which he loves more than any other.