Gwanju Human Rights Folk School 2004

Obstacles to achieve human rights in Asia1

Presented by Sanjeewa Liyanage,

(Asian Human Rights Commission – AHRC)

Some human rights “snap shots”

Torture takes place almost every day, in almost every police station in Sri Lanka.
The police uses it as the main method of criminal investigation. Torture also takes
place routinely at other police stations across Asia, including those in countries
such as India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal, Thailand, Indonesia, Cambodia etc.

It is estimated that over ten thousand people have been made to disappear in Nepal
in recent months, by both the military as well as the Maoists; and the
disappearances continue. There have been about 30,000 state-acknowledged
enforced disappearances in Sri Lanka, while the actual figure is estimated by NGOs
to be as high as 60,000. But only about 8 persons have been prosecuted for these
crimes against humanity so far. In 1965-6, it is estimated that about a million
people were extra-judicially killed in Indonesia in the pretext of fighting
Communism. The Indonesian army has also caused disappearances in Aceh as well
as East Timor in more recent times.

In North Korea many people died of hunger during the famine in the late 1990s.
Due to famine, families were disintegrate and many people fled to China and lived a
subservient life such as those women who escaped but were forced to sell their
bodies for money. People who were caught as illegal immigrants in China were
sent back to DPRK and were tortured upon their return. Many people have faced
starvation in Burma (or Myanmar) due to the disruption of food production and the
dislocation of farmers off their lands by the military government. In the aftermath
of the Tsunami on 26 December 2004, many people have lost their lives, livelihood
and shelter. Many children have become orphans and have become vulnerable to
child-traffickers and paedophiles. Additionally, women have been raped by security
and law enforcement personnel.
1
A background paper prepared for a presentation at the “Gwangju Human Rights Folk School 2005,”
organised by the May 18 Memorial Foundation, Gwangju, Republic of Korea, held at Chonnam National
University, Gwangju from 10 – 30 January 2005

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Young girls from across Asia are trafficked into sex work or sexual slavery-like
conditions. Nepalese girls are trafficked into India. Mostly rural Thai girls are
trafficked into brothels in the cities and outside Thailand. Many young Chinese
girls are trafficked from mainland China (from rural to urban areas) as well as into
other Asian countries such as Hong Kong for sex work. Many of these girls do not
have any rights. Diseases such as AIDS are contracted easily among most of these
young girls, many of whom end up dying at incredibly young ages.

Dalits or so-called “untouchables” in India are living in sub-human conditions.

They continue to do filthy jobs such as the cleaning of toilets or other designated
degrading jobs in line with their caste. Many of these Dalits also become victims of
police custodial deaths, women are raped and children are denied education. There
are over 180 million such Dalits in India itself today. This is despite India
prohibiting untouchability in its 1947 Constitution.

The above demonstrates only a fraction of the human rights violations that occur in Asia
each and every day. Indeed, most people in Asia are victims of human rights violations
and do not enjoy the rights that should be afforded to them. This is despite the notion of
human rights being included in many national constitutions and laws. This is despite
these countries being party to international human rights treaties. This is despite the
establishment of national human rights institutions in these countries. This is despite
enormous numbers of reports written by many international and local NGOs on the
human rights situation in these countries. This is despite many “human rights NGOs”
directly working in these countries. Despite all this, human rights in many parts of Asia
remains an idea on paper only, having not reached the people that they are intended for.
This paper will attempt to examine why this is so.

Non-implementation of human rights at domestic levels

At the domestic level throughout Asia, human rights remain largely a notion with little
done to implement them or educate the public as to what they are about. Who then is
responsible for changing this situation? It should be the state and state institutions that
are responsible for such implementation. Yet if we look into the States, and their
relations to human rights, we often find that they are in fact the agents most responsible
for violations. How can we expect them to enforce human rights among their societies,

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when they cannot even achieve this themselves? If we take Sri Lanka as an example,
we can see that despite torture being prohibited, its existence is endemic and in many
cases the police are the perpetrators of this crime. The police department is a state
institution. Its main function is to maintain peace and order and perform the role of
criminal investigation. Yet a common practice amongst many of Sri Lanka's police
force, is to use different forms of torture when carrying out criminal investigations.
Many police officers do not know any other method of investigation, and therefore
resort to torture and force suspects to confess to alleged crimes.

Wide use of such torture has been an accepted practice in the police force for many
years now. Yet despite this, the state has failed to respond properly to this situation and
a considerable level of impunity therefore safeguards police. According to the law,
police officers should be prosecuted if found guilty of committing torture. The Attorney
General's Department or Prosecutor's Department (or Public Prosecutor) must carry out
such prosecution. But in Sri Lanka, for example, until very recently, these prosecuting
departments did not prosecute responsible police officers who were alleged to have
committed torture. Thus we witness the reluctance, and indeed unwillingness, of the
prosecuting department to prosecute state officers responsible for human rights
violations. In the few cases where the prosecuting department has filed criminal cases
against the police officers for allegedly committing torture, those cases drag on for years
with little final result. Further, in such cases torture victims become state witnesses
(against the police), and often face harassment and threats by indicted police officers
and their agents. The State has no mechanism for witness protection under which such
victim-witnesses could be protected. The delay in taking up cases in the courts and the
prolonged proceedings that occur also increase the vulnerability of the victim-witnesses
in terms of their security. Due to such delays in the court system, judgements are
delayed for years. Thus many problems exist in the functioning of judicial institutions.

The above illustrates the three key-state institutions in terms of the implementation of
human rights. The implementation of rights includes prevention and protection work as
well as effective remedies for victims when those rights are violated. Often the
provision of effective remedies, judicial and otherwise, themselves become preventive
measures for crimes in the future. For example, when police officers or state officials
are successfully prosecuted, that in itself sends a direct message to other state officials.
Such action then would prevent other officers from committing similar crimes.

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The case of Gerald Perera [Sri Lanka]2

Gerald was a cook working at the Harbour Authority in Colombo. He was a Catholic
and was married to a Buddhist. They had three children; a girl (8), and two boys (5 and
8 months).

Gerald arrested on mistaken identity and severely tortured

At 12.45 on 3 June 2002, Gerald Mervin Perera was arrested in the presence of his wife
by police officers from the Wattala Police Station. The police officers dragged Gerald
into their jeep saying, "you are the man we are looking for." Gerald was taken to Wattala
Police Station, where several policemen subjected him to torture. Gerald’s hands were
tied behind his back; he was blindfolded and hung from a beam before being severely
beaten with iron rods and wooden poles for about one hour. The officers then forced
him to the ground and began to burn him with lit matches. During the torture Gerald
was interrogated about a murder case concerning which he knew nothing about. He was
kept at the police station on the night of 3 June, before being released the following day.
On the morning of his release, Gerald’s brother was informed by Sena Suraweera, the
Officer In Charge (O.I.C.) of the Wattala police station, that Gerald had been mistakenly
arrested and detained based on erroneous information. Gerald had therefore been
subjected to torture as a result of mistaken identity.

Gerald hospitalised due to the effects of torture – and falls into a coma

Following his release and due to the effects of the torture, Gerald was taken to the
Navaloka Hospital’s Intensive Care Unit in Colombo. On arrival he suffered kidney
failure and fell into a coma for two weeks. During this time, he was kept alive by a life
support system. In a report written by the Judicial Medical Officer (JMO) of Colombo,
who had observed Gerald on 16 August, he concluded that Gerald had developed acute
renal failure, had lost sensation in a part of his spine, had complete loss of power of the
muscles around both shoulder joints and lacked the ability to move both arms. He
further noted that there was sensory loss around both elbow joints, that there were

2
Detailed information concerning the case of Mr. Gerald Perera, please go to the AHRC
website, where you can find all of the relevant urgent appeals, press releases,
statements and press cuttings collected together on one page. This can be found by
going to: http://www.ahrchk.net/gerald.

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blackish scars on the back of Gerald's right hand, rope scars around both wrist and
bruising to the left shin.

Friends and villagers rally around Gerald and against torture

Gerald’s friends from his workplace and from his village collected money for medical
expenses. They also held a number of protests against police brutality when Gerald was
in a coma.

A human rights petition is filed on behalf of Gerald

A petition was filed with the Supreme Court on 19 June 2002 by a human rights lawyer
working with the AHRC, W.R. Sanjeewa, concerning violations of Gerald Perera’s
rights that are guaranteed under of the Constitution of Sri Lanka. The aim was for
Gerald Perera to receive adequate reparation for the suffering and injuries that he
endured, and for the Attorney General to be given the order to prosecute the perpetrators
under Act. No 22 of 1994 of Sri Lanka, which prescribes a minimum 7 years of
imprisonment for any act of torture. The perpetrators were accused of having violated
the following articles of the Constitution of Sri Lanka: Article 11, which guarantees
freedom from torture and other cruel and inhuman treatment or punishment; Article 13.1
which stipulates that a reason for an arrest must be given; and Article 13.2 which
guarantees the freedom from illegal detention.

On 26 June 2002, while Gerald was still unconscious, three Sri Lankan Supreme Court
judges heard submissions made on his behalf in a fundamental rights violation case
concerning his torture at the hands of the following policemen: Sena Suraweera, the
Officer In Charge (O.I.C.) of the police station; Sub Inspector (S.I.) Kosala Navaratne,
O.I.C. Crimes: S. I. Suresh Gunaratne: S.I. Weerasinghe: S.I. Renuka; Police Constable
(P.C.) Nalin Jayasinghe and P.C. Perera.

The Supreme Court awards compensation to Gerald

On 4 April 2003, the Supreme Court passed a landmark judgement concerning Gerald
Perera’s case and awarded him a record-breaking 800,000 Rupees (about 9,000 US$)
cash as well as full medical costs in damages. Mr Perera's medical costs exceed the
amount awarded in cash and the total amount was about 15,000 US$.

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Gerald becomes an activist

Gerald soon learnt of what had happened during his coma and of the support he had
been given. He felt very grateful to those who had helped him. He also learned about
his own rights, including those regarding torture. As he gained more and more
knowledge on this, he began to participate in torture victims’ meetings and attended a
regional human rights workshop held in November 2003 in Sri Lanka. He narrated his
experience and declared his commitment to fight torture.

Continuing threats to Gerald’s life from the Police

Meanwhile, the police officers that were facing criminal charges for Gerald's torture,
approached Gerald many times. They first asked him to accept money to the value of
USD$50,000 and to then withdraw his witness statement from the criminal trial. They
also threatened him that if he went ahead with the trial, his life would be in danger.
Gerald ignored these threats. He also refused any money saying, “there are many
people behind me and if I accept this money I will be betraying them and the cause they
are fighting for.”

The perpetrators (relevant police officers) of the torture that Gerald was subjected to
had to face criminal prosecution. The criminal case under Act. No 22 of 1994 against
the aforementioned alleged perpetrators was scheduled to be heard before the Negombo
High Court on 2 December 2004.

Gerald shot, critically injured

At around 11:15am on 21 November 2004, Gerald Perera was shot by an unknown

assailant at close range, while traveling on a bus. Gerald’s killer walked to where Gerald
was sitting in the back row and shot him several times. The bus driver drove directly to
Ragama General Hospital, and after some treatment Gerald was dispatched to the
Colombo main hospital for emergency treatment. The shooting took place only a matter
of days before Gerald was to appear as the victim and key witness in the criminal case
before the Negombo High Court. The AHRC is convinced that the killing was carried
out on orders of those facing trial. The police officers facing criminal charges still

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maintain their positions without any suspension of duty pending the outcome of the
trial.

Gerald succumbs to his gun shot wounds

On 24 November 2004, Gerald Perera passed away at around 1pm local time, at the
Colombo General Hospital.

International lobbying

AHRC has continuously lobbied for the case of Gerald since the time he was subjected
to torture by the police. There have been a number of appeals sent on behalf of him to
the international community and as a result, UN authorities have intervened into
Gerald's case on a number of occasions. In the aftermath of the shooting of Gerald,
AHRC intensified its international campaign for the case of Gerald. As a result, local
and international media covered the case of Gerald intensively. Many of our partner
organizations approached Sri Lankan embassies in their own countries to protest against
the murder of Gerald. In Korea, there was a signature campaign that collected over
1,400 signatures urging the police to arrest the perpetrators and bring them to justice.
AHRC also contacted higher police authorities, the National Police Commission and the
Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka directly to urge them to expedite the arrest of
suspects and bring them to justice.

Immediate effects of Gerald’s death

Gerald’s family became terrified after the death of Gerald. They lived in fear and did
not even attempt to recover Gerald’s body. AHRC immediately sent two colleagues,
Eugene Soh from Kwangju, Korea and Bijo Francis from AHRC office to Sri Lanka.
They played a crucial role in helping Gerald's family recover his body and provided
necessary emotional and moral support. Local groups working against torture in Sri
Lanka met and decided to carry on with their fight against torture while taking greater
precautions. A mass funeral was arranged for Gerald on the 26 of November 2004.
Thousands attended the funeral and national television covered the event. Hundreds
staged a protest on the funeral day against the police who are suspected of being behind
the murder of Gerald. A senior policeman spoke to the public during the protest
promising prompt action. Threats to activists and victims continue.

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The AHRC called for a witness protection programme to protect other victims of torture
who have become witnesses in criminal cases field by the state against police officers.
Eventually, police protection was provided to the houses of one victim and an activist.
The police suspended the service of 7 police officers related to the case of Gerald
Perera. The Officer In Charge of Wattala Police station has been transferred. One
month after the murder of Gerald the police arrested two persons, including one police
officer, as suspects for the murder of Gerald.

Basil Fernando wrote the following in the aftermath of Gerald’s death:

“When he regained consciousness two weeks later, he began to fathom the

magnitude of what had happened to him. He was from Hendela - my hometown.
Knowing the people of his neighbourhood, I could feel the strength of his
indignation at being treated in such a manner. These are a fiercely proud people,
whose natural reaction would be to resist such inhuman treatment.

Gerald insisted on seeking justice. One of the expressions he used so often was,
'What I want is not money compensation but actual justice.' … I met him directly
for the first time only in court, when the case came to be argued before … judges. I
found Gerald to be a very warm and large-hearted individual. On that very first day
he told me that until this incident had happened, he had not known anything about
human rights. He said, 'But when I was unconscious, people had come. A lawyer
had come from the human rights groups, and thereafter I was strongly supported by
them. Only now do I understand this type of work. I want to be part of such work.'
".

….

“After the judgement, of his own volition, Gerald visited human rights organizations
and when there were meetings he would come and speak. No encouragement was
needed for this, as he was convinced that it was his duty to participate in this way.

“The last time he volunteered to come and speak was on the United Nations Torture

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Prevention Day, June 26th 2004, at a meeting held at the Sri Lanka Foundation
Institute. This speech is available on video. His style of speaking was very soft and
gentle but he conveyed deep convictions and determination.

“… His sense of self-respect made him refuse to bow down to these pressures. He
did not take the efforts to deter him as seriously as many other victims do. His wife
recalls that she had told him to take her with him when he attended inquiries
concerning his torture. However, he had said that there was nothing much to worry
about. That was very much in keeping with his character. Even as I write this, I can
recall his smile, the very affectionate expression on his face and the firmness of his
voice.

That such a gentle person could have been treated so brutally twice, the first time by
way of extreme torture and the second by a well-planned murder, is a clear
indication of the extent to which the basic institutions of justice have collapsed in
the country. It is not so much the depravity of the perpetrators that is responsible for
this tragedy, but what contributed most of all was the institutional collapse of the
policing system in the country. That is what made this killing possible.” 3

The killing of a torture victim speaks to how the rule of law in Sri Lanka has totally
collapsed, and how discipline in the police force has degenerated to the extent that some
officers have become nothing better than the planners and instigators of homicide. Over
the last ten years, the AHRC has repeatedly voiced concerns over the exceptional
collapse of the rule of law in Sri Lanka. It is now a place where ordinary citizens lack
even the most rudimentary security. Today the whole government apparatus stands as an
accused party to this murder by reason of its failure to provide Gerald Perera with
adequate protection.

Outdated models of human rights work

Human rights NGOs are partly to share the blame for the lack of progress of human
rights at the local level. Many human rights NGOs conveniently adopted human rights
working models from developed countries. Many NGO activists got their training in
3
Fernando, Basil, “Gerald Perera whom I knew”, Asian Human Rights Commission, 2004

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the West. Many big international NGOs have “trained” local human rights activists in
developing countries to carry out “human rights work.” Many NGOs have regarded the
United Nations as the centre of all of what they do. The information and documentation
of many NGOs has been directed towards UN systems and big international NGOs only.

By conducting their work in such a way, local NGOs ignored the disparity between
justice systems in developed countries and those that exist in Asian countries. Many
human rights models developed by large NGOs and western groups have been based on
the assumption that there is a basic functional justice system in all the countries where
these models are to be applied. However, the reality is rather different. In Asia, most
countries do not have genuinely democratic governments. Further, justice systems, such
as policing, prosecution and judiciary, are deteriorating or have collapsed. In the West,
such systems have been established and functioning reasonably well for a long time.
There is a historical legal tradition developed in the West to uphold justice and human
rights. Functioning anti-corruption mechanisms have been established in the many
Western countries. However in Asia, only Hong Kong and Singapore can be mentioned
as having established effective anti-corruption mechanisms. In most Asian countries,
very little emphasis has been given to the improvement of justice systems. Justice
system institutions are either very corrupt or heavily politicised or both.

Further, human rights work should attempt to include ordinary people who have become
victims of human rights themselves. Often, NGOs focus on political prisoners and high
profile persons who have become victims of human rights. This is not adequate. This
will create a misconception among the public that human rights groups are working on
limited number of privileged groups or persons.

One should not be confuse the above analysis as a criticism of the West or international
standards. Rather it is a self-criticism of ourselves. Established rule of law traditions in
the West are examples to follow. In fact we need to learn how such traditions have been
established. Human rights are universal. However, these standards need to be enforced
within the context of a system of rule of law. If that system of rule of law is absent, our
efforts to enforce human rights are fruitless.

Further, human rights actions needed to be persistent and repeated if necessary. Regular
repetition of actions helps create public conceptions, debate and support.

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Incomplete models of human rights education

Another emphasis of many human rights groups in Asia including many national human
rights institutions has been “human rights education.” However, often human rights
education has been limited to explaining international human rights standards, the UN
human rights system and how NGOs could participate in them. There is a serious flaw
in this model of human rights education. Human rights education should focus on the
implementation of human rights at the local level. Such implementation could always
abide by international standards but with a local focus. When you discuss problems
with regard to implementation, you encounter various problems with regards to
institutions that should be guaranteeing human rights to people. Once again, we are
back to the justice system here. Human rights education needs to seriously focus on
problems with regard to local justice systems and institutions and how the local groups
could lobby to improve these systems. Such lobbying needs to be done locally as well
as internationally.

Outdated communication system mindset

Many NGOs also live and work on the old system-mindset meaning we disregard the
changes in the world in terms of information technology. We are living in the
information age where the sharing of information to a large number of persons can be
done through the press of a button. Fifteen years ago, many NGOs were used to a
certain styles of work. We produced publications and mailed them to a limited number
of NGOs and close contacts. Thus our outreach was limited. We had meetings after
meetings – regional and international – but often the same people attended these
meetings and there was no continuity. Contacting each other took weeks if not months.

Today this has changed dramatically. With the Internet, e-mail and mobile phones, we
are in constant touch. We can disseminate information to an unlimited number of
persons in seeking solidarity and support. We can do this little or no cost. All that we
need is someone to type this information into a computer, and a list of e-mail addresses
that we can send the information to. This improvement in communication could be
regarded as the biggest change in the way of life for all people in the world in the 20th
Century. People have become closer to each other – information wise. E-mail and use
of the Internet by NGOs is no longer an option or a privilege. It has become a necessity.

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But the potential of such communication has not been fully realised or explored. Today
we can go beyond our NGO circles and reach out to hundreds of thousands of persons
who can become supporters of our local causes. But if we remain in the old
information-mindset, we will fail and no doubt regret this later. Today the greatest
resources are the young who are more acquainted with information technology than
older generations. Given the opportunity, these young people could become an
indispensable asset to our work.

Further, innovative models of education need to be used to educate the public at large.
This means human rights education needs to go beyond the human rights activists and
lawyers. The use of mass media for local campaigns can not only educate the public on
human rights issues, but can help create public opinion and support for human rights
causes.

Alternative models of human rights work – Analysis

When you look at the case of Gerald Perera, you could make few remarks.

Gerald was an ordinary citizen who was tortured. Human rights organisations and a
lawyer intervened on behalf of him. When his case was publicised, the public at large
could identify themselves with him, as there are many other innocent citizens who are
routinely subjected to torture by the police. Public anger and dissatisfaction of the
police surfaced and was debated. Thus the institutional problem became a public debate
and public consensus was built that police are too ruthless and torture by the police is
unacceptable.

Gerald also became an activist. He became a member of the victims’ group that was
initiated with the local human rights NGOs by Eugene Soh from Kwangju. The victims
met each other and began to talk about their own problems and experiences. This
became a forum of supporting each other as well as a forum to rally a campaign against
torture with greater involvement of victims. Victims became strengthened to speak out.
Human rights education programmes invited these victims to talk and share their
experiences instead of listening to human rights lectures by scholars from universities.
Human rights workers at training programmes became patient listeners. Their education
model has been changed. After listening to these victims, the workers began to discuss
what would have prevented these victims from these violations – thus justice system

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problems relating to implantation of human rights at the local level as well as effective
remedies for human rights violations at the local level. Human rights groups also
brought victims to international and UN forums to directly recount their experiences.
Thus the top-down educational model was changed to become a bottom-up one.
Further, a number of local media sources were used to advertise and highlight the
demand on Government institutions to end torture in Sri Lanka

When Gerald was murdered, it was a crucial point of time for the victims and activists
in Sri Lanka who were campaigning against torture. However, with the help of
inspirational models like Kwangju Uprising, this moment was transformed into a
opportunity to take a further step. It was a moment to respect Gerald for what he stood
for and draw inspiration from his life. Many activities intensified to covert this moment
into one of transformation and progression. This is exactly what happened in Kwangju.
On the 26 of May 1980, when a group students decided to sacrifice their life in the
name of democracy. It is very important what happened after that. The family
members of the victims supported by activists and civic leaders continued to
commemorate the Kwangju uprising year after year, risking arrests and harassment by
the military government. This continued and persistent commemorations were
instrumental to keep the spirit of Kwangju Uprising alive. Persistent actions by the
family members and activists later prompted the successful prosecution of two former
presidents of south Korea – Chun Doo-hwan and Roh Tae-woo - who were sent to jail;
one to life and the other for 21 years. Thus the Kwangju Uprising changed Korea for
good by ending military rule permanently and eventually creating an environment for
real democracy in south Korea.

Regional human rights groups like the AHRC used modern communications systems
effectively to spread information relating to Gerald to a large international audience. As
a result, thousands of people all around the world wrote letters and faxes to the Sri
Lankan government and related institutions. Many also wrote letters to relevant
authorities in the UN. The use of communication technology created a large
international lobby.

Cultural and religious differences and conflicts

When you look into various cultural and religions differences and conflicts throughout
Asia, one common perspective appears — one group, often the dominant religious,

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ethnic, linguistic or cultural group has denied rights of another group. Often minority
groups become the victims. Prolonged practise of discrimination, and rights violation
of these minority groups has prompted some members of these groups to initiate arms
struggles to achieve their rights or in some cases self-determination in the land they live.
Once again, the institutions that should guarantee rule of law and justice have often
failed in such environments. If the courts guaranteed the rights of minorities,
differences between groups could be narrowed. I do not say that this is the only way to
achieve common ground when there are differences. However, I do wish to stress that
independent and impartial justice systems could make a big contribution to ease
differences through delivering justice. Often, groups tend to take up arms and resort to
conflicts when all other avenues available, including the avenues to seek justice, are
closed to them.

Conclusion

Human rights are universal. However, to achieve this, human rights must be realised at
a local level, which is not always done. Obstacles to achieve human rights are
predominantly local. As discussed in this paper, the obstacles span from outdated
methods used by the NGOs, narrow perceptions of human rights work, outdated
communications mindset to educational models. But the most fundamental obstacle
seems to be the absence of a functioning justice system to prevent human rights
violations as well as to provide effective remedies when violations occur. When justice
systems are corrupt and politicised, they lose their independence and professional
character, resulting in inefficient services. Thus such systems become nominal without
much effect. Such systems also create conducive environments for human rights
violations. Often the rich or the affluent become beneficiaries of such systems. The
poor and the non-affluent become victims. Thus absence of a proper justice system
which does not uphold rule of law can be the biggest obstacle to achieving human
rights. Not only human rights NGOs, but also other institutions such as national human
rights institutions, international NGOs and UN agencies, must take a greater
responsibility to make a concerted effort to build independent and corrupt-free justice
systems, which abide by international human rights standards. Such systems will not
only prevent human rights violations, but also sustain human rights.

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About the author: Sanjeewa Liyanage, a Sri Lankan, was involved in the student
movement from about 1984. In 1988 he became the Asian coordinator of International
Young Christian Students (IYCS) an international Catholic student body and worked in
about 14 Asian countries. In 1995 he joined the Asian Human Rights Commission
(AHRC) and helped establish its electronic communications network involving
thousands in Asia and other countries. He has assisted human rights training programs
for different groups including students, activists, lawyers and judges from the Asia-
Pacific region. He first visited Kwangju in May 1996 and played a key role in the
process leading to the creation and declaration of Asian Human Rights Charter – A
people’s Charter including drafting of the final document. He represented Asian Legal
Resource Centre (ALRC), the sister organization of the AHRC, at UN forums including
Commission on Human Rights in 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2002 and preparatory meetings
leading to World Conference Against Racism. Mr. Liyanage is presently the East Asian
focal point for the NGO Coalition for International Criminal Court (CICC) in New York
and a member of the Assembly of Delegates of the World Organization Against Torture
(OMCT) in Geneva. He is a member of the editorial board of Human Rights
SOLIDARITY and article 2, published by the AHRC and ALRC. He has undergone
human rights training at the Institute of Social Studies (ISS) in The Hague and Danish
Centre for Human Rights (DCHR) in Copenhagen. He obtained his Masters of Law
(LLM) from the University of Hong Kong in 2004. Sanjeewa Liyanage is presently the
Programme Coordinator – Communications – of the AHRC and ALRC.

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