[Statement] FORUM-ASIA Members in Defence of SUARAM in Light of Continued Attacks and Harassment by the Malaysian Government
Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA) is a membership-based regional human rights organisation based in Bangkok, Thailand. PSPD has been a member of FORUM-ASIA since 1997. Below press release is jointly issued with FORUM-ASIA, PSPD, Human Rights Now, and Bytes for All.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
21 November 2012
Statement by FORUM-ASIA Members in Defence of SUARAM in Light of Continued Attacks and Harassment by the Malaysian Government
We, the undersigned member organizations of the Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA), gathered at our 7th General Assembly in Bangkok, Thailand, on 20-21 November 2012, express our strongest protest against the Malaysian government’s continued harassment of Malaysia’s leading human rights organization and founding member of FORUM-ASIA, SUARAM, an organization which is registered as “Suara Insiatif Sdn. Bhd.” under the Companies Act, through investigations, public vilification and threats to charge the organization for alleged financial irregularities, non-registration as a society, and receipt of foreign funds.
Since early July 2012, SUARAM has been a target of harassment by the government, which included visits by the Companies Commission of Malaysia (CCM) and the Registrar of Societies (ROS) to the office of SUARAM on the pretext of investigations relating to allegations of financial irregularities, non-registration as a society, and receipt of foreign funds. Several of SUARAM’s board and staff members, as well as other individuals (including NGO leaders and Members of Parliament) with no formal links with SUARAM, have been summoned by the CCM and ROS for investigations.
We strongly urge the Malaysian government to immediately end its ongoing harassment of SUARAM. We reiterate our strongest support for SUARAM and its continued work and commitment in defending human rights in Malaysia
Signed by:
1. Law and Society Trust (LST), Sri Lanka
2. National Commission for Justice and Peace (NCJP), Pakistan
3. Community Self-Reliance Centre (CSRC), Nepal
4. South India Cell for Human Rights Education and Monitoring (SICHREM), India
5. Rural Development Society Legal Resources for Social Action (RDS-LRSA), India
6. People’s Watch, India
7. Friends’ Association for Rural Reconstruction (FARR), India
8. ADHIKAR – Centre For Social Action, Research, Training & Documentation, India
9. Resource Integration Center (RIC), Bangladesh
10. Ain O Salish Kendra (ASK), Bangladesh
11. Society for the Protection of the Rights of the Child (SPARC), Pakistan
12. People’s Vigilance Committee on Human Rights (PVCHR), India
13. Globe International, Mongolia
14. Center for Human Rights and Development (CHRD), Mongolia
15. Taiwan Association for Human Rights (TAHR), Taiwan, Province of China
16. People’s Solidarity for Participatory Democracy (PSPD), South Korea
17. People’s Empowerment Foundation (PEF), Thailand
18. Think Centre, Singapore
19. Task Force Detainees of the Philippines (TFDP), Philippines
20. Philippine Alliance of Human Rights Advocates (PAHRA), Philippines
21. Education and Research Association for Consumer (ERA Consumer), Malaysia
22. Imparsial (The Indonesian Human Rights Monitor), Indonesia
23. Yayasan Lembaga Bantuan Hukum Indonesia (YLBHI), Indonesia
24. Human Rights Working Group (HRWG), Indonesia
25. Perhimpunan Bantuan Hukum dan Hak Asasi Manusia Indonesia (PBHI), Indonesia
26. Sekretariat Anak Merdeka Indonesia (SAMIN), Indonesia
27. Aliansi Jurnalis Independen (AJI), Indonesia
28. Cambodia League for the Promotion and Defense of Human Rights (LICADHO), Cambodia
29. Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association (ADHOC), Cambodia
For inquiry, please contact:
Mr. John Liu, FORUM-ASIA, tel: +66 802828610, email: johnliu@forum-asia.org
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