ASEAN foreign ministers finally release the ASEAN Human Rights declaration draft

30/08/2012
Impact

On July 8, ASEAN foreign ministers who met in Cambodia for the first time said they would publish “key elements” of the regional human rights declaration as a part of a public consultation process. The ASEAN Secretary General also said he wanted to see the drafting to be as transparent as possible.

ASEAN’s human rights commission (AICHR) has been drafting a regional human rights declaration, but it had done so largely in secret with little public consultation.

Between January and June 2012, FIDH, individually and together with other human rights groups, publicly and continuously campaigned and pressed ASEAN for more openness and public consultations.

Since July, there have been additional national consultations in Cambodia, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Thailand. FIDH continued to press for full disclosure of the draft.

On August 29, the Philippine commissioner finally published the latest draft of the declaration and AICHR announced it would hold a second regional consultation with NGOs on September 12.

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