HRWG Calls for AICHR to Adopt Human Rights on the Internet By Human Rights Working Group | July 27, 2012 Human Rights Working Group (HRWG) calls for ASEAN Inter-governmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) to adopt the promotion, protection and enjoyment of human rights on the internet access in ASEAN Human Rights Declaration (AHRD). HRWG has sent the submission to H.E. Om Yentieng, Chairperson of AICHR on July 27, 2012. “We believe that the current draft may include the promotion and protection of freedom of expression in offline manner, and we call upon ICHR to ensure that it is also protected online. This addition would be one of the added values of the AHRD to respond and be fit with the current situation,” said Yuyun Wahyuningrum, Senior Advisor of Human Rights and ASEAN on HRWG in Jakarta, (27/7). Yuyun adds this area could be categorized as adding to a people-centered character of the draft. “Furthermore, Internet now is one of the most important tools for development and for exercising human rights in the region”. This is also in line with current public discourse on Human Rights when UN released resolution regarding the promotion, protection and enjoyment of human rights on the Internet (A/HRC/20/L.13). This resolution recognizes, among other things, the global and open nature of the Internet as a driving force in accelerating progress towards development in its various forms; as well as a call to all States to promote and facilitate access to the Internet and international cooperation aimed at the development of media and information and communications facilities in all countries. Strengthening Yuyun statement, Choirul Anam, Deputy Director of HRWG stated that people of ASEAN use internet for improving their live hood. “AHRD should aware with the globalized changing situation. We condemn every restriction on it,” said Anam. HRWG is Indonesia’s NGO Coalition for International Human Rights Advocacy. Established by a the majority of NGOs working in different issues but share interest in human rights to serve the need for elaborate advocacy works already in place with the aim of maximizing the goals and putting more pressures on the Indonesian government to execute its international and constitutional obligations to protecting, fulfilling, respecting and promoting human rights in the country. Contact Person: Yuyun Wahyuningrum, Senior Advisor on ASEAN and Human Rights, HRWG Mobile +62 815 1054 3290 Email: wahyuningrum@gmail.com HRWG Calls for ASEAN Foreign Ministers to Strengthen Protection Mandate of AICHR Posted on June 30, 2013 [Jakarta, 30 June 2012] – Human Rights Working Group (HRWG) Indonesia calls for ASEAN Foreign Ministers to discuss the review of the Terms of Reference (TOR) of the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) in the 46th ASEAN Ministerial
Meeting (AMM) in Brunei Darussalam, (1-2/7) as mentions in its letter to Indonesia’s Foreign Minister which was dated on June 28, 2013. “Article 9.6 of the TOR mandates ASEAN Foreign Ministers to undertake the review five years after its entry into force, which should be started in 2014. We recognize that the review may bring both positive and negative implication to the regional human rights mechanism,” said Yuyun Wahyuningrum, Senior Advisor Human Rights and ASEAN HRWG in Jakarta, (28/6). “The review should first and foremost address institutional problems of AICHR, which include lack of independency of the AICHR representative; partial, exclusive and non-participatory selection process of the members; lack of transparency in their work; lack of mechanism to engage civil society and victims of human rights abuses; and inability to respond human rights issues,” added Yuyun. She emphasized further, “AICHR’s silence to human rights violation must end soon”. Selection process of the AICHR Representatives also becomes HRWG concern. The selection process should be in a fair and competitive environment to ensure a pool of highly qualified based on their expertise, experience in the field of human rights, independence, impartiality, personal integrity and objectivity, and hence the election of a highly qualified individual to the Commission. “Indonesia’s leadership to ensure that the review will be done in participatory, transparent and meaningful way is needed”, stressed M. Choirul Anam, Deputy Director of HRWG. He took a note and appreciated the first Human Rights Dialogue that was organized between the Government of Indonesia and AICHR on June 25, 2013 in ASEAN Secretariat in Jakarta. He believed that this small step could pave way to the implementation of the Article 4.10 of the TOR, which mandates AICHR “to obtain information from ASEAN Member States on the promotion and protection of human rights”. HRWG is a network of more than 50 human rights organizations in Indonesia, based in Jakarta. [ ] Contact Person: M. Choirul Anam, Deputy Director HRWG, Mobile: 08158718498, email: mc_anam@yahoo.com; Yuyun Wahyuningrum, Senior Advisor on ASEAN and Human Rights, HRWG, Mobile:+62 815 1054 3290, Email:wahyuningrum@gmail.com
Rabu, 01 Agustus 2012 | 21:19 HRWG Desak Komnas HAM Myanmar Usut Tragedi Rohingya Human Rights Working Group (HRWG) mengutuk terjadinya pelanggaran hak asasi manusia yang terjadi di Rohingya, Negara Bagian Rakhine, Myanmar Barat. ASEAN tidak bisa lagi tinggal diam dan harus mengambil peran serta perhatian secara khusus pada kasus ini.
Kekerasan yang sedang terjadi telah mengakibatkan etnis Rohingya terusir dari rumahnya dan menjadi pencari suaka di beberapa negara Asia Tenggara termasuk Indonesia. "Kami menyerukan pemerintah Indonesia untuk memberikan perlindungan terhadap para pencari suaka dari Rohingya," kata M Choirul Anam, Wakil Direktur HRWG dalam rilisnya di Jakarta, Rabu (1/8). Anam menambahkan, "Pemerintah Myanmar harus segera memberikan jaminan keadilan dan memastikan para pelaku penyerangan dihukum. Kami juga menyerukan Komisi Nasional Hak Asasi Manusia Myanmar untuk membuat laporan investigasi independen." Menurut the Independent, konflik sektarian di Rakhine yang berbatasan dengan Bangladesh ini telah menewaskan lebih dari 80 orang. Dan menurut Perserikatan Bangsa-Bangsa (PBB), akibat dari konflik ini, sekitar 30.000 orang Rohingya terusir. HRWG memahami, situasi yang terjadi di Rakhine adalah pelanggaran HAM Pemerintah Myanmar akibat pembiaran. Pemerintah Myanmar gagal dalam mencegah meningkatnya konflik komunal. Saat ini, pasukan keamanan Myanmar sendiri telah terlibat langsung dalam memperkeruh konflik. ASEAN sebagai wilayah multietnis dan agama di mana orang biasa hidup bersama. Kegagalan untuk bereaksi terhadap kasus Rohingya akan merusak rencana pembangunan komunitas ASEAN 2015. "Di tengah-tengah penyususnan Deklarasi HAM ASEAN, sangat penting bagi Komisi HAM ASEAN (ASEAN Inter-governmental Commission on Human Rights, AICHR) untuk memastikan bahwa insiden Rohingya tidak terulang. AICHR bertanggungjawab menjamin setiap orang di ASEAN memiliki hak untuk mencari dan mendapatkan suaka, mendapatkan hak kewarganegaraan, dan tidak dibenarkan orang bertindak sewenang-wenang akibat status kewarganegaraannya," ujar Yuyun Wahyuningrum, Penasihat ASEAN dan HAM di HRWG. Untuk itu, HRWG mendukung Sekretaris Jendral ASEAN Surin Pitsuwan untuk dilibatkan dalam proses perdamaian dan mendukung Surin untuk mengundang komunitas internasional membantu para korban secepatnya. Selama berabad-abad, etnis Rohingya telah tinggal di Burma, namun pada 1982, Junta Militer di bawah Jendral San Yu melucuti status kewarganegaraan mereka. Ribuan dari mereka melarikan diri ke Bangladesh dan hidup di kemah pengungsian yang sangat
memprihatinkan. Kehadiran media asing masih ditolak di wilayah ini, ketika keadaan darurat diumumkan dua lalu, sepuluh aktivis kemanusiaan disekap tanpa alasan penahanan. http://www.beritasatu.com/dunia/63665-hrwg-desak-komnas-ham-myanmar-usut-tragedirohingya.html
RABU, 26 SEPTEMBER 2012 HRWG Kritik Substansi Deklarasi HAM ASEAN Human Rights Working Group (HRWG) menyatakan sejumlah substansi draf Deklarasi HAM ASEAN (AHRD) tidak sesuai dengan standar internasional hak asasi manusia. Wakil Direktur HRWG, M. Choirul Anam mengatakan AHRD memiliki sejumlah kekurangan dalam bagian Prinsip-prinsip Umum yang berpotensi menjadikannya tidak sejalan dengan standar internasional. “Di sana masih terdapat klausula kekhususan regional dan nasional (national and regional particularities) pada pasal 7 serta klausula pembatasan (limitation of rights) hak pada pasal 8,” ujar Anam dalam siaran pers. Menurut Anam, seharusnya, pada bagian Prinsip-prinsip Umum harus menjamin nilai-nilai dasar dari hak asasi manusia seperti asas non-diskriminasi, persamaan, imparsial, dan karakter universitas dari deklarasi HAM. “Pasal 6 juga masih bermasalah,” Yuyun Wahyuningrum, Senior Advisor ASEAN and Human Rights di HRWG menambahkan. Yuyun mengatakan Pasal 6 berbicara tentang penyeimbangan hak dan kewajiban individual, komunitas, dan masyarakat dengan lainnya. Padahal, kerangka HAM internasional tidak mengenal konsep penyeimbangan antara hak dan kewajiban. “HAM itu sifatnya melekat, tidak dapat dibagi, saling bergantung, dan berhubungan antara satu dengan lainnya. AHRD tidak seharusnya mendifinisikan hubungan timbal-balik antara hak dan kewajiban individual, kelompok dan masyarakat dalam kerangka HAM,” papar Yuyun. Lantaran dinilai masih bermasalah, HRWG berharap para Menteri Luar Negeri ASEAN mengembalikan AHRD kepada AICHR agar merevisi sejumlah pasal bermasalah. Sepuluh Menteri Luar Negeri Negara ASEAN dijadwalkan akan mendiskusikan AHRD pada 27 September selama Informal ASEAN Ministerial Meeting (IAMM) di sela-sela Sidang Umum ke67 Majelis Umum PBB di New York, Amerika Serikat.
http://www.hukumonline.com/berita/baca/lt5063269e00520/hrwg-kritik-substansi-deklarasiham-asean
First ASEAN human rights declaration criticized Yohanna Ririhena, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta, 2012/10/29
Civil society groups in ASEAN have expressed disappointment over the content and process of the first-ever ASEAN human rights declaration, which aims to ensure human rights protection for 600 million people in the region. Yuyun Wahyuningrum, senior advisor on ASEAN and Human Rights at the Human Rights Working Groups (HRWG), which represents more than 50 human rights groups in Indonesia, said that the draft did not reflect the universal values that ASEAN pledged to uphold. “We are disappointed over the content and drafting process, which lacks transparency. Up to now, the document has not been shared with the public. This is not best practice,” Yuyun told The Jakarta Post. ASEAN established its human rights body, the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) in 2009, with one of its key mandates to prepare a draft of the ASEAN Declaration of Human Rights (ADHR). The declaration, expected to be adopted during the ASEAN Summit from Nov. 18-20, will be a momentous step in the association’s 45-year-old history. Civil society groups are especially concerned about the many terms and articles, like “public morality” and “national and regional particularity”, in articles six, seven and eight of the general principles. Yuyun said that the three detrimental articles undermined the ADHR, making it a watered-down version of universal values. A number of articles in the draft suggested the declaration had become too much about negotiating the national interests of various ASEAN states rather than about improving human rights, she added. Civil society groups gathered in Phnom Penh last week argued that time was running out to rid
the proposed draft of clauses that would restrict peoples’ rights rather than protecting and enhancing them. Nay Vanda, deputy head of the monitoring section of rights group Adhoc in Cambodia, said civil society groups needed more opportunities to consult with leaders on the wording of the declaration. “The [declaration] can be a success for the government […] if it is equal or higher than [the 1948 Universal Declaration on Human Rights]. If it is lower, it can ruin the reputation of Cambodia.” The drafting process has also been criticized for a lack of transparency. “From the beginning, the draft has not been shared. So, it is difficult for us to make a comment and discuss it with the UN. How can we comment if we don’t have the draft?” Yuyun complained. The only glimpse the public and civil society groups have had of the proposed declaration was by way of a leaked document. International relations expert Dwi Ardhanariswari Sundrijo of University of Indonesia argued that ASEAN had a true intention to engage people in regionalism, but this applied mostly to social cultural aspects. For issues related to state sovereignty, security, stability and other traditional issues, ASEAN governments were reluctant to engage civil society widely. “ASEAN is not ready yet. It could be understood since democracy has not well established throughout ASEAN member states.” ASEAN member-states have been divided in wording the draft. Cambodia wanted to ensure that the draft was approved during the summit. As chair of ASEAN this year, Cambodia does not want a second failure. Cancelling the adoption would mean a second failure for Phnom Penh after the failure to issue a joint communiqué at the ASEAN Ministerial Meeting in July. Despite the draft being undoubtedly substandard, Yuyun said time was running out to delay the adoption. She suggested that ASEAN establish a team of experts to give interpretations article by article and to explain some legal term. http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2012/10/29/first-asean-human-rights-declarationcriticized.html
Rights groups accuse AICHR of lacking transparency Bagus BT Saragih, The Jakarta Post, Sun, June 10 2012 Human rights groups have expressed concerns over the drafting process of the ASEAN Human Rights Declaration (AHRD) led by the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR), accusing it of lacking transparency and ignoring activists’ voices. Yuyun Wahyuningrum of the Human Rights Working Group (HRWG), an umbrella organization for dozens of Indonesia’s human rights NGOs, said that the AICHR had refused activists’ requests to share the latest draft of the AHRD. “Their lack of transparency leads us to be suspicious, what points are actually in the draft? They should have involved civil society and discussed the draft with human rights groups,” Yuyun said in a discussion with The Jakarta Post over the weekend. “It is a pity that they have blocked access to information relating to the draft of the AHRD which is so important and which will affect millions of people in the Southeast Asia region,” she added. According to Yuyun, the AICHR has finalized the AHRD draft and was set to deliver it at the ASEAN Ministerial Meeting (AMM) in Phnom Penh, Cambodia on July 8. After ASEAN foreign ministers give their endorsements to the AHRD draft, Southeast Asian state leaders are expected to sign the AHRD at the ASEAN Summit on November in Phnom Penh. Yuyun said that she had heard that there were tensions in the drafting process after state representatives in the AICHR focused more on protecting their own states’ interests. “Some countries may have seen the AHRD as threatening. Vietnam, for example, may think that the declaration could work in the interests of the West and threaten communism which it adopts,” Yuyun said. She said she had also heard that the point about forced disappearance was ruled out in the final draft. “Malaysia has its Internal Security Acts [ISA] which provide legal basis to authorities to arrest those considered a danger to national security without trials. Singapore, as well as Brunei Darussalam, also have their own forms of ISAs,” Yuyun said, alleging that those countries might have been against the inclusion of forced disappearance in the AHRD. Another point that activists have been afraid would not be included in the declaration is protection of migrant workers. “Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei also have great interests in this issue,” she added. http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2012/06/10/rights-groups-accuse-aichr-lackingtransparency.html
Groups concerned over ASEAN charter Bagus BT Saragih, The Jakarta Post, Mon, June 11 2012, Human rights groups have expressed concerns over the drafting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Human Rights Declaration (AHRD) led by the grouping’s Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR). The rights groups, grouped under the umbrella organization the Human Rights Working Group (HRWG), said that the process lacked transparency and had ignored activists’ voices. HRWG activist Yuyun Wahyuningrum said that the AICHR had appeared to be secretive in its work and turned down requests from civil society organizations to disclose the latest progress in its work. “We have grown suspicious as to what provisions will be put in the draft. They should have involved civil society and engaged in open discussion with human rights groups,” Yuyun said in a discussion with The Jakarta Post over the weekend. “It’s too bad that they closed access to information regarding the draft, because the AHRD is so important as it will affect millions of people in the Southeast Asia region,” she added. About a year after it was established in October 2009, the AICHR, which is responsible for formulating the AHRD draft, began the process of putting together the draft. According to Yuyun, the AICHR had finalized the AHRD draft and was set to deliver it before ASEAN foreign ministers during the ASEAN Ministerial Meeting (AMM) in Phnom Penh, Cambodia on July 8. In November, ASEAN Foreign Ministers are expected to endorse the AHRD draft before it is signed by ASEAN state leaders later that month at the ASEAN Summit also in Phnom Penh. Prior to the AMM, AICHR members will have their seventh meeting on the AHRD in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on June 22-23. “The agenda of the meeting will include a consultation with civil society. We will have another shot there to urge them to share the draft with us so we can provide our input to it,” Yuyun said. She said that civil society organizations needed to participate in the deliberation before it was too
late. “They need to give us access to the draft and involve all relevant stakeholders as soon as possible because the chance of revising it will be slim after the upcoming AMM,” she added. Yuyun said that she learned that there were tensions in the drafting of the document because individual states were looking after their own interests. “Some countries may have foreseen that this AHRD would threaten the interests of some countries. Vietnam, for example, may think that the declaration could promote the interests of the West and jeopardize its version of Communism,” Yuyun said. She also learned that the provision on forced disappearance would likely be left out of the final draft. “Malaysia has its Internal Security Acts [ISA] which may provide legal basis for the authorities to arrest without trials those considered a danger to national security. Singapore as well as Brunei Darussalam also have their own forms of ISAs,” Yuyun said. The Indonesian representative to the AICHR, Rafendi Djamin, did not return calls from the Post when contacted on Sunday. Earlier, Rafendi had said that he would ensure the international consensus regarding human rights would be adopted in the draft. “There were indeed attempts to undermine the standardized principle of international human rights,” Rafendi said. http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2012/06/11/groups-concerned-over-asean-charter.html
AHRD won’t be perfect, says Marty Bagus BT Saragih, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | World | Thu, September 20 2012,
Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa has succumbed to the “flawed” draft of the first human rights declaration for Southeast Asian states, citing the diverse system of states in the region as a significant factor that hindered efforts to reach a “perfect” document. “State interests of each nation are also different from one to another. Hence, a document that must be reached via consensus will never please all parties,” Marty told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday. State representatives grouped under the ASEAN Inter-governmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) are finalizing the final draft of the ASEAN Human Rights Declaration (AHRD). The draft is subject to the scrutiny of ASEAN foreign ministers who will then give it to ASEAN heads of state for endorsement at the upcoming ASEAN Summit in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, in November. Human rights groups from several Southeast Asian nations, however, have criticized the latest draft as “flawed” due to the absence of a number of points concerning the protection of rights of minorities, such as the LGBTIQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex and questioning) and indigenous people. Yuyun Wahyuningrum of the Human Rights Working Group accused AICHR representatives of having blocked suggestions from civil society for the sake of the national interest of their respective states. “The AHRD process has been hijacked by narrow-minded national interests,” she said in a statement. Indonesian human rights NGOs were among the 54 civil society organizations (CSOs) that gathered in Manila, the Philippines, last week, for the final discussions with AICHR representatives on the forthcoming AHRD. Yuyun said input from CSOs, particularly the suggestions concerning LGBTIQ and indigenous people’s rights, had received “cold feedback” from the AICHR. “The responses from some AICHR representatives during the consultation clearly reflected that their job to draft the AHRD had been strongly driven by narrow-minded national interest,” she said. Rafendi Djamin, Indonesia’s representative to the AICHR, said he could understand the activists’ anxiety, saying it was “normal” that each AICHR representative defended his or her national interest. “However, we, the representatives, have agreed not to let the upcoming AHRD fall short of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the UN-backed 1993 Vienna Declaration,” he told
the Post. Rafendi acknowledged discussions on LGBTIQ and indigenous issues had often become intense among AICHR representatives. “The issues are actually still problematic in almost all ASEAN countries, including Indonesia,” “Rights for LGBTIQ and indigenous people are new concepts,” Rafendi said, adding that the AICHR’s mandate would end next month. “CSOs still have a chance to make changes to the draft before it is released in the ASEAN Summit, but not through us anymore. Civil society can utilize the media, for example,” he said. http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2012/09/20/ahrd-won-t-be-perfect-says-marty.html
NGOs hope for more responsive, independent body Yohanna Ririhena, The Jakarta Post, Wed, October 24 2012 Despite appreciation for its efforts during its first three years, civil society groups in ASEAN urge the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) to strengthen its role and evolve into a credible, independent, responsive and accessible regional human rights body. The recommendation was issued at the second Workshop on the strengthening of ASEAN human rights systems in Phnom Penh on Tuesday, AICHR’s three-year anniversary. During the two-day workshop, civil society groups from Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore and Vietnam gathered to exchange experiences and advocacy approaches to improve the promotion and protection of human rights. The workshop was organized by Indonesia’s Human Rights Working Group (HRWG), the Cambodian Human Rights Action Committee, and Cambodian Human Rights and Development Association. “We urge AICHR to be more open, inclusive, participatory and transparent in its ways of working, decision-making and procedures, including agenda-setting, planning and other relevant deliberations,” the groups said.
AICHR should also ensure that its activities, decisions and plans of action are available to the general public to generate awareness and support. Yuyun Wahyuningrum of the HRWG, an umbrella organization for dozens of Indonesian human rights NGOs, underlined that there was a lot of work for AICHR to do. “AICHR must assert its independence. At least in the recruitment process where most member states prefer appointment rather than open recruitment,” Yuyun told The Jakarta Post through an email. The first term of AICHR representatives ends soon. Indonesia is selecting a new representative and will announce the result at the end of this month. The two candidates are AICHR incumbent Rafendi Djamin and noted lawyer Todung Mulya Lubis. Yuyun urged other ASEAN member-states, especially Malaysia, the Philippines and Myanmar which already have national human right institutions, to follow Indonesia and Thailand which have an open selection process. AICHR was established in 2009 at the 42nd ASEAN Ministerial Meeting in Hua Hin, Thailand. One of its key mandates was to prepare a draft human rights declaration. After a long process, AICHR has finalized the draft to be approved at the ASEAN Summit in November. The declaration will be one of the most important documents drafted since the adoption of the ASEAN Charter in 2007. However, the drafting process has been criticized for its lack of public participation, particularly by civil society organizations, who have been eager to participate from the beginning. “We commend the initiative of drafting the ASEAN Human Rights Declaration [AHRD] as an important milestone of human rights standards in the region. However, we condemn the adoption of the draft of AHRD as its contents are lower than international standards, including the provisions on balancing of rights and responsibilities, limitation of rights, national and regional particularities, public morality and the non-recognition of rights in relation to sexual orientation and gender identity, and indigenous people,” the groups said in its recommendation. http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2012/10/24/ngos-hope-more-responsive-independentbody.html
ASEAN declaration won’t guarantee protection The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | World | Tue, October 30 2012 The first-ever ASEAN human rights declaration, which will be adopted by 10 member states during the ASEAN Summit on Nov. 18-20 in Cambodia will not provide a legal basis to guarantee the protection of human rights in the regions. Yuyun Wahyuningrum, senior advisor from the Human Rights Working Groups (HRWG), said that the declaration would only enable the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) to ask for information on human rights conditions from members. “The commission can demand a report on how far the country has implemented the protection of human rights, as stipulated in the declaration. However, it is non-binding, meaning it doesn’t include nations’ responsibilities,” she said on Monday. Despite the shortcomings, Yuyun expected that the historic declaration, at least, could be a “wake up call” for state members to improve freedom and democracy for 600 million people in the region. “This helps us balancing maturity levels of human rights performance among the member-states. Thereafter, we will be ready to create more binding rules, a convention, in the next five or 10 years.” Former foreign minister Hasan Wirajuda said that the declaration ratification would have a minor impact, if not followed by democracy improvement, as it strongly correlated with human rights culture. “We strongly believe that ASEAN cannot develop into a strong and cohesive organization if we do not address our political development gaps. Existing gaps that divide ASEAN’s 10 countries into democratic nations, those which hold regular election but not genuine ones, and at the extreme, there are authoritarian states,” he told a panel discussion in Jakarta. He also criticized the non-interference in domestic affair, stipulated in the ASEAN Charter, as a hurdle in the resolution of gross human rights cases. “I prefer to see the concept from a different angle. ASEAN should be a small family that strives to create a feeling of togetherness. We care for each other. Therefore, if something happens, we will discuss it as one brother to another,” he said.
Rafendi Djamin, Indonesia’s representative to the AICHR, said that the non-interference principle would not disturb human rights protection. “Non-interference should be maintained, but it should not be implemented in a rigid way. Noninterference is based on respecting national sovereignty. By holding this principle, a nation is still open for dialogue and input from its regional or international cooperation bodies,” he said. Rather than amending the ASEAN principle, he suggested that ASEAN should grant additional authority for AICHR, in an effort to improve human rights implementation. (yps) http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2012/10/30/asean-declaration-won-t-guaranteeprotection.html