ASEAN to Proceed
with Commission on the Promotion and Protection of the
Rights of Women and Children
"Dr. Petcharamesree (left) presents a research
paper on the establishment of an ASEAN Commission
for Women and Children. She is joined by Dr. Maureen
Maloney (center) and Director Anish Kumar Roy (right)
of the Bureau for Resources Development of the ASEAN
Secretariat" |
Participants of a Joint Roundtable Discussion (JRD) organized
by the Association of
South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) affirmed that the establishment
of a Commission on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights
of Women and Children will proceed independently and separately
from the ASEAN human rights body, which is also currently
being developed.
The Commission’s possible structure, nature, terms
of reference, mandate, funding modalities, and mechanisms
for consultation were discussed in detail during the JRD
last April 7-8, 2008 at the ASEAN Secretariat in Jakarta,
Indonesia. Officials from key government agencies in all
ASEAN member-states which deal with women and children’s
affairs were invited to discuss and give input. ASEAN
Standing Committee Chair Jackie Foo of Singapore, ASEAN
Committee on Women (ACW ) Chair Kanda Vajrabhaya of Thailand,
and Mr. Aung Tun Khaing of Myanmar, representative of
the Chair of the ASEAN Senior Officials Meeting on Social
Welfare and Development (SOMSWD) presided over sessions
in turns.
Dr. Sriprapha Petcharamesree, director of the Office
of Human Rights Studies and Social Development (OHRSD)
in Mahidol University, presented a research paper
with recommendations for the establishment of an ASEAN
commission on the promotion and protection of the rights
of women and children. Dr. Petcharamesree stated that
the paper was not written to assess the human rights situation
of women and children in the region. Rather, it presented
specialized regional human rights machineries which existed
in other regions that can be replicated. The research
paper also outlines laws, policies, and mechanisms in
ASEAN member states which already exist.
The research paper is a product of a joint collaboration
between the OHRSD and the Working Group for an ASEAN Human
Rights Mechanism (Working Group), of which Dr. Petcharamesree
is a member of. The Working Group commissioned the OHRSD
to produce a research paper which will “lay down
the foundation for the prospective creation of an intergovernmental
ASEAN Commission on the promotion and protection of the
rights of women and children”. This was in pursuance
of the Working Group’s mandate by ASEAN in 2005
to assist with the implementation of the human rights
areas of the Vientiane
Action Programme (VAP), particularly on the clause
that called for the establishment of a Commission on women
and children.
“Although the VAP has a timeframe of up to 2010,
the soon to be adopted blueprints for the political-security
and socio-cultural pillars are expected to implement the
vision of establishing an ASEAN Community by 2015. That
being said, the ASEAN will find the recommendations in
Dr. Petcharamesree’s research paper very useful,”
said Working Group Co-Chairperson Marzuki Darusman. He
added that the Working Group will continue to exert efforts
for the establishment of the Commission and, concurrently,
support ASEAN as it takes steps to form the ASEAN human
rights body.
