Civil Society Organisations Demand Meaningful Engagement with ASEAN Human Rights Bodies

Civil Society from a number of ASEAN countries have just convened at the 6th Regional Consultation on ASEAN and Human Rights in Jakarta from 1-2 October 2013. Over 80 participants from more than 59 organizations, both within and outside the ASEAN region gathered to discuss a range of issues, including strategies for bringing about meaningful engagement with ASEAN human rights mechanisms […]

Special Rappertour on the Situation of Human Rights in Myanmar Should Conduct a Comprehensive Investigation for the Situation of Rohingya Muslim in Burma

KontraS received information that several acts of violence took place following the rape and killing of a Buddhist woman in late May 2012, in which the perpetrators were alleged Rohingya Muslims. Subsequently, on June 2nd, 2012 ten Muslim bus passengers were beaten to death by a mob seeking revenge for the crime. In the days that followed, there have been numerous and conflicting reports of further sectarian attacks perpetrated by both Buddhist and Muslim residents […]

Civil Society Organisations Meet ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights on the ASEAN Human Rights Declaration, Call for Universal Standards to be Upheld

Representatives of Civil society organisations (CSOs) have today met the AICHR for the first time for a consultation on the drafting of the ASEAN Human Rights Declaration. The organisations have welcomed the Consultation as a positive step in the right direction. They also welcome the constructive and friendly atmosphere in which the Consultation was held, and the openness of AICHR representatives to the comments and suggestions by CSO representatives.

We nevertheless regret that the Consultation was short, late, without a draft to comment on and with civil society only partially represented and some organizations rejected […]

International Monitoring and Protection of all Civilians from Religious and Ethnic Violence Needed in Western Burma

The International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), the Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA), the Alternative ASEAN Network on Burma (Altsean-Burma), the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (KontraS) of Indonesia, and Jakarta Legal Aid Institute (LBH Jakarta) of Indonesia are deeply alarmed by the continued sectarian violence in Rakhine State in western Burma since 3 June 2012, which has resulted in fatalities, injuries, destruction of property and displacement of residents. We appeal for immediate international attention to this disaster […]

Summary of the Public Hearing on Human Rights Abuses in Burma

Civilians in conflict areas ofBurmaface gross human rights abuses on a daily basis. The situation since the November 2010 elections has not improved. While there may be some changes in the political situation in Naypyidaw andRangoon, civilians in conflict areas are seeing no evidence of change […]

Civil Society to Hold Public Hearing and Seminar on Human Rights Abuses in Burma

Civil society organizations from Burma and the ASEAN region will be holding a public hearing on human rights abuses and a seminar on the human rights situation in Burma. These back-to-back events come one year after Burma’s elections in 2010 and less than two weeks before […]

Rally for the Commemoration of 4th years of Saffron Revolution: We Want Real Change for Burma

On the 4th anniversary of the Saffron Revolution, Solidaritas Indonesia for ASEAN People (SIAP), KontraS, Imparsial, FPPI, PBHI,LBH Pers and YLBHI, as Indonesian civil society who is also part of the community of the ASEAN people […]

Joint Rally of Indonesian People To Commemorate The 23rd Anniversary of 8888 People Uprising, mass killings and detention: it is time for ASEAN to act

Twenty years ago in 8 August 1988 people uprising in Burma has toppled the military dictator, General Ne Win. Military in response has brutally suppressed the uprising leading to the killings of around 10.000 people, disappearances and another thousand detained until today. Some them has yet found dead mysteriously in the most severe prisons in the country. Another thousand has fled the country living stateless until today […]

Placing Human Rights at the Forefront of Indonesia’s Chairmanship of ASEAN in 2011

In the beginning of 2011, KontraS, HRWG and FORUM-ASIA on behalf of the Solidarity of Asian People’s Advocacy (SAPA) Task Force on ASEAN and Human Rights (TFAHR), would like to welcome and highlight our demand for Indonesia’s Chairmanship of ASEAN this year on the promotion and protection of human rights in the ASEAN region.

Having branded as a democratic country with respect for human rights within national and international communities, there is a high expectation on Indonesia towards its Chairmanship of ASEAN this year […]