_ by Victor Khen Sang

A grouping of ten nation-states within South East Asia were established following the period of decolonization after World War II since newly independent countries still felt vulnerable to challenges to their rule, whether that be from each neighboring countries as communist insurgents were still posing big threat in the region. Therefore, to help guard the newly installed governments in ASEAN from such the big challenges, non-interference in the internal affairs of member states was key principle to ASEAN establishment to which ASEAN has remained loyal up to the present day. Even though most ASEAN principles are decided by consensus from ASEAN Summit which is very much politic, the lack of independent regional human rights mechanism is still knowingly ignored. Only after the wiping away of Cold War fear in the 1990s, ASEAN leaders like Lee Kuan Yew and Dr. Mahathir came up with their own introduction of “Asian Values” to discredit Western human rights concept within ASEAN.

Asian Values introduced under the banner of “community of caring societies” in 1997-ASEAN Vision 2020 which also pledged to enhance and implement two core UN human rights treaties in the region (Convention on the rights of the Child- CRC and Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women- CEDAW is not only functioning in practical within ASEAN but put in danger of becoming obsolete chapter in “Asian Values”. ASEAN plus three forum ( China, Japan and South Korea), East Asia Summit which comprises ASEAN plus three and ( Australia, India and New Zealand ), Post-Ministerial Conference(PMC) also known as “Dialogue Partners” with ASEAN ( Australia, Canada, China, the European Union, India, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, Russia, US and United Nations Development Programme), and ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) which comprises 18 countries all aims only to promote and cooperation in economy, trade and security excluding human rights respect in the region.

So far only Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand have National Human Rights Commissions (NHRC) within the countries of 10 ASEAN. It is not actually the lack of political will in other ASEAN not to establish human rights institution in their respective country but the old notion of non-interference in which most of them ignorantly adhered to fend off from all the crimes and corruptions they committed against civilians especially in a country like Burma, Cambodia, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam and even Malaysia where migrant workers and refugees are facing several kinds of abuse under authorities. A country like Burma where the military regime has ruled the country for twenty years without any kind of law is unlikely to follow the four NHRCs within ASEAN to establish NHRC of their own except to thumb up with Beijing to shoot down any opponent to their rule including protesting monks in the street.

Even if ASEAN Foreign Ministers welcomed 1993 Vienna Declaration and reaffirmed to respect all human rights for all, they still tight-lipped when a certain country exercise of power by government violates human rights instead of raising question mark over the legitimacy of the government. Can we accept this as “Asian Values” or community of caring societies in South East Asian Nations? It is very regretful that since ASEAN establishment in 1967, ASEAN still could not form independent and legal human rights monitoring body to observe the exercise of legitimacy within ASEAN especially in time of general election or national referendum. This will not be necessarily transgressing to the principle of non-interference but will justify much to the principle of “community of caring societies” within ASEAN.

Waiting all the countries of ASEAN to establish their own NHRCs in order to form independent regional human right commission will take years and unlikely to bear fruits. Asian values and Asian mentality should be engaged within the true spirit of freedom and human rights. Although men could never succeed to maximum human rights, failure even at least to respect basic human rights in ASEAN is a disgrace to Asian Values. Furthermore, to make matter worse to Asian Values, as one of ASEAN members the military ruler of Burma is going to hold their own dogmatic referendum to re-strengthen their illegal rule in Burma without any observers from UN or ASEAN to ignominiously prolong and enjoy their illegal rule of Burma under the cover of ASEAN non-interference principle. Instead of biding time to form independent human rights commission in ASEAN, the four functioning NHRCs within ASEAN should spearhead collective statement on human rights issue occurring within ASEAN.

Strong military rule in Burma, susceptible political power to military takeover in Thailand, imbalance racial politics and illegal immigrant problems in Malaysia, Kuan Yew dynasty in Singapore, illegal logging haven tightly controlled by former army generals in Indonesia, communist Vietnam, problematic monarchy in Cambodia, penurious Laos and Jolo, Mindanao Islamic terrorist threats in the Philippines are all factors behind the obstacles to establish human rights mechanism in the region. ASEAN leaders know that there is no more communist threat in this region like in 1960s but the biggest problem for them to abide by non-interference principle is because all of them take political responsibility as the best business opportunity for themselves rather than building their nations for future generation. Probably it might be what they understand as Asian Value which will construe them better.

Some said that this region is not yet ripe for democratic freedom and we need more time. Some said that Asian mentality and religious belief could not match western styled democracy. However I believe that why not we get ready for democratic freedom because when American leaders introduced democracy in late 1770s, not because all were ready for democracy and freedom value but because liberty for men is universal right already endowed within human being before one was born. We are all ready for the liberty to which we were born. It is just because we have too many business politicians for themselves in ASEAN that we still suffer. For politicians in ASEAN, politic is just a commercial resource in which all trade between each other for their own profit while trampling all citizens under their boots with defending all the crimes they committed from others by covering behind non-interference principle.

What actually are Asian Value and Community of Caring Society under the non-interference principle in ASEAN? We must look into the misinterpretation and apply rightfully within the right direction if not this business-politic will still put all civilians in ASEAN as just a commodity in which these commercial politicians should trade for many more years ahead. They use non-interference principle in exceeding maximum but they don’t even use human rights in minimum. All ASEAN civilians must hit with human rights tool at this non-interference principle and make holes and from there we will come into them and clean up their dirty table where they has been doing commercial politic for decades. ASEAN also was initiated by five nations in 1967 and now ASEAN human rights mechanism also will be pushed by the four already existed NHRCs. Let declare war on this misappropriated non-interference principle in ASEAN which only defend the rogue politicians not the nation security. It does not mean to delete this non-interference principle from ASEAN charter but we must interpret in the right application lest it be exceedingly used again by rogue politicians.