SEACA and 135 other civil society organizations in Southeast Asia calls on AICHR to release ASEAN Human Rights Declaration
We, the undersigned civil society organizations and networks from Southeast Asia, express our grave concern and disappointment over the continuing secrecy in the drafting process of the ASEAN Human Rights Declaration (AHRD). The ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) is mandated under Article 4.2 of its Terms of Reference to develop an ASEAN Human Right Declaration with a view to establishing a framework for human rights cooperation through various ASEAN conventions and other instruments dealing with human rights. At the 6th meeting of the AICHR in Vientiane on 28 June - 2 July 2011, a Drafting Group was officially established by the AICHR to prepare a draft of the ASEAN Human Rights Declaration. In January 2012, the Drafting Group submitted to the ASEAN Inter-governmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) a draft AHRD for deliberation and debate. To this date, the draft AHRD remains confidential while the public has been excluded from any meaningful participation in the drafting process. There has not been any substantive and broad-based regional consultation with the peoples in the region on the draft AHRD.
Full Story

Indigenous communities and civil society groups challenge big business and ASEAN on CSR Framework; calls for greater corporate accountability
Amidst the current worldwide economic crisis and the growing resentment against the so-called corporate greed, representatives of civil society groups and indigenous communities from Southeast Asia expressed their concerns over the wanton disregard by big businesses of the human rights of indigenous peoples, migrant workers and other marginalized groups.
Full Story

Open Letter to the Chair of the ASEAN Inter-Governmental Commission on Human Rights on the crackdown on democracy activists in Malaysia
The Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA), the South East Asian Committee for Advocacy (SEACA), the Southeast Asian Center for e-Media (SEACeM), the Southeast Asian Press Alliance (SEAPA), and the Initiatives for International Dialogue (IID) released a Joint Open Letter to the Chairperson of AICHR regarding the Threats and Intimidation by the Malaysian Government against the Electoral Reform Mass Rally Supporters. In the letter, we urge the Chairperson of AICHR to exert his full capacity as the Chairperson in order for AICHR to swiftly address this alarming situation of human rights in Malaysia, on which the concerns of international community are mounting.
Full Story

Southeast Asian groups petition ASEAN for information disclosure
The letter-petitions were initiated by the Task Force on ASEAN and Human Rights (TF-AHR) and the Task Force on ASEAN FOI. TF-AHR seeks to promote genuine and meaningful dialogue and engagement between NGOs and the AICHR in promoting and protecting human rights. The TF on ASEAN FOI is an initiative to push for the recognition of the public’s right to know and access to information in ASEAN. These two Task Forces work under the SAPA Working Group on ASEAN, a collaboration among various NGOs, peoples' movements, coalitions and campaign organizations that seek to engage ASEAN issues and processes.
Full Story

Timor Leste Country Workshop on ASEAN
The East Timor NGO Forum and the South East Asian Committee for Advocacy (SEACA) recently organized a workshop on ASEAN for civil society organizations in Dili, Timor Leste. It was held on March 9 and 10 at the FONGTIL Conference Hall.
Full Story

Yogyakarta Civil Society Workshop on ASEAN
This workshop was part of a series of activities geared towards enhancing the understanding of and deeper engagement with the ASEAN by South East Asian civil society organizations (CSOs).
Full Story

NEW BOOK: Civil Society Reflections on South East Asian Regionalism: ASEAN@40
This book is an initial attempt at documenting how far peoples’ advocacies have reached in ASEAN. It is a product of collaboration among groups and individuals involved in various advocacies and campaigns in the region, most of whom are active members of the Solidarity for Asian Peoples’ Advocacies (SAPA) Working Group on ASEAN.
Full Story

Civil Society groups: ASEAN backslides in its commitment to be more people-oriented, should work harder for the protection of human rights and the environment
Fair trade advocates, indigenous groups and human rights activists today lamented the apparent shrinking space for participation of civil society groups within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
Full Story

Southeast Asian NGOs give the ASEAN Human Rights Body a failing mark as govt leaders meet in Hanoi for the 17th ASEAN Summit
Members of the Solidarity for Asian Peoples’ Advocacies (SAPA) Task Force on ASEAN and Human Rights, a network of human rights organizations and advocates in Southeast Asia, said the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on the Human Rights (AICHR) was in danger of being dismissed as just a “window dressing for ASEAN’s Commitment to Human Rights” and gave the one-year old human rights body a failing mark.
Full Story

STATEMENT OF CONCERN ON THE 6th ASEAN PEOPLES FORUM
We, participants of the 6th ASEAN Peoples Forum (APF) held in Hanoi on Sep 24-26, 2010, including members of the Steering Committee, wish to record our objections over actions to undermine the independence and democratic process of civil society groups in this region. Such interference undermines the spirit and content of the ASEAN Charter and is against ASEAN’s own commitment to engage with civil society.
Full Story

Weaving An Alternative Southeast Asia: Regional Strategy Meeting on Emerging Social and Cultural Concerns in ASEAN: Climate Change, South East Asian Peoples’ Right to Information, Labor Migration and Domestic Work and Platforms for Civil Society Engagement with the ASEAN
This Regional Strategy Meeting seeks to mainstream existing work and discussions on the following emerging issues such as the peoples’ right to information, climate change, and labor migration and domestic work. Through this regional activity, the South East Asian Committee for Advocacy (SEACA) aims to provide a space to strategize a more focused engagement with the ASEAN, specifically on three issues previously mentioned that are covered by the ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community.
Full Story

SEACA holds Burma/Myanmar Country Processes on ASEAN
Burma/Myanmar country workshops kick-off fourth round of country workshops.
Full Story

[ACSC4-APF Statement] Advancing a Peoples’ ASEAN
This is the final statement of the ASEAN People's Forum - ASEAN Civil Society Conference, held on 20-22 February 2009 in Bangkok, Thailand. It was submitted to ASEAN leaders during an interface session with civil society during the 14th ASEAN Summit on 28 February in Huahin, Thailand
Full Story

2008 ASEAN People's Charter Processes - Schedule of Workshops
As a continuing effort for civil society engagement with the ASEAN, SEACA is supporting national and local civil society organizations to converge for country Workshops and Roundtable Discussions (RTDs) on the ASEAN People's Charter and Engaging the Drafting of the ASEAN Political/Security Community (ASC) and ASEAN Socio-Cultural Community (ASCC) Blueprints.
Full Story

NEW: SEACA Occasional Paper on Irregular Migration
The report identifies the kinds of NGOs involved in advocacy on behalf of irregular labor migrants; the key issues upon which those NGOs focus; and the short-term and long-term strategies they employ in their attempts to improve conditions for undocumented foreign workers at the local level.
Full Story

NEW: SEACA Occasional Paper on Regionalism
This paper aims to shed light on two things: (1) the various economic cooperation and integration it gave rise to; and (2) the extent of civil society analysis and view of regionalism and regional integration. It is hoped that by juxtaposing the basic frameworks of official ASEAN policy with those of civil society analysis and advocacy, broad themes for engagement and/or resistance may be extracted and initial unities on regionalism can be developed.
Full Story

10 Primers on Understanding the ASEAN
SEACA offers this Primers Series, Understanding the ASEAN: Building the ASEAN People’s Capacity to Engage a Truly People-centered ASEAN, as a humble contribution to civil society’s efforts of bringing the ASEAN closer to its people.
Full Story

New ASEAN Charter Lacks Vision
When leaders of the member governments of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) meet for their 13th summit in Singapore today, the world's attention will be focused on what they will do on the matter of Burma. The Burma question has become a yearly embarrassment and pressure point for Asean, and everyone is curious whether the collective global indignation after the September violence will prompt Asean leaders to do something different this year.
Full Story

SAPA WG on ASEAN's Analysis of the ASEAN Charter
When the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) announced that it will embark on a process of building a Charter to formalize its agreements and establish its legal framework, civil society groups paid attention. While ASEAN has been generally inaccessible and non-transparent, national and regional CSOs and social movements saw the strategic value of engaging the Charter process. We saw it as a space to stake claims on ASEAN and to demand accountability for its actions. We saw the Charter building process as an anchor for discussing ASEAN and generating interest on what the Association does. By engaging the process, CSOs and social movements hoped to pry open possibilities for transforming ASEAN into a rules-based organization that would work for the mutual benefit not only of ASEAN states but of ASEAN peoples and communities as well.
Full Story

ASEAN Charter Leaked
The Association of South East Asian Nations' (ASEAN's) well-kept secret is out. Alternative Thai media organization, Prachatai, has obtained a copy of the draft Charter, marked 'Confidential,' and posted it on their website. To download, please follow this link:http://www.prachatai.com/english/news.php?id=362
Full Story

ASEAN Peoples’ Charter Process Launched
SINGAPORE. A group of more than 160 representatives of civil society organizations from countries in Southeast Asia launched a process of drafting an ASEAN Peoples’ Charter that would challenge the state-initiated ASEAN Charter slated to be adopted by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) this month.
Full Story

Burma Crisis: Symptom of ASEAN's Flaws
SINGAPORE. Prominent human rights activists noted that there are many disturbing parallels between the crises in Burma and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). “ASEAN’s inaction on Burma reflects ASEAN’s institutional weaknesses”, said Debbie Stothard of the Alternative ASEAN Network on Burma.
Full Story

Civil Society Role is Key in Transforming ASEAN
SINGAPORE - A top official of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) stressed the important role of civil society in transforming the regional institution and governance into a “social ASEAN” that embodies social work and community building processes.
Full Story

Book on Political Space for Advocacy Now Available!
"Breaking Through: Political Space for Advocacy in Southeast Asia" is now available at the SEACA Secretariat Office. The book is an assessment of the factors affecting the shrinking or expanding of civil society's space for advocacy, and a survey of the way CSOs launch and sustain their advocacies.
Full Story