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News Legal/General News Draft Asean Human Rights declaration to be discussed with Suhakam, NGOs 
| Draft Asean Human Rights declaration to be discussed with Suhakam, NGOs |
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| Monday, 09 January 2012 08:01am | |
 ©The Star (Used by permission)by SHAILA KOSHY KUALA LUMPUR: Suhakam and non-governmental organisations (NGO) can look forward to consultations on the draft Asean Human Rights declaration this year. “We received a working draft of the declaration today and I will be conducting active consultation from now on,” said Datuk Seri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah, who is Malaysia’s commissioner in Asean’s Inter-governmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) . “I have so far only met with the NGO coalition – Comango – and the Bar Council,” he added yesterday. He was asked to comment on a call by Amnesty International in the Jakarta Post on Saturday to make the draft public since human rights concerned every woman, man and child in the region. Amnesty said it was “disappointed by the secrecy surrounding the drafting process so far”. In the same report, Cambodian Human Rights Committee chairman Om Yin Tieng said Cambodia, which chairs Asean this year, aims to finalise the grouping’s Human Rights declaration this year. Muhammad Shafee, who is in Siem Reap, Cambodia, where the AICHR is meeting over two days immediately ahead of a meeting of Asean Foreign Ministers, said that he would be calling for consultations with Suhakam, Comango, the Bar Council, consumer groups, women’s groups like Sisters In Islam, other interest groups and government representatives. Asked why he had not met with the national human rights institution, he replied: “Suhakam invited me but I said I would do so after getting the working draft.” Muhammad Shafee said the draft would not be made public but now that he had it, he would have “concepts” which he could raise with interested groups. “For example, while Malaysia is a recipient country for labour, other members who are source countries might want to include the rights of migrant workers in the draft.” He added that if someone were to suggest “something extraordinary which I think is good, I would raise it at the next AICHR meeting.” “But the final decision is by consensus and after us, it goes to the ministers.” He said groups or individuals could communicate with him directly or send their suggestions to the Asean desk at Wisma Putra. Set as favourite Share Email This Comments (0)
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