+
Understanding
ASEAN: Its Way of
Working, Structure
& Engagement
with Civil Society
Ms. Yuyun Wahyuningrum
Senior Advisor on ASEAN and Human Rights
Human Rights Working Group (HRWG) Indonesia
wahyuningrum@gmail.com
ASEAN (Association of the Southeast Asia Nations)
10 member countries
Established. 1967
ASEAN Charter 15 Dec 2008
+
ASEAN: Evolution of a Shared
Vision
1967
– vision of SE Asia community
First few decades - interstate relations,
nation building, economic development
New Millennium – ASEAN Community
by 2015, state-to-people relations,
strengthening social pillar, peopleoriented organization
ASEAN Community
+ Interrelation of the Three Pillars to the
Establishment of the ASEAN Community
ASEAN
Economic
Community
(AEC)
ECONOMY
SOCIAL CULTURE
ASEAN SocioCultural
Community
(ASCC)
“Enhancing
“Nurturing human,
competitive-ness
cultural and natural
for economic
resources for
growth and
sustained
POLITICAL
development
development in a
SECURITY
through closer
harmonious and
economic
people-centered
integration”
ASEAN”. (339
(154 Action Plan)
Action Plan)
ASEAN Political Security Community (APSC)
“Enhancing peace, stability, democracy and prosperity in
the region through comprehensive political and security
cooperation” (142 Action Plan)
+
ASEAN Organization Chart
The ASEAN Summit and the Ministerial Bodies of ASEAN
ASEAN
Summit
ACC
APSC
Council
AEC Council
ASCC
Council
Sectoral
Ministerial
Body
Sectoral
Ministerial
Body
Sectoral
Ministerial
Body
CPR
Senior
Officials
Senior
Officials
Senior
Officials
CPR- Working
Group
Working
Group
Working
Group
Working
Group
+ ASEAN NAT SECRETARIATS & COMMITTEE
PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVES
ASEAB Nat Secretariats
Committee Permanent Reps

National Focal Point


Implement ASEAN
decisions at national
level
Support the work of ASEAN
Coordinating Council (ACC)

Coordinate with ASEAN National
Secretariats and ASEAN Sectorial
Ministerial Bodies
Coordinate and support
national preparations of
ASEAN meetings

Facilitate ASEAN Cooperation with
External Partners

Liaise with SG and ASEC on all
subjects relevant to its work

Any other matters as determined
by the ACC


Promote ASEAN identity
and awareness at the
national level
+ The Evolution of ASEAN
Committee on Women:

To improve the status of women, and as an ASEAN’s machinery
to participate actively in the regional and international arena
pertaining to women’s advancement.

The idea was coined in ASEAN Women Leaders’ Conference in
1975.

Established The ASEAN Sub-Committee on Women (ASW) in
1976 and was renamed the ASEAN Women’s Programme (AWP)
in 1981.

To give a fresh impetus to the on-going ASEAN cooperation on
women’s issues, this sectoral body was restructured into the
ASEAN Committee on Women (ACW) in 2002 to coordinate and
monitor the implementation of ASEAN’s key regional priorities
and cooperation in women’s issues and concerns are carried out
by the ACW which meets regularly every year.

ASEAN Ministerial meeting on Women, established on Oct 6,
2011
+
ASEAN’s Cooperation on Women

ASEAN’s Commitment on Women’s Rights:



Declaration on the Advancement of Women in ASEAN which was
adopted by the ASEAN Foreign Ministers in 1988.
Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women in the
ASEAN Region, adopted by the ASEAN Foreign Ministers in 2004,
is the second declaration recognising important concerns for
women.
Guided by two operational documents:


The Work Plan for Women’s Advancement and Gender Equality
(2005-2010), which has its roots in the 1988 Declaration on the
Advancement of Women in ASEAN.
The Work Plan to Operationalise the Declaration on the
Elimination of Violence against Women (2006-2010), which builds
on existing national efforts, moves forward the priorities of the
other Work Plan and integrates all relevant priorities and
measures into a consolidated action plan on violence against
women.
+
Activities

Working in partnership with ASEAN Confederation on Women’s
Organisations (ACWO)

Activities to include: different regional workshops, seminars,
training sessions and consultative meetings that provided
platforms for government officials, civil society organisations,
professionals and other stakeholders to exchange views, share
experiences and build commitments and a common
understanding on various gender issues.

2006: Joint Statement and Commitment to Implement Gender
Mainstreaming was adopted.

Various publications and periodic regional reports were also
produced. These include:




The Thesaurus on Women in Development (1996);
The First Regional Report on the Advancement of Women (1997);
The Second Regional Report on the Advancement of Women (2002);
The Third Regional Report on the Advancement of Women (2007).
+
The 3Cs in Human Rights
Architecture
ASEAN Human Rights Systems
Conventions:
Norms/
Instruments
Commission/Committee
ACWC
ASEAN Human
Rights Court??
AICHR
ACMW
+ The Relationship between
ASEAN and Civil Society
+
ASEAN Definition on Civil Society
Organization

ASEAN Guideline on Civil Society Engagement, 2006

is a non-profit making association of ASEAN persons,
natural or juridical, organised to promote, strengthen and
help realise the aims and objectives of ASEAN cooperation
in the political, economic, social, cultural, scientific, medical
and technological fields, may be affiliated to ASEAN

Some countries in ASEAN do not accept the term and
concept of civil society and civil society organization
+ Privileges

It may use the name “ASEAN”

It may submit written statements or recommendations and views
on policy matters or on significant events or regional or
international concerns

It may submit its own project proposals for Third Party funding, to
be channeled through the ASEAN Secretariat,

It may initiate programmes of activities for presentation to its link
body for appropriate action;

Access to ASEAN documents on a selective basis in consultation
with the ASEAN Secretariat and or its link body;

Use of the facilities of the ASEAN Secretariat for its official
meetings and other official activities in Jakarta;

The ASEAN Secretariat shall provide CSOs with key ASEAN
publications every year.
+
Termination, if:

They engage in acts inimical to ASEAN or any of the ASEAN
Member Country;

They act in contrary to the aims, objectives and fundamental
principles of ASEAN;

They are found to have committed gross misconduct which
brings disrepute to ASEAN;

They are inactive, defunct or fail to submit an annual
summary of their activities

They change their constitutions, officials and membership
resulting in their inability thereafter to adhere to the
guidelines.
+
In sums,

Member states are still in control of deciding who can in and
who cannot

The participation is perceived as privilege

The participation is not understood as RIGHT. It is more like
“stick” and “carrot”

The affiliation is used as a way to control

The affiliation to ASEAN is a political issue rather than a only
administrative requirement

CSOs are not seen as partners in developing ASEAN Community
Civil Society Engagement
•
•
•
+
ASEAN Civil Society Conference
Standard Setting
• ASEAN Peoples Charter
Thematic Engagement:
• Human Rights
• Peace Building
• Youth
• Economic Justice
• Peasant’s Movement
• Persons with Disability
• Migrant Workers
• Environment/ Extractive Industries
+ Strategy: Simultaneous Approaches
Regional
Lobby,
Network &
Advocacy
ASEAN HUMAN
RIGHTS: Credible,
Accessible,
Responsive,
Independent
National
Lobby,
Network,
Advocacy &
Campaign


Top Down: Creation of
demand in regional level
through regional
organizations.

ASEAN secretariat

ASEAN Representatives/Bodies

International Institutions
Bottom Up: Pushing for need
of making ASEAN HR
Mechanism through civil
society advocacy.

Individual member countries

CSOs/NGOs (Nat & Regional)
+
Element of CS’s
Engagement:
Shaping the issues &
priorities of ASEAN HR
Mechanisms
 Standard Setting
 Agenda Setting
 Influencing the
process, decision
making & end-result
 Pressures: Bottom-up,
Top-down
 Opinion building
Crossing-over,
Member of the WG,
Assistance for the Reps

Campaign: Media,
International Community,
public
Knowledge Building +
Research
Annual CS Performance
Report on AICHR
Communication & Inputs
Submission
Relationship/Stakeholder
Building
Training and Workshops
on ASEAN human rights
mechanisms
Network-Building incl.
Social Networking
Lobby & Working behind
the Scene
+ Civil Society
Involvement









Working Group has been part of SOM
meeting
engaged HLP since it was firstly
established in July 2008
From 2008-2009: 16 national
consultations and 6 regional
consultations from 9 countries and
different thematic issues
National, regional and international
(OHCHR) lobby activities
3 interface meetings with HLP
Coordination meeting with other
groups
Diplomatic Briefings
Inputs for Instrument MW, TOR AHRD,
ROP AICHR, ROP ACWC, Work plans,
AHRD
Part of the team of AICHR, ACWC
+ Current
Initiatives
ACSC/APF
ASEAN Leaders
ASEAN
Secretariat
ASEAN SecGen
Sectorial Bodies
More?
Targets of
CS
Engagement
Committee
Permanent
Representatives
(CPR)
Informal
Dialogue
with CPR
Informal Dialogue w
ASEC on Communities
CS Forum on
AICHR for
AMM
AICHR
AMM (Foreign
Ministers
Meeting)
ACMW
ACWC
Informal Dialogue
w ASEAN SecGen
on Human Rights
CS Forum to
ACWC
CS Forum to
ACMW
ASEAN Forum
on Migrant
Labor (AFML)
Informal Meeting with
Civil Society (Interface
Meeting)
+ Current CS Engagement with Human
Rights Mechanisms
AICHR







AICHR only want to meet with
those who are affiliated with the
ASEAN Charter
The newly adopted AICHR
Guideline of Operation silent on CS
engagement
Only in June 22 and Sept 12, AICHR
conducted a regional consultation
on AHRD w CSOs
Nat Consultation only happen in
Indonesia, Thailand and the
Philippines
CS continue to submit inputs,
reports, papers to AICHR
AICHR is discussing the Guideline
for Engagement with CS Groups
CS is a sensitive issue in AICHR,
but during their visit to US, they
met US-based CSOs
ACWC









Started with Informal Dinner (2011),
Informal Session (2011), JointWorkshop (2012), Formal Session
(2012)
Informal Session: 9 out of 20 Reps
attended
Informal Session: 16 out 20 Reps
attended
Joint-Workshop: 18 out of 20 Reps
attended
Formal Session: 20 Reps attended
Good Result, Good process,
substantive discussion, cordial
ambiance
Inputs from CS have been included
in the reference documents of the
ACWC
The initial suggestion to erase civil
society” & international standards”
in TOR ACWC has been put down
ACWC uses inputs from CS in
formulating their positions
+
What need to be influenced in
ASEAN

Creation spaces for sustaining and meaningful engagement and
participation for civil society

Encouraging the accountability of the Commissions and organis
in ASEAN to be more independent, transparent , effective and
responsive to the actual problems of the people in ASEAN and
be incompliance with its international human rights obligations

Integrating gender and human rights in regional and national
policies

Establishing the system and regional cooperation mechanism to
deal with gender-based violence

Creating a system and mechanisms in ASEAN to review the
implementation of all ASEAN Declaration related to gender
issues
+
ASEAN Civil
Society
Conference/AS
EAN Peoples
Forum
+
The ACSC in the making

Was initiated by the Government of Malaysia, 2005. Whilst
chairing ASEAN in 2005, the Government of Malaysia
commissioned the ASEAN Study Centre of the Universiti
Teknologi Mara (UiTM) to organise a civil society event parallel
to the 11th ASEAN Summit on December 2005.

Attempts from the Government o take over the civil society
process continue to happen. In 2007, Instead of building upon
the existing initiative that has been pursued by the region’s
CSOs, the Singaporean government decided to take the
ownership of the ACSC back to the governments’ hands.

ASEAN is a platform to influence policy at the regional level
(regional policies are increasingly affecting domestic politics,
economics, and socio-cultural aspects of member countries)

The importance of the ACSC was not only because it was a forum
that helped to consolidate CSO’s positions on major regional
issues and agenda, but they were able to do so through direct
interface with ASEAN leaders during the ASEAN Summit.
+ ASEAN Civil Society Conferences/ASEAN Peoples
Forums 2005-2012
Year
Place
The Name of the Event
2005
Shah Alam,
Malaysia
1st ASEAN Civil Society Conference (ACSC)
2006
Cebu, the
Philippines
2nd ASEAN Civil Society Conference (ACSC)
2007
Singapore
3rd ASEAN Civil Society Conference (ACSC)
2009
Bangkok,
Thailand
4th ASEAN Civil Society Conference (ACSC)/ 1st ASEAN
Peoples’ Forum (APF)
2009
Hua Hin,
Thailand
5th ASEAN Civil Society Conference (ACSC)/2nd ASEAN
Peoples’ Forum (APF)
2010
Hanoi,Vietnam
6th ASEAN Peoples’ Forum (APF)
2011
Jakarta,
Indonesia
ASEAN Civil Society Conference (ACSC)/ ASEAN Peoples’
Forum (APF) 2011
2012
Phnom Penh,
Cambodia
ASEAN Civil Society Conference (ACSC)/ ASEAN Peoples’
Forum (APF) 2012 – March & November
2013
Brunei
?
2014
Myanmar
?
+
Features of
ACSC/APF
2005-2012
Mirroring
ASEAN
Summit
Follow-up
mechanism
Statement
of Civil
Society
National
Process
Interaction
between civil
society and
officials
Regional
Process
Interface
Meeting with
Leaders
Civil
Society-Led
Process
Country Day
Session
+ What has been the collective knowledge we
produced through 8 years’ ACSC/APF?
ASEAN’s Alternative Regionalism
(Source: HRWG Study, 2011)
• Particularly:
Women & Youth,
Indigenous People
/ Ethnic Minority,
and CSOs
• Against unjust
FTA,
privatization,
• Reject neoliberal
economic policies
•
•
•
•
CSO
Participation in
Decision
Making
Process
Adoption of
Basic
Universal
Values
(1,2,3,6,7)
(3,4,5,6,7)
Holistic rights-based
approach on
Developmen
t (1,2,4,5,6,7)
Adoption of
UN Bodies’
related
Conventions
Democracy
Human Rights
Transparency
Accountability
(1,2,4,5,6,7)
• Mainly: ILO,
UNFCCC, CEDAW,
UNCRC, UNDRIP,
&MDGs
ASEAN Civil Society Conference 2005-2012
+
Gains & Concerns

There have been some acknowledgements shown by ASEAN
to the inputs of ACSC as it is reflected in the Chairman’s
statements 2010 and 2011.

However, to what extent the recommendations have been
taken seriously by ASEAN.

It is important to formulate a Follow-up Mechanism to bring
the civil society’s recommendation to the actual work of
ASEAN and inform the current and future policies in ASEAN

This tools can serve as another platform of dialogue between
ASEAN and civil society.
Institutionalization of
Dialogue between Civil
Society Organizations with
+ Head of the States during
Summit: 2005-2012
+ Leaders’ Interface Meeting with CS
Year
ACSC/APF Process (Track
III/CS)
ASEAN ISIS Process (Track II/Think
Tank)
2005,
1st ACSC/ ASEAN Civil Society
Malaysi Conference in Shah Alam
a
15 Minute Meeting
Mixed Delegation of 10 and 10
ASEAN Heads of State
2006,
2nd ACSC
Philippi No Interface Meeting with Leaders
nes
APA/ASEAN Peoples’ Assembly by
ASEAN ISIS (process recognized by
ASEAN Chair) in Manila
No Interface Meeting with Leaders.
Instead Reading of APA Chairman’s
Report
2007,
Singapo
re
ACSC 2007 by SIIA Simon Tay (process
recognized by ASEAN Chair)
No Interface Meeting with Leaders.
Instead Reading of ACSC 2007 Chairman’s
Report
3rd ACSC
No Interface Meeting with Leaders
+ Leaders’ Interface Meeting with CS
Year
ACSC/APF Process (Track
III/CS)
2009,
Februa
ry,
Bangko
k
4th ACSC (within the 1st ASEAN Peoples’ Forum)
30 minute Interface between CS Delegation and ASEAN Heads of State
Hua-Hin, Thailand was divided into two sections. The first 15 minutes was
for the meeting with CS Delegates and the rest 15 minutes was for those
who have been rejected by the Rep of Government (Myanmar and
Cambodia)
2009
Octobe
r, Chaam
2nd ASEAN Peoples’ Forum/5th ASEAN Civil Society Conference
15 minutes, Interface Meeting between CS Delegation (some government
appointed) and ASEAN Heads of State (optional)
2010
Hanoi
6th APF
No Interface Meeting with Leaders. Instead CS Reps met with Chair of
ASEAN, the Vice Prime Minister of Vietnam.
Recognition of the process. ASEAN Chairman’s statement: 2 paragraphs
appreciation of organizing of the APF and took note of invaluable inputs
from civil society
+Leaders’ Interface Meeting with CS
Year
ACSC/APF Process (Track
III/CS)
2011,
Jakarta
•10 persons representing 10 countries
•45 minutes (additional 15 mins from earlier agreement 30 mins)
•4 speakers (extended from initially only one speaker allowed)
•Time: 15:45 –
•10+1 (HoS/G + Foreign Min), ASG + DSG Corp and Comm Affairs
•Indonesia’s President greets all CS Delegates at the door
•Indonesia’s President welcomes CS Delegates, makes speech and
allows CS Delegate to speak
•All delegates introduce themselves by mentioning the name and
followed by “I am from ASEAN”
•Indonesia’s President, Malaysia PM Najib, Razak, Thai PM Abishit
Vejajiva, and PM Vietnam Nguyen Tan Dzung responded (see
Annexes)
•Indonesia’s President gives closing remarks and walks toward the
CS Delegate and shakes their hand one by one. All leaders follow.
+Leaders’ Interface Meeting with CS
Year
ACSC/APF Process (Track
III/CS)
2012,
Phnom
Penh
• Head of States met representatives from GONGOs of 8 countries
(absent: Indonesia and the Philippines)
•30 minutes
•Topic: gender and development
+
+ Lesson Learnt



There are constraints that limits the meaningful engagement of CSOs . There are
also attempts from government to manipulate and control the participation of
civil society, but at the same time there are also existing spaces for engagement.
Civil society participation in ASEAN can bring positive outcomes and at the same
time detrimental consequences
Lessons:
 breaking stereotyping thru confidence building exercise (research, inputs,
diplomatic engagement)
 Persistence in expanding spaces for engagement through reform on laws on
participation and issues, i.e. human rights, etc.
 ASEAN is a platform to influence policy at the regional level (regional policies
are increasingly affecting domestic politics, economics, and socio-cultural
aspects of member countries).
 Despite contested, civil society contributes to the development of the meaning
of a Community building and visible in number of ASEAN documents.
 Civil Society engagement improve the accountability of ASEAN. A critical and
watchful civil society is a factor of paramount importance for good
governance.
 Valuable inputs from civil society enhance the quality, number of ASEAN
documents
 Engaging civil society is now used to indicate whether ASEAN member state is
incompliance with the Charter
+ Increased CS interests on
ASEAN & HR







1983, there was a submission on the “Declaration to the Basic Duties
of ASEAN Peoples and Governments” by the Regional Council for
Human Rights in Asia (RCHRA), to ASEAN
1996, The ASEAN Human Rights Mechanism Working Group
(Working Group) was established out of frustration of no
developments after 1993’s Vienna Human Rights Declaration
1994-1997: expanding the discussion on possible regional human
rights mechanisms in public spaces:
 Annual meeting of the ASEAN-Institute of Strategic International
Studies Colloquium on Human Rights (AICOHR)
 Annual Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) Informal Seminar on
Human Rights.
2007, SAPA Task Force on ASEAN Human Rights was created
2008, Women’s Caucus was formed
2009, SAPA Task Force on Burma and ASEAN was established
2010, CRC Asia, Task Force on ASEAN and IP were created, …
+
+
Thank you!