By Pia Lee-Brago
Philstar (Philippines)
SINGAPORE – The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) will reject the creation of a human rights court to try human rights cases against member countries, according to a ranking official of the Department of Foreign Affairs.
DFA Assistant Secretary for Asean Affairs Luis Cruz said in a press briefing that although the Philippines lobbied strongly for the creation of an ASEAN Human Rights body during the negotiations for the charter, ASEAN will not create a “supranational” body.
“If some members suggest the creation of a human rights court, I’m sure that’ll be shot down by ASEAN. That’s not the agreement. It will not be,” Cruz said.
“We’re not creating a supranational body. We’re not creating a Court of Justice like in the European Union. We’re batting for functions such as human rights education and monitoring. These are what we’ll propose in the Terms of Reference (TOR) subject to agreement of all ASEAN leaders,” Cruz added.
Myanmar, one of the 10 ASEAN member countries, is expected to be on the agenda at the 13th ASEAN Summit held here this week, with focus on the political crisis experienced by the country particularly the alleged human rights violations.
Other members of ASEAN are Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
Host Singapore’s Foreign Minister George Yeo said the ASEAN leaders’ informal dinner today will be “the critical meeting” for adopting a common position on Myanmar.
“That’s a family dinner, there will be no officials present; there will be no closed-circuit television. It’s just the leaders meeting among themselves,” he said.
The ASEAN is under tremendous pressure from its trading partners, the US and Europe, over Myanmar.
The signing of the Asean Charter is one of the highlights of the 13th Asean Summit.
The High Level Task Force (HLTF) that drafted the Charter will present today the final draft to the foreign ministers for possible changes before the ministers submit the Charter to the leaders for signing.
The ASEAN Charter, which contains 13 chapters, will give legal personality to the regional bloc, provide the constitutional framework for ASEAN member states to work together in a rules-based environment where decisions are legally binding and will build the foundation of members to further develop the Asean Community beyond 2015.
President Arroyo, who arrived here yesterday, is expected to put forward Philippine interests on various environmental issues including the protection of coastal and marine ecosystems and the use of more renewable and alternative sources of energy.
In her departure statement to Singapore, Mrs. Arroyo said the interests of the people come first. “Their agenda is my agenda in Singapore: energy independence, environmental stewardship, a strong economy and a commitment to human rights.”
The President will have one-on-one meetings with four government leaders at the sidelines of the summit, including Myanmar’s new prime minister, General Thein Sein; Chinese Premiere Wen Jiabao; Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong; and New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark. She will also join the other ASEAN Leaders in meeting with the business leaders of the ASEAN Business Advisory Council (ASEAN BAC) tomorrow.
Meanwhile, Singapore, known as one of the safest countries in the world, still stepped up its security and tightened laws on public protests for the ASEAN summit.
About 2,500 police officers will guard 16 leaders and hundreds of delegates gathering for the summit. Yesterday, members of the paramilitary Gurkha Contingent stood guard with submachine guns and shotguns in the driveway of the Shangri-La hotel, the main summit venue located just off Singapore’s Orchard Road shopping strip.
With Paolo Romero, AFP, AP
DFA Assistant Secretary for Asean Affairs Luis Cruz said in a press briefing that although the Philippines lobbied strongly for the creation of an ASEAN Human Rights body during the negotiations for the charter, ASEAN will not create a “supranational” body.
“If some members suggest the creation of a human rights court, I’m sure that’ll be shot down by ASEAN. That’s not the agreement. It will not be,” Cruz said.
“We’re not creating a supranational body. We’re not creating a Court of Justice like in the European Union. We’re batting for functions such as human rights education and monitoring. These are what we’ll propose in the Terms of Reference (TOR) subject to agreement of all ASEAN leaders,” Cruz added.
Myanmar, one of the 10 ASEAN member countries, is expected to be on the agenda at the 13th ASEAN Summit held here this week, with focus on the political crisis experienced by the country particularly the alleged human rights violations.
Other members of ASEAN are Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
Host Singapore’s Foreign Minister George Yeo said the ASEAN leaders’ informal dinner today will be “the critical meeting” for adopting a common position on Myanmar.
“That’s a family dinner, there will be no officials present; there will be no closed-circuit television. It’s just the leaders meeting among themselves,” he said.
The ASEAN is under tremendous pressure from its trading partners, the US and Europe, over Myanmar.
The signing of the Asean Charter is one of the highlights of the 13th Asean Summit.
The High Level Task Force (HLTF) that drafted the Charter will present today the final draft to the foreign ministers for possible changes before the ministers submit the Charter to the leaders for signing.
The ASEAN Charter, which contains 13 chapters, will give legal personality to the regional bloc, provide the constitutional framework for ASEAN member states to work together in a rules-based environment where decisions are legally binding and will build the foundation of members to further develop the Asean Community beyond 2015.
President Arroyo, who arrived here yesterday, is expected to put forward Philippine interests on various environmental issues including the protection of coastal and marine ecosystems and the use of more renewable and alternative sources of energy.
In her departure statement to Singapore, Mrs. Arroyo said the interests of the people come first. “Their agenda is my agenda in Singapore: energy independence, environmental stewardship, a strong economy and a commitment to human rights.”
The President will have one-on-one meetings with four government leaders at the sidelines of the summit, including Myanmar’s new prime minister, General Thein Sein; Chinese Premiere Wen Jiabao; Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong; and New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark. She will also join the other ASEAN Leaders in meeting with the business leaders of the ASEAN Business Advisory Council (ASEAN BAC) tomorrow.
Meanwhile, Singapore, known as one of the safest countries in the world, still stepped up its security and tightened laws on public protests for the ASEAN summit.
About 2,500 police officers will guard 16 leaders and hundreds of delegates gathering for the summit. Yesterday, members of the paramilitary Gurkha Contingent stood guard with submachine guns and shotguns in the driveway of the Shangri-La hotel, the main summit venue located just off Singapore’s Orchard Road shopping strip.
With Paolo Romero, AFP, AP
1 comment:
HR court is a stupid, especially when westerner trained people's HR ideas are all backward and upside-down.
Post a Comment