The Singapore Daily

GIC, Temasek State Fund Investments
- Diary of A Singaporean Mind: Goodyear did not even last 1 year..
- Readings From A Political Duo-ble: The Secretive Temasek Holdings
- Singaporean Skeptic: Ho Ching is back in business.
- Yaw Shin Leong: Renewing or Remaining?

CPF
- Sgpolitics.net: STOP THE WAYANG, just return us our CPF!
- The Sun Shines on Singapore: CPF Life and Your Life
- Today In Singapore: Your CPF: Is It Really Secure?

High Notes & Minibonds
- Diary of A Singaporean Mind: Lim Hng Kiang : Structured Notes Fiasco settled fairly….
- Siew Kum Hong: The free market does not protect consumers

Auditor-General Report 2008/09
- The Gigamole Diaries: Are our regulatory agencies adequately china-walled against conflicts of interests?

Strangers in a Strange Land
- Singapore Social Activist: Facebook chat with Dr. Lim Wee Kiak (MP Sembawang GRC)

AWARE Aftermath: Thiology Goes to NYU
- Laïcité: Homophobia is not just another point of view

re Education
- the kent ridge common: Singapore Education: Embracing websites telling an alternative viewpoint

National Day 2009
- groundnotes: National Gay Parades

Say No To Marital Rape
- The Lycan Times: No To Rape Petition

ASEAN Human Rights Commission
- Jacob 69er: Southeast Asian nations face anger over new rights body

Daily Discourse
- The Anti Neo-Democracy Theorist: Implications on Local Defamation and Sedition Laws?
- Anonymous_X: Malaysia tak boleh: Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarno, a Singaporean model, to be caned for having a beer..
- My sketchbook: Case trust logo- can you trust it?

Life, the universe and everything
- A tiny blip in the continuum: It’s the software, stupid
- Ian On The Red Dot: 40 Years Ago - We Took One Giant Leap
- My Thoughts..: Ferguson is a Smooth Operator Indeed
- Yesterday….Today….Tomorrow: Fort Canning – 14th century walk

The following is Amnesty International’s public statement on the ASEAN human rights body. Thanks Hazel.

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL
PUBLIC STATEMENT
For Immediate release
21ST July 2009

ASEAN: Guarantee rights throughout the region

Amnesty International welcomes the steps ASEAN is taking, however hesitant, towards regional protection and promotion of human rights.

However, the final Terms of Reference for the ASEAN human rights body leave much room for improvement.

The establishment of an ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) is a positive development. We now urge ASEAN governments to make this a truly independent and robust body with full powers to monitor, investigate and report on the human rights records of all 10 member states.

Key concerns are a lack of a clear protection mandate for the AICHR; lack of binding requirements for independence and expertise of AICHR members; and an emphasis on “regional particularities” and “non-interference in the internal affairs” which could undermine respect for universal human rights standards.

The Terms of Reference also allow for decisions by consensus only, which means that each state would be able to reject any criticism of its own human rights record by veto. This which could lead either to paralysis or to the adoption of weak positions based on the lowest common denominator.

In particular Amnesty International is calling for a clear mandate for the ASEAN human rights body to protect as well as promote human rights.

The ASEAN human rights body must be empowered to investigate human rights abuses and be able to receive complaints of abuses. Without such powers the body will not be able to address serious human rights situations in the region, for example in Myanmar.

Amnesty International also urges ASEAN to ensure a transparent mechanism to select independent expert members to the human rights body. It is essential that the membership of the body is reflective of wider civil society.

Amnesty International calls on the ASEAN human rights body to uphold all human rights in accordance with universal principles and internationally agreed treaties and standards.

-ENDS-