The ratification of the ASEAN Charter in 2008 brought with it the historic commitment from ASEAN to establish an ASEAN human rights body. ASEAN has now fulfilled this promise by establishing the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR). The Human Rights Resource Centre for ASEAN has been designed to complement the work of the AICHR by focusing on awareness raising, research, capacity building as well as training and teaching on issues of human rights, the rule of law and other relevant areas in the ASEAN region.

The Human Rights Resource Centre for ASEAN (HRRCA) consists of a central hub institution linked to a university-based network to support and provide research, education, and training on human rights issues in ASEAN. This network’s hub, called the HRRCA, is hosted at the University of Indonesia in Jakarta. The Centre draws upon academic and civil society expertise throughout a network of leading universities in the region with recognized human rights programs. HRRCA will provide reports, studies and training related to a range of human rights issues in the region in line with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, including rule of law, judicial independence, women and children’s issues, indigenous peoples, migrant labor rights, regulatory environments for human rights, and law enforcement approaches.

The operations of the HRRCA are managed on a day-to-day basis by its Chairman/Director, Marzuki Darusman. Overseeing all of the work of the Centre is the Governing Board. Current Governing Board Members are Marzuki Darusman, Asmara Nababan, and Harkristuti Harkrisnowo (non-voting) from Indonesia, Theary Seng from Cambodia, Param Cumaraswamy from Malaysia, Carolina Hernandez from the Philippines, Ong Keng Yong and Kevin Tan from Singapore, Kavi Chongkittavorn from Thailand. Bios on the members of the Governing Board can be found here.

The Governing Board and the Chairman/Director will be supported by an Advisory committee of human rights experts from around the world, including representatives of partner institutions of the Centre. More information on the HRRCA can be found in this background document.