Page 111 - The Ethics of ASEAN

Ethics of Freedom in ASEAN

Her message to youth in the ECAAR audience is this:

Figure out what your values are and
what you are willing to fight for.
Preserve your own free will and agency
no matter how difficult.

In answer to a student’s question about whether it’s a good
idea to study journalism, she says there has never been a
better time to become a journalist.

Yuyun Wahyuningrum: freedom depends on
human rights ethics in ASEAN
H.E. Yuyun Wahyuningrum is currently serving as the
Indonesian Representative to the ASEAN Intergovernmental
Commission on Human Rights (AICHR). She graduated from
the University of Indonesia followed by a Master of Arts
in Human Rights and Development at Mahidol University
in Thailand. She is currently pursuing her PhD at the
International Institute of Social Studies (ISS) of Erasmus
University in Rotterdam. Since 1998 she worked with various
governmental and non-governmental organisations in Figure 3: H.E. Yuyun
Indonesia and Thailand and in January 2019, was appointed Wahyuningrum, Indonesian
Indonesian Representative for Intergovernmental Commission Representative to the
ASEAN Intergovernmental
on Human Rights (AICHR), an appointment that has been Commission on Human
renewed until 2024. Rights (AICHR)
The issue of human rights and freedoms continue to be
debated within ASEAN, though the organisation itself has
made progress in addressing it. For Representative Yuyun
Wahyuningrum, her role is an essential part of ASEAN ethics
that is growing in importance.
AICHR was established on 23 October 2009 at the 15th
ASEAN Summit as a statement of ASEAN’s commitment to
human rights. Its role became more central with the 2012
ASEAN Human Rights Declaration to promote and preserve
human rights in the ASEAN region through a consultation
and consensus process. ASEAN Member States nominate
representatives who serve up to two three-year terms. AICHR
also publishes 5-year Work Plans and responds to human
rights emerging issues in the region.

After explaining the institutional role of human rights
in ASEAN, Ms Wahyuningrum discussed her concerns about
the state of democracy and human rights in the region.

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