Civil society perspectives on rights and freedoms in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations

Chaney, Paul ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2110-0436 2023. Civil society perspectives on rights and freedoms in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. European Journal of East Asian Studies 22 (3) , pp. 193-228. 10.1163/15700615-02203005

Preview

PDF - Published Version Available under License Creative Commons Attribution. Download (374kB) | Preview

Abstract

This pan-regional analysis of non-governmental organisations’ (NGO) perspectives on the contemporary factors which constrain or repress civil society in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is based on United Nations’ Universal Periodic Review (UPR) data. It shows that, paradoxically, whilst the majority of ASEAN states have ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) that upholds civil society’s political role in promoting rights and democracy, this is inimical to the region’s political elites who regard civil society’s primary function as non-political delivery of social welfare and development. This disjuncture results in repression, performativity, and legitimation. The UPR data reveal an ever-shrinking civil space. Civil society, including human rights defenders (HRD s), faces a raft of rights pathologies, including threats, violence and murder—as well as increasing state restrictions on freedom of association and expression. This is compounded by impunity for offenders, corruption, and government inaction following earlier UPR recommendations.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Publication
Status:	Published
Schools:	Social Sciences (Includes Criminology and Education)
Publisher:	Brill Academic Publishers
ISSN:	1568-0584
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	12 January 2024
Date of Acceptance:	20 November 2023
Last Modified:	17 Jan 2024 11:30
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/165435

Actions (repository staff only)

Edit Item