The ASEAN Commission on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children

Abstract

This chapter explains the origins, nature, and tools of the Commission on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children (ACWC), created by the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) in 2010. First, it reviews the long path to the creation of this ASEAN human rights mechanism, specifically underlining its source in the United Nations 1993 Vienna World Conference on Human Rights (VWC). In-depth analyses of the 1993 Bangkok Declaration and the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action (VDPA) are presented with a focus on the normative recognition of women’s rights. Second, this chapter considers the overall transformation of ASEAN toward the realization of a “community of caring societies.” Specifically, the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (2009) is analyzed and the content of the ASEAN Human Rights Declaration (2012) and the terms of reference, tools, and functions of the ACWC are explained. The role of the ACWC in linking ASEAN states and the international human rights system is discussed. Finally, the main political goals of the ACWC are defined taking into account: two 5-year plans of action adopted by ACWC in 2012 and 2016; the 2013 Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women and Children; and the 2015 ASEAN Regional Plan of Action on the Elimination of Violence against Women.