DILI, 18 november 2024 (TATOLI)— The institution that is protecting human rights, strengthening integrity, and promoting good governance in Timor-Leste, namely the Provedor for Human Rights and Justice (PDHJ), hosted the 21st Southeast Asia Nation Human Right Institution Forum (SEANF), held in Dili, Timor-Leste, from 18 to 20 november 2024.
The members of SEANF are the National Commission on Human Rights of Malaysia, the Philippines, Myanmar, and Thailand; the National Commission on Human Rights of Indonesia; and the PDHJ of Timor-Leste, as host.
The Provedor for Human Rights and Justice, Virgílio Guterres, said Timor-Leste this year is the host of the 21st SEANF in Dili.
“Today’s event is the annual meeting of the Southeast Asia Human Rights Commission, that is called the SEANF, led by PDHJ this year,” Virgílio Guterres told journalists after the opening of the 21st Southeast Asia National Human Rights Institutions Forum at the New Tourism Hotel in Dili on monday.
He said, in the opening of the SEANF, addressing several issues of human trafficking at the border and another issue of torture were presented by Thailand and the Philippines in the conference proposed an investigation mechanism when human rights violations occurred in ASEAN involving its leaders.
“We present many issues of human trafficking at the border and another issue of torture in the detention room presented by Thailand, and the conference that the Philippines has proposed a mechanism of investigation when human rights violations occurred in ASEAN involving ASEAN leaders, and we have also shared the situation of human rights in the ASEAN country, actually, and the upcoming challenges,” he said.
Likewise, Atnike New Sigiro, said that the Conference of the National Human Rights Commission for the year focused on human rights issues in the ASEAN country, strengthening the institutional cooperation established by the ASEAN member countries to provide human rights assistance to the ASEAN countries.
“We are talking today about the empowering and strengthening of institutional cooperation that the member countries of the SEANF have been doing to provide human rights assistance to its citizens,” he said.
He added that the question of torture of the elderly was discussed. “At this opportunity, we also shared experiences on human rights issues of the member countries of the SEANF,” he recalled.
Meanwhile, the member country of the SEANF will hand over the presidency of the SEANF to Indonesia to lead the next year.
Journalist: José Belarmino De Sá
Editor: Rafael Ximenes de A. Belo
