Page 138 - Dignity and justice for all of us our voices are heard in Thailand

Universal Declaration of Human Rights

At the national level, Mr. Bunnag comments that the Thai Constitution reflects progress in the provision of guarantees for the basic rights and
freedoms of the people. At present, Thailand has more institutions and mechanisms to assist in monitoring and investigating human rights
violations and providing proper compensations for victims. A national master plan for human rights is also being implemented, and laws are
being upgraded to be in accordance with universal standards. In addition, Thailand is proud to have been chosen as the location of the regional
office for South-East Asia of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).

At the regional level, Thailand has continuously played a leading role in the promotion of cooperation on human rights in ASEAN, including the
proposal for the establishment of a regional human rights mechanism since 1993, and support for the inclusion of human rights cooperation into
the action plans of ASEAN and the ASEAN Charter. At present, Thailand also heads the high-level working committee in drafting the terms of
reference for the establishment of an ASEAN human rights organization, Mr. Bunnag explains.

Mr. Bunnag also makes a number of recommendations. He notes that existing conventions still lack adequate implementation in practice. This is
partly because a lot of people still lack adequate knowledge about their rights. He therefore proposes that knowledge about human rights be
more widely disseminated among the people. “This should start during our childhood, as part of our culture, so that it can form a significant basis
for the successful promotion and protection of rights.”

The development of universal rules, laws and norms on human rights should take into account differences and diversity as well as specific
conditions in individual countries, in terms of economic development, history and particularly social and cultural traits, Mr. Bunnag continues.
“Thus, when we speak of universality of human rights, we must also consider the diversity and varying levels of development.”

We should give equal importance to all types of rights, because all rights are interrelated and cannot be viewed separately. Moreover, one of the
most important rights is the right to development – without which, all other rights are inevitably compromised.

Every country should view human rights as something that should be preserved for the benefit of its people, rather than used as a political tool in
the international arena. In this respect, the application of human rights should not be a reason for states to take advantage of others or as a
pretext for the use of force or interference by one state in another, he argues. In order to ensure the integrity of human rights, there is no room for
discrimination and double standards.

Mr. Bunnag recounts his experience of working on refugee issues, emphasizing that, “First and foremost, we should realize and understand that all
these rights are entitlements we have as human beings, regardless of our race, nationality, or any kind of division.”

126 Dignity and Justice for All of Us