Strengthening Regional Human Rights: Key Outcomes from the 2nd SEANF TWG Meeting in Yogyakarta
Establishing a cohesive regional approach, the Second Technical Working Group (TWG) Meeting of the South East Asia National Human Rights Institutions Forum (SEANF) was held in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, on 22-23 July 2025. Co-chaired by Komnas HAM, the meeting focused on institutional reforms and sharing national progress on strategic human rights priorities.
Key Outcomes & Regional Developments
- Decision-Making Reform: Proposed a 2/3 majority voting mechanism to ensure timely decision-making when a consensus cannot be reached.
- Leadership Continuity: Recommended extending the Chairpersonship term to two years to allow for multi-year strategic planning and better adaptation to regional shifts.
- Operational Strengthening: Developed guidelines for a Rotational Secretariat to formalize resource sharing, newsletter development, and capacity-building efforts.
- Torture Prevention Progress: Shared advancements in detention monitoring and legislative reforms, including Indonesia’s new criminal code that explicitly criminalizes torture.
- Business & Human Rights (BHR): Advanced the development of baseline assessment tools for high-risk business sectors and integrated gender perspectives into BHR frameworks.
- Communication Revitalization: Agreed to reactivate the SEANF Strategic Communications Working Group to boost regional visibility through a unified social media and website strategy.
- Digital Space Focus: Proposed “Human Rights in the Digital Space” as the core theme for the upcoming 22nd Annual Conference in Jakarta.
- Global Collaboration: Strengthened ties with the OHCHR Regional Office to better connect Southeast Asian NHRIs with United Nations human rights mechanisms.
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