A group of deputies from the ten countries that make up the regional cooperation body have asked that “expressions such as ‘public order’ or ‘harmony’ be stopped to impose unjustified prohibitions on fundamental rights.”
Bangkok () – The group of parliamentarians from Southeast Asia committed to respecting human rights called on their governments to “take more measures to guarantee freedom of religion and protect minorities, and to stop using expressions such as ‘public order’ and ‘harmony’ to impose unjustified restrictions on these fundamental rights”.
The appeal was made by the ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights (Aphr) group when the report was launched. Restricting Diversity: Mapping Legislation on Freedom of Religion or Belief in Southeast Asia. In the words of the Indonesian deputy Taufik Basari, the initiative aims to show “that many laws that prevent, limit and repress religious freedoms are still in force and are applied throughout the area. This report is a reminder that despite all the positive results in implementing coexistence in a plural Southeast Asia, there are still many problems to be solved and situations to be improved.
The report provides an overview of the laws and regulations related to the right to freedom of religion or worship in the ASEAN (the association of Southeast Asian countries) area. Ten different countries in terms of political regimes, level of development, economic dimensions and strategic weight that, in the 55 years since the institution was founded and to date, have made concrete progress in terms of trade, customs and transit facilities for citizens, but they are far from having achieved political integration, an equivalent level of democratic sensitivity or human rights, and an unequivocal response to their internal or international crises.
In addition, the “religious resource” is often used without scruples to justify the exaltation of national identity, encourage nationalism or discriminate against minorities, above all for political convenience, but with destabilizing effects for the groups that suffer the consequences. “National security and public order – says, for example, the report – have often been used as a pretext to restrict the freedom of religious minorities, such as the Ahmadiyah, Shiites, Jehovah’s Witnesses and others , while blasphemy laws are often used to criminalize certain religious groups critical of the state, government or the leaders of the majority religious group, in flagrant violation of international human rights standards.”
That is why the most sensitive and committed politicians have called for a change of course and urge the deputies of the regional Parliaments to fully support the right to have a creed and practice one’s own religion, working to repeal or modify laws that violate many freedoms. times provided for in their Constitutions and at the same time proposing measures that promote more open, supportive and integrated societies.
