Southeast Asian experts in human rights have created the Human Rights Resource Centre for ASEAN (HRRCA) to broaden dialogue based in the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights the official body for fulfilling ASEAN’s chartered commitment to supporting human rights. The center is led by Marzuki Darusman, who prosecuted human rights cases as Attorney General of Indonesia and is now the UN Special Rapporteur for North Korea. It taps into the resources of universities to

• Create a regional network of scholars, researchers, advocates, and experts in human rights.
• Provide training in human rights,political, economic, social, and cultural,the rule of law, and good governance.
• Assist those promoting human rights by publishing reports, producing training material, and sharing other resources.

The center was officially launched in Jakarta on October 19, 2010, by H.E. Patrialis Akbar, Indonesia’s Minister of Law and Human Rights. The launch was well attended by representatives of nongovernmental organizations, academic institutes, and diplomats.

The center was formed and launched with the assistance of the ASEAN-US Technical Assistance and Training Facility, which is managed by Nathan Associates, and the East-West Center. The Facility and ASEAN’s dialogue partners are supporting the center’s first two research projects on rule of law and the status of women’s and children?s rights in ASEAN.

For more information on the center, visit www.hrrca.org. For more information on the ASEAN-US Technical Assistance and Training Facility, visit www.advanceiqc.com/tatf.