BANGI, 22 August 2025 – “Climate change is not just an environmental problem, nor is it just a convenient buzzword. It impedes development by undermining livelihoods in places where survival is already fragile. It deepens inequality, fuels internal tensions and conflicts, and forces families to abandon their homes in search of survival. These are the realities of climate change unfolding before our eyes,” said Edmund Bon Tai Soon, the current ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) Chair and Representative of Malaysia to the AICHR.
In a first for ASEAN, AICHR formally examined the nexus of business, human rights, and climate change through the right to development at the 3rd AICHR Consultation on the Human Right to Development to Enhance the ASEAN Community: Intersection of Business and Human Rights, Environment and Climate Change held on 21-22 August. Following the success of the second consultation held in April, the third iteration focused on protection pathways to protect people and groups facing multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination and vulnerabilities, particularly from business- and climate-related impacts.
In his remarks, Bon underscored the importance of the right to development guaranteed by Articles 35, 36 and 37 of the ASEAN Human Rights Declaration 2012 (AHRD), affirming the rights of all peoples to participate in, contribute to, and enjoy the benefits of development, be it economic, social, cultural or political. He emphasised that development must be people-centred, participatory, equitable, and inclusive, ensuring that no one is left behind.
He further emphasised the need to strengthen bodies and mechanisms to be more decisive, responsive, and timely, as well as future-ready, to address global and regional challenges as envisioned by ASEAN 2045: Our Shared Future.
“I invite everyone in this room to re-think our approaches, bearing in mind the realities we are facing. We need to move beyond the government-to-government approach and build new as well as strengthen existing alliances with the private sector, which drives much of our economy. Businesses are already expected to be transparent on their human rights impacts and how they are addressed through the conduct of human rights due diligence,” Bon added.
Delivering the keynote address, Professor Surya Deva, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Right to Development, highlighted the transformative nature of the right to development, stressing its role in addressing inequalities, historical injustices and the global climate crisis. The right to development is about the process of participation, particularly of the vulnerable and marginalised groups. Citing the recent advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice, he reinforced the responsibility of states to act decisively and called for stronger international cooperation. Anticipating the finalisation of the ASEAN Declaration on Promoting the Right to Development and Peace Towards Realising Inclusive and Sustainable Development, he welcomed ASEAN’s approach in leading by example to integrate human rights, sustainable development, and peace into its regional agenda.
At the consultation, regional experts and resource persons addressed new and emerging threats and challenges to human rights arising from climate change, forced displacement and migration, as well as unethical business practices. They identified ASEAN initiatives and shared good practices to strengthen regional cooperation in ensuring the enhanced participation and protection of groups in vulnerable and marginalised situations.
A human rights case-study simulation conducted placed participants in a realistic scenario, assigning them to roles of ASEAN bodies, AICHR, national human rights institutions (NHRIs), and civil society organisations (CSOs). Through a series of processes, they jointly conceptualised and operationalised protection gateways to help the complainant victim access remedies and justice in the case. The exercise identified shared protection protocols and referral pathways and demonstrated how ASEAN bodies and AICHR can leverage their mandates to coordinate timely, practical support for victims of human rights violations by both businesses and States.
Several key recommendations emerged from the consultation as follows:
- Enhancing mechanisms to mainstream the right to development into the three pillars of ASEAN: political-security, economic and socio-cultural.
- Strengthening the role of ASEAN bodies to be more forward-looking to meet the aspirations for a more agile and responsive ASEAN.
- Fostering multistakeholder partnerships and engaging with different ASEAN stakeholders, including the private sector and civil society.
- Enhancing data sharing and capacity building among ASEAN Member States to develop adequate protection and preventive guidelines and mechanisms.
- Encouraging businesses to adopt human rights-based policies and conduct human rights and environmental due diligence.
Through consistent, regular convenings across ASEAN platforms, AICHR’s programmatic work on the right to development shapes a shared position to advance the overarching objective of realising ASEAN 2045: Our Shared Future – an inclusive, sustainable, and resilient ASEAN Community. This steady, results-oriented approach highlights AICHR’s active regional leadership, providing a strong foundation for an ASEAN-led and ASEAN-owned strategy to protect the right to development across the region.
Held on 21-22 August, the consultation brought together over 50 delegates from AICHR, ASEAN Sectoral Bodies, including the ASEAN Commission on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children (ACWC), NHRIs, businesses, and CSOs.
The consultation continues to advance Malaysia’s ASEAN agenda on inclusivity and sustainability in 2025. The event was co-funded by the ASEAN AICHR Fund. It was organised in collaboration with the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (SUHAKAM), International Organization for Migration (IOM), Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) and Migrant Forum in Asia (MFA).
Click here for more photos from the consultation.
https://aichr.org/news/aichr-consultation-charts-aseans-right-to-development-protection-path-across-business-human-rights-the-environment-and-climate-change/
Photo credit: AICHR Malaysia
