VIENTIANE, 8 December 2018 – The ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) workshop on the right to peace was held in Vientiane, Lao PDR on 7 December where participants exchanged views and experiences on the issue. More than 40 participants from ASEAN Member States attended.

The workshop, held under the chairmanship of Phoukhong Sisoulath, the Lao PDR representative to AICHR, aimed at providing a forum for representatives from AICHR and ASEAN sectoral bodies, national focal points of ASEAN Member States, regional researchers and civil society organizations to exchange views and share experiences on the right to peace. It also served as a platform to gather  their inputs to the draft outcome report of the thematic study on the subject produced by a team of regional consultants.

Participants listened to the presentation on the draft regional report on right to peace by the regional consultant before joining two panel discussions on “Peace and Human Rights” and “Peace and Sustainable Development.”

They also discussed normative frameworks at the international, regional and national levels on peace promotion, the relationship of peace and stability to human rights and vice versa. Furthermore, the participants discussed ASEAN Human Rights Declaration, article 38 on the right to peace in relation to SDG goal 16 on peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development.

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