Florante “Nonoy” Villas, represented Asiadhrra in Forum Asia’s 5th Human Rights Defenders Forum last 3-5 September 2012 at the Holiday Inn Hotel in Bangkok, Thailand. The forum with its theme “Defending Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in A Consolidated Asian Regional Human Rights Movement” focused on the issues and challenges facing defenders working on economic, social and cultural (ESC) rights. In addition, the forum also highlighted the 20 years experiences after the 1993 Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action (VDPA) adopted at the World Conference on Human Rights, which served as a landmark platform for the regional human rights movement in Asia. The specific objectives of the 5th HRDF were:
- To highlight the work of human rights defenders in Asia working on ESC rights as well as identify their challenges and needs, and strengthen their collaboration with a view to building a consolidated regional platform for joint strategy and action;
- To develop closer engagement and cooperation with the newly established UN Special Procedures mandates, including the Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association; and
- To reflect on the achievements and challenges of Asian HRDs in the context of 20 years of the 1993 Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action.
