ASEAN Commission on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children
ASEAN is forging ahead in realising its steadfast commitment in advancing women’s and children’s rights ensuring no one is left behind.
Leading this cause is the ASEAN Commission on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children (ACWC) who continues to fulfil its mandate to achieve
protection and empowerment of all women and children in the region. Convened on 8 December 2020 for its 21st ACWC Meeting via video conference, the ACWC Representatives from all ten Member States engaged in valuable discussions on outcomes of initiatives and way forward to accelerate the work of ACWC in advancing the rights of women and children in ASEAN.
Considerable efforts of ACWC were highlighted in the progress of Mid-term Review (MTR) of the Regional Plan of Action on the Elimination of Violence Against Women (RPA-EVAW) and through the development of the Regional Plan of Action for Protection of Children from All Forms of Online Exploitation and Abuse as well as the Regional Plan of Action on Implementing the ASEAN Declaration on the Rights of Children in the Context of Migration, led by Thailand. “Our women and children play indispensable roles in responding to and building back better from the pandemic. As ACWC, we need to continue to ensure that our policies, including the implementation of the ASEAN Recovery Framework for COVID-19, prioritise the well-being of our women and children.”, said Mdm. Laura Hwang, ACWC Chair and Singapore’s ACWC Representative for Women’s Rights.
The 6th ASEAN Children Forum was organised by Cambodia with the theme “Impact of COVID-19 and the Current Situation of Children”. The outcomes of the Forum were discussed to enhance the roles of the ACWC in ensuring children’s participation on matters affecting them. Moreover, ACWC work in protecting the rights of children against all
forms of bullying was also advanced through the initiatives of ACWC Viet Nam with the inaugural Online Meeting of Bullying Children at Schools and Online in ASEAN.
With strengthened synergy with other ASEAN Sectoral Bodies and Community Pillars, ACWC continues to leverage its contribution to the implementation of cross-sectoral and inter-sectoral pillar initiativesfor a more collaborative and cohesive approach in moving forward with the implementation of the Bohol Trafficking-in-Persons Work Plan 2017-2020, Women Peace and Security Agenda in ASEAN, the ASEAN Plan of Action on Culture of Prevention, the ASEAN Enabling Masterplan 2025: Mainstreaming the Rights of Persons with Disabilities , the implementation of the Complementarities Initiative and the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and importantly, to contribute to the implementation of the ASEAN Comprehensive Recovery Framework (ACRF).
Looking ahead, the ACWC deliberated on its strategic actions and priorities in the ACWC Work Plan 2021-2025, building on its wealth of experiences for the past ten years.
The ACWC welcomed the continued support and cooperation of UNHCR, UNICEF, Mission of Canada to ASEAN, and Australian Mission to ASEAN during the Open Session of the 21st ACWC Meeting, and highlighted that ACWC will be in close ties with development partners to amplify the impacts of our work for all women and children.
With reaffirmed commitment from ACWC, ASEAN Member States will emerge as a more resilient ASEAN Community in the face of this challenging time.
JAKARTA, 22 March 2021 – ASEAN is leading the advancement of the rights and welfare of women and children in ASEAN through the ASEAN Commission on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children (ACWC).
Convened on 22 March 2021 for its 22nd ACWC Meeting via video conference, the ACWC Representatives from all ten Member States continuously engaged in meaningful conversation to leverage the work of ACWC towards ensuring that no woman and child will be left behind.
In charting a more inclusive, gender-responsive and child-friendly outcome from the initiatives of ACWC, the Meeting deliberated on the finalisation of the ACWC Work Plan 2021-2025, and continued the implementation of the ASEAN Regional Plan of Action on the Elimination of Violence against Women (RPA on EVAW) and the ASEAN Regional Plan of Action on the Elimination of Violence against Children (RPA on EVAC). The next work plan will play a vital role in strengthening ACWC’s efforts to promote and protect the rights of women and children, implement the ASEAN Gender Mainstreaming Strategic Framework, empower women and children as agents of change, build capacities of the Member States, oversee the implementation of the Declaration on the Protection of Children from All Forms of Online Exploitation and Abuse in ASEAN and the ASEAN Declaration on the Rights of Children in the Context of Migration through the development of the Regional Plan of Action for the Protection of Children from All Forms of Online Exploitation and Abuse in ASEAN (2021-2025) and the Regional Plan of Action on Implementing the ASEAN Declaration on the Rights of Children in the Context of Migration, and ensure a gender-responsive and child-friendly COVID-19 recovery process.
The ACWC also discussed the emerging needs of women and children due to exacerbated vulnerabilities of women and children that include risks from online abuse and bullying.
“It is imperative that women and children are placed at the heart of ASEAN efforts to building back better in post-pandemic era. Therefore, the ACWC is being mindful and decisive of the critical actions that it will take in the next five years to adapt to emerging issues confronting women and children in ASEAN,” said Dato Junaidi Abd. Rahman, the ACWC Chair and Brunei Darussalam’s Representative for Children’s Rights.
In close collaboration with other ASEAN Sectoral Bodies and key development partners, the ACWC will continue to fulfil its mandate to achieve protection and empowerment of all women and children, and contribute to the implementation of cross-sectoral and cross-pillar initiatives. These include, among others, trafficking in persons, women, peace and security agenda, migration, social protection, disability inclusion, legal recognition in relation to the issue on statelessness, and sustainable development.
The ACWC recognised the continued support and readiness for cooperation of UNICEF, UNHCR, and CRC Asia during the Open Session of the 22nd ACWC Meeting, and looked forward to realising the expressed commitments of the development partners in the implementation of the ACWC Work Plan 2021-2025.
Moving forward, ASEAN, together with the ACWC, will remain inspired by the ambitions in the SDGs situated in the context of the COVID-19 challenges and opportunities.
ASEAN continues to strengthen its commitment to promote and protect the rights of women and children in the region, especially in these challenging times.
The 20th ASEAN Commission on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children (ACWC) Meeting was held on 28 July via video conference, chaired by Singapore’s ACWC Representative for Women’s Rights, Mdm. Laura Hwang. Through the ACWC, ASEAN Member States reaffirm its commitment to achieve gender equality and empowerment of all women and girls in the region.
ACWC Representatives from all Member States deliberated on key initiatives and projects such as the ASEAN Gender Mainstreaming Strategic Framework, the Mid-Term Review of the Regional Plan of Action on the Elimination of Violence against Women (RPA-EVAW), the ASEAN campaign on Ending Gender-Based Workplace Exploitation through knowledge and music, ACWC’s visibility, the Legal Identity of All Women and Children in ASEAN: A Regional Synthesis, as well as the ASEAN Regional Study on Women, Peace and Security (WPS). “In collaboration with the ASEAN Committee on Women (ACW) and with the support from US PROSPECT and UN Women, the ACWC has just convened the second advisory group meeting to further discuss the regional study on WPS. The emerging observations and shared vision to implement the multi-year programme on WPS agenda in ASEAN are most useful to enrich the study and its strategic objectives,” said Professor Lourdesita Sobrevega-Chan, the Philippines’ ACWC Representative for Women’s Rights.
Further, ACWC has advanced the implementation of the Declaration on the Protection of Children from All Forms of Online Exploitation and Abuse in ASEAN and the ASEAN Declaration on the Rights of Children in the Context of Migration, through the development of the Regional Plan of Action (RPA) for Protection of Children from All Forms of Online Exploitation and Abuse, as well as the RPA on the Rights of Children in the Context of Migration, respectively. “This pandemic has exacerbated the challenges faced by our women and children. We therefore require stronger collaboration across the public, people and private sectors, while we are still adjusting to the ‘new normal’ way of working, to enhance and finalise these key initiatives and outcomes to achieve gender equality, and promote the rights of women and children in ASEAN,” said Mdm. Laura Hwang, the ACWC Chair.
The ACWC endeavours to contribute actively to the implementation of initiatives amongst the sectoral bodies across the three ASEAN pillars. In addition to the above, the ACWC Representatives are committed to move forward with the implementation of the Bohol Trafficking-in-Persons Work Plan 2017-2020 as well as to support the implementation of the Complementarities Initiative between the ASEAN Community Vision 2025 and the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
The Open Session of the 20th ACWC Meeting welcomed the exchange of updates and views with partners from UNICEF, UN Women, and Plan International. An upcoming collaborative activity of ACWC and relevant partners is the convening of the 2nd Regional Online Forum on Eliminating Child, Early and Forced Marriage (CEFM). The Forum aims to build on the recommendations from the 1st Forum held in March 2019 as well as to provide practical solutions to end CEFM, including on ways to integrate the solutions into COVID-19 response and recovery measures.
The 20th ACWC Meeting is the first of the series of activities to mark its 10th year anniversary in 2020. The commemoration will culminate with the ACWC Retreat and the launch of ACWC 10th Year Accomplishment Report back to back with the 21st ACWC Meeting and ACWC Partnership Conference 2020 scheduled in November 2020 hosted by Viet Nam.
JAKARTA, 8 March 2019 – ASEAN continues promoting the welfare and protect the rights of women and children collectively as representatives convened for the 18th ASEAN Commission on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children (ACWC) Meeting at the ASEAN Secretariat in Jakarta on 4 March.
At the meeting, the ACWC representatives, in partnership with the Senior Officials Meeting on Social Welfare and Development (SOMSWD), continued with the development of the Declaration on the Protection of Children from All Forms of Online Exploitation and Abuse in ASEAN.
“The declaration intends to set the policy for regional cooperation to intensify action on eliminating the borderless crime of online child sexual exploitation,” said Wanchai Roujanavong, ACWC Vice-Chair and Thailand’s ACWC Representative for Children’s Rights.
The representatives also agreed to take part and contribute to the global commemoration of the 30th Anniversary of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. They also decided to fast-track the promotion of women, peace and security in ASEAN through the conduct of a regional study that would map the contribution of women’s organisations to peace building. The study will be launched during a symposium on women, peace and security.
The ACWC is also seeking to boost partnership with the European Union by pursuing follow-up actions after the ASEAN-EU Dialogue on Gender Equality and Empowerment of Women and Girls: Implementing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 5 (SDG 5) which was held on 22 October 2018 in Ha Noi, Vietnam.
“ACWC remains committed to delivering on ASEAN’s cross-sectoral cooperation,” said Sri Danti Anwar, ACWC Chair and Indonesia’s ACWC Representative for Women’s Rights. ACWC is in the process of addressing the needs of victims of trafficking in persons, especially women and children, through the development of practical guidelines for frontline service providers and a public campaign on trafficking in persons and the elimination of violence against women.
ACWC also affirmed its contributions to ASEAN’s cooperation on promoting social protection, through the implementation of the Regional Framework and Action Plan on Implementing the Declaration on the Promotion of Social Protection in ASEAN, as well as the implementation of the ASEAN Enabling Master Plan 2025: Mainstreaming the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Through the meeting’s open session, representatives continued to strengthen ASEAN’s partnership with the Dialogue Partners, such as the United States through the ASEAN-USAID PROSPECT, and with international organisations such as UNICEF and UN Women.
The 16th Meeting of the ASEAN Commission on The Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children (ACWC) was held from 26th-28th March 2018 in Jakarta, Indonesia. The Meeting was hosted by the ASEAN Secretariat.
The Meeting discussed the follow-up from the 15th Meeting in Phuket, Thailand, and reviewed the status of implementation of projects of the ACWC Work Plan 2016-2020. A number of important projects have been completed such as the Conference on Policy Debate on Gender Issues in Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Change Adaptation for ASEAN Countries by Lao PDR, the Launch of ASEAN Progress Report on Women’s Advancement and Gender Equality and Strengthening the Protection and Empowerment of Women Migrant Workers in Crisis and Disaster Situations by the Philippines, as well as the Regional Workshop for Promoting Comprehensive and Harmonized National Legislation aimed at Preventing and Combating Online Child Sexual Exploitation (OCSE) in ASEAN Member States by Thailand.
At the Meeting, the Philippines updated the implementation of the Regional Plan of Action on the Elimination of Violence Against Women (RPA-EVAW), namely the outcomes of the Inter-Sectoral Dialogue on the Scoping Study on Strengthening Protection and Empowerment of Women Migrant Workers in Crisis and Disaster Situations on 15th December 2017, and the Conference on ASEAN Gender Mainstreaming in Higher Education on 27th-29th November 2017. On the same note, The ASEAN Secretariat presented a concept paper on the proposed follow-up actions for the Joint Statement on Promoting Women, Peace and Security in ASEAN, which was adopted during the 31st ASEAN Summit in November 2017 in Manila, as well as updates and recommendations arising from the ASEAN-UN Regional Dialogue on Political-Security Cooperation (AURED IV): Women, Peace and Security – The Role of Women in the Prevention of Violent Extremism on 5th-7th December 2017 in Kuala Lumpur. The ASEAN Secretariat also presented the outcomes of the ASEAN HeForShe campaign launch on 30th November 2017 and the outline of ASEAN HeForShe roadmap.
Regarding the implementation of the Regional Plan of Action on the Elimination of Violence Against Children in ASEAN (RPA-EVAC), Thailand presented the outcomes and recommendations from the Regional Workshop for Promoting Comprehensive and Harmonized National Legislation aimed at Preventing and Combating Online Child Sexual Exploitation (OCSE) in ASEAN Member States on 2nd-3rd November 2017 in Bangkok, Thailand, updates of the report titled, “Ending violence against children in ASEAN Member States: A snapshot of action as of 2016”, and the outcomes and recommendations from the Dissemination Workshop for the Baseline Study for Priority Areas under the RPA-EVAC on 6th February 2018 in Jakarta. In addition, the ACWC Chair presented the outcomes of the Inter-Sectoral Dialogue on Integrated National Responses to End Sexual Exploitation and Abuse of Children Online in ASEAN which was held on 7th-8th February 2018 in Jakarta, Indonesia. The Meeting took note of the updates highlighted and exchanged views on ways forward to ensure continuity and engagement of other relevant ASEAN sectoral bodies. ACWC endorsed the ASEAN Regional Guidelines and Procedures to Address the Needs of Victims of Trafficking in Persons.
The Meeting received updates on the status of ongoing projects under the ACWC Work Plan 2016-2020. The projects to be implemented in 2018 are under the thematic areas of strengthening institutional capacity of ACWC, promotion and protection of the rights of women and children with disabilities, women’s economic empowerment, gender mainstreaming, as well as elimination of violence against women and children. These include the Mainstreaming Women’s Economic Empowerment in ASEAN: Leveraging Information and Communications Technologies in Support of women’s Entrepreneurship Development by Cambodia; the Regional Dialogue on Children Bullying and Abuse at Schools and Online by Viet Nam; as well as the ACWC Campaign to Promote ASEAN Convention Against Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children (ACTIP) and the 2018 ASEAN Conference on Juvenile Justice Reform to be led by Thailand in Bangkok, Thailand on 9-11 May 2018.
The Meeting conducted an interface with the Chair of ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) on areas of mutual interests and collaboration.
The Meeting also discussed the preparations for the half-day conference with ASEAN Dialogue Partners and Ambassadors affiliated with ASEAN to present ACWC and its Work Plan 2016-2020 on 28th March 2018 in Jakarta, Indonesia.
The 17th ACWC Meeting and the 5th ACWC-ACW Consultation Meeting will be held back-to-back with the 3rd AMMW and Related Meetings in September 2018 in Hanoi, Viet Nam.
PHUKET, 6-4 SEPTEMBER – The 15th Meeting of the ASEAN Commission on The Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children (ACWC) was held from 4th-6th September 2017 in Phuket, Thailand. The Meeting was hosted by the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security of Thailand.
The Meeting discussed the follow-up from the 14th Meeting in Jakarta, Indonesia and reviewed the status of implementation of projects of the ACWC Work Plan 2012-2016. A number of important projects have been completed such as the AICHR-ACWC Training Workshop on the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child by Singapore, the report on Institutional Strengthening of the ACWC by the Philippines and International Workshop and International Conference on Diversion through Restorative Justice by Thailand. At the Meeting, Thailand presented the public campaign video to stop violence against women for 2017. The Meeting congratulated Thailand and exchanged views on the ways forward to ensure the continuity of the public campaign, and engage other relevant ASEAN sectoral bodies such as SOMRI.
In addition, the Meeting approved the ACWC Work Plan 2016-2020. The representatives agreed on the new projects and activities that would be included in the ACWC Work Plan 2016-2020 to be submitted for approval. The projects that were approved are under the thematic areas of eliminating child marriage, awareness raising campaign on social impact of climate change on women and children, women, peace and security and women economic empowerment. These include Regional Dialogue on children bullying and abuse at schools by Viet Nam and online and the Women’s Economic Empowerment and ICT project by Cambodia.
The Meeting conducted an open session with Child Rights Coalition (CRC ASIA) who presented to the Meeting its organisation and proposed areas of partnership with ACWC with the focus on child protection. CRC ASIA encouraged further engagement of ACWC with civil society organizations (CSOs). Likewise, the meeting held an open session with UNICEF who shared with the Meeting the priority areas of collaboration with ACWC which are violence against children, child protection online, ASEAN integration and child rights, restorative justice and children and migration.
The Meeting also conducted an open session with UN WOMEN who expressed appreciation of a long-term partnership between UN WOMEN and ACWC and ensured stronger collaboration particularly in the areas of women economic empowerment, migration and elimination of violence against women through evidence and data-based policies and gender mainstreaming across the three pillars.
The Meeting also held an open session with Due Diligence Project who shared with the Meeting on the organization and mandates as well as expressed their interest to collaborate with ACWC especially on the capacity-building on elimination of violence against women and girls.
The 15th ACWC meeting discussed the draft declaration on the Gender-Responsive Implementation of the ASEAN Community Vision 2025 and the Sustainable Development Goals and the draft Joint Statement on Promoting Women, Peace and Security.
The 16th ACWC Meeting will be held in February 2018 in Jakarta, Indonesia.
The Fourteenth Meeting of the ASEAN Commission on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children (ACWC) was convened on 28 February – 2 March 2017 at the ASEAN Secretariat, Jakarta, Indonesia.
The Meeting reviewed the status of projects and activities under the ACWC Work Plan 2012-2016. The Meeting deliberated on several projects for completion this year, including the finalisation of the draft Progress Report on Gender Equality and Women’s Rights in ASEAN led by the Philippines and draft Baseline Study on Child Protection Systems in ASEAN Member States led by Indonesia, as well as on-going drafting of the Baseline Study on the Status of Child Participation in the ASEAN and ASEAN Member States also led by the Philippines.
The Meeting discussed ACWC’s cross-sectoral collaboration with other ASEAN bodies on key thematic issues, such as on gender mainstreaming across the ASEAN Community pillars with the ASEAN Committee on Women (ACW), on trafficking in persons with the Senior Officials Meeting on Transnational Crime (SOMTC), and on persons with disabilities with the ASEAN Inter-governmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) and Senior Officials Meeting on Social Welfare and Development (SOMSWD).
The Meeting discussed the alignment of the new ACWC Work Plan 2016-2020 with the implementation of the ASCC Blueprint 2025, specifically to ensure coherence with the Blueprint’s strategic measures. The Meeting agreed on the new projects and programmes that would be included in the ACWC Work Plan 2016-2020 and submitted to the ASEAN Ministers Meeting on Social Welfare and Development (AMMSWD) for support. Thethematic areas of the previous Work Plan remain relevant and will be continued. Several new projects were approved, such as the AICHR-ACWC Training Workshop on the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, Strengthening the Survivor for Preventing Trafficking in Persons (TIPs) in ASEAN, Advancing Gender, Peace and Security in ASEAN, and development of the Guidelines and Procedures to Address the Needs of TIP Victims in accordance with the ASEAN Convention Against TIPs Especially Women and Children (ACTIP).
The Meeting conducted an open session with Mdm. Marta Pais, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative on Violence Against Children (SRSG-VAC), to continue the partnership on implementing the ASEAN Regional Plan of Action on the Elimination of Violence Against Children (RPA on EVAC). Mdm. Marta Pais applauded ACWC involvement in the global campaign, “High Time to End Violence Against Children” movement, and its support to put children at the heart of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) implementation. Prior to that, she encouraged for greater commitment of the governments to place children at the heart of country’s development agenda. She also informed the meeting of the upcoming 7th Cross-Regional Roundtable on Violence Against Children scheduled on 6-8 June 2017 in Manila, which is co-organised by the Philippines as the ASEAN Chair, SRSG-VAC, and ASEAN Secretariat to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of ASEAN.The ACWC and Mdm. Marta Pais agreed on the importance of giving a greater attention on violence against children at the heart of implementing the SDGs as well as ASEAN Community Vision 2025.
The Meeting also conducted an open session with the Secretary-General of ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA), H.E.Isra Sunthornvut. He invited ACWC to collaborate on AIPA’s initiative to address the sexual exploitation of children in travel and tourism (SECTT). Highlighting the role of parliaments in crafting laws, the partnership presents an opportunity for both AIPA and ACWC to advocate for strengthening legal framework to address the issue.
The Meeting likewise conducted an open session with the U.S. Central Authority for the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction (the Hague Convention). H.E. Kimberly Kelly, Consul General of the U.S. Embassy to Jakarta, briefed the meeting on the features of the Hague Convention, its implementation, and its relevance and significance to ASEAN.
The Fifteenth ACWC Meeting is scheduled on 4-6 September 2017 in Phuket, Thailand.
Brunei Darussalam
Cambodia
Indonesia
Lao PDR
Malaysia
Myanmar
Philippines
Singapore
Thailand
Viet Nam
The Gender Sensitive Guideline for Handling Women Victims of Trafficking in Persons is one of the earlier work of the ASEAN Commission on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children (ACWC) in the implementation of the ACWC Work Plan of 2012-2016. The Guideline is brief and written in simple English so that it can easily be understood and carried around by practitioners as a source of reference in the performance of their duties.
SINGAPORE, 5 October 2016?-The Thirteenth Meeting of the ASEAN Commission on the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Women and Children (ACWC) was convened on 3-5 October 2016 in Singapore. Three Representatives for womens rights and three Representatives for childrens rights were welcomed as new Representatives from six Member States to succeed the previous ones who have completed their term of office. New ACWC Representatives are H.E. Hajah Misnah binti Haji Bolhassan from Brunei Darussalam, H.E. Doeuk Han from Cambodia, and H.E. Dr. Rose Lena Lazemi from Malaysia for womens rights, and H.E. Yuyum Fhahni Paryani from Indonesia, H.E. Dr. San San Aye from Myanmar, and H.E. Wanchai Roujanavong from Thailand for childrens rights. The Meeting was convened under the leadership of the new chairperson Mdm. Lily Dorianty Purba, ACWC Indonesia representative for womens rights.