Activists lamenting they had been snubbed by half of the governments involved in the drawing up of the ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR) walked out of its inauguration event in protest.

Meanwhile, Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said in his speech that ASEAN member states would provide US$200,000 as a start-up fund to support the commission's first-year activities.

"We hope more *funding* will be forthcoming, from within and outside ASEAN to assure that the necessary resources do not fall short of the high expectations that we all have placed upon AICHR," he said.

"AICHR is not an end in itself but an evolutionary process towards strengthening the human rights architecture within the region."

The commission consists of representatives from the 10 ASEAN country members.

Indonesian representative for AICHR Rafendi Djamin said the adoption of human rights as one of the founding principles of the ASEAN Charter - a radical turnaround compared to four years ago when human rights were still taboo in diplomatic talks among country members - was an improvement.

"This is a relatively significant development in the context of ASEAN," he said. "This is what Indonesia has been struggling for during the deliberation of the AICHR in the high level panel for the past year."

Rafendi said the decision to also endorse the principle of non-interference and give the body a protection mandate deemed to be weak had been subject to criticism.

Malaysian human rights activist Yap Swee Seng, also executive director of the Thailand-based Asia Forum, said that with most representatives appointed by their respective governments rather than transparently elected by an independent team like representatives from Indonesia and Thailand, the independence of the commission would be jeopardized.

"The commission will also be funded by ASEAN and its budget approved by ASEAN too. It will only raise doubts about the commission's ability to operate independently," Yap said.

The governments of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Singapore and the Philippines refused to meet with civil society representatives as previously scheduled. In response, activists from Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia walked out of the meeting in protest.

The exclusion of activists from the summit - held under the motto of "Empowering the Peoples" - also drew fire from a leading international human rights group.

"This confirms our worst fears, because an intergovernmental body has always been second best, but an intergovernmental body that won't even talk to its own citizens is a joke, and worthless," said Brad Adams, Asia director of the New York-based Human Rights Watch, as quoted by Reuters.

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