Journal of SouthEast Asian Human Rights
The Journal of Southeast Asian Human Rights (JSEAHR) explores human rights realities in South East Asian region from various perspectives. The JSEAHR is a peer-reviewed journal co-organized by the Indonesian Consortium for Human Rights Lecturers (SEPAHAM Indonesia) and the Centre for Human Rights, Multiculturalism, and Migration (CHRM2) University of Jember. The Journal welcomes empirical, multi-disciplinary, and doctrinal approaches to explore historical and recent situation of human rights in South East Asia. The combination of editorial board members from South East Asia, Europe, and Japan creates a unique forum for South East Asian and other scholars to exchange ideas of interest about human rights issues in the region.
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<![CDATA[Shrinking Space for Free Expression in Cambodia during Covid-19 ]]>
<![CDATA[Kate Seewald]]>
<![CDATA[ Journal of Southeast Asian Human Rights Vol 4 No 1 (2020): June 2020 ]]>
Publisher : <![CDATA[Jember University Press ]]>
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DOI: 10.19184/jseahr.v4i1.18093
<![CDATA[In Covid-19, a vast number of countries have faced their biggest public health crisis in a century. For many such countries, the pandemic has emerged at a critical juncture following consecutive years of so-called democratic backsliding, where political space has narrowed and fundamental freedoms are under increasing threat. This trend is particularly observable within hybrid regimes under “Strongman” rule. A question posed by the Covid-19 crisis is the extent to which such regimes are taking advantage of the pandemic in order to hastily usher in new restrictions on human rights. Such leaders, it has been claimed, are actively capitalising on the crisis to further cement their rule, and to rapidly stock their arsenals with weapons of “lawfare” to more efficiently quash current or future dissent. A secondary, related question is the extent to which such accusations are being unfairly levelled against leaders of hybrid regimes for taking steps that liberal democracies are also taking without the same level of scrutiny from international observers. After all, the legitimate limitation by states of citizens’ exercise of their rights in times of exception is a norm firmly set out in international law. This article uses a case study of Cambodia, focusing on the impact of its Covid-19 response on the exercise of free expression. Applying the “three-part test,” it analyses whether Cambodia’s response falls within the permissible restrictions on freedom of expression during a time of normalcy (given Cambodia, at the time of writing, has not declared a state of emergency). It then also assesses whether Cambodia’s newly promulgated Emergency Law should be seen as a clear case of a hybrid regime exploiting Covid-19 to hasten restrictions on rights, or whether the criticism levelled against it is excessive, given the constitutional basis for such legislation and the critical nature of the Covid-19 pandemic.]]>
<![CDATA[The Right to Health in Evidence-based Policymaking ]]>
<![CDATA[Farah Purwaningrum]]>;
<![CDATA[Fiona McDonald]]>;
<![CDATA[Stephanie Doris Short]]>
<![CDATA[ Journal of Southeast Asian Human Rights Vol 4 No 1 (2020): June 2020 ]]>
Publisher : <![CDATA[Jember University Press ]]>
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DOI: 10.19184/jseahr.v4i1.14088
<![CDATA[The right to health is included in United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) number 3, “Good health and well-being”. This goal aims to ensure healthy life and to promote well-being for all, at all ages. The SDGs, which build on the Millennial Development Goals (MDGs), provide a significant expansion to the development agenda. Inclusive development is part and parcel of the SDGs. Evidence-based policymaking studies provide explanations of normative and legitimate expectations for policymakers, namely, to use scientific evidence and specific indicators in their policymaking process. The right to health, as constructed, in evidence-based policymaking discourse is in contention. This paper addresses the various types of meaning Indonesian policymakers attach to the right to health through their discourses in norms of health policy. This study provides an analysis of discourses, regulatory analysis, and historical narratives (based on analysis of health regulations and newspaper articles) pertaining to evidence-informed policy in the health sector in Indonesia from 2009-2017. Our findings elucidate how the right to health manifests in the processes of evidence-based policymaking. We do so by way of a two-pronged analysis, i) discourse analysis at the macro level in Indonesia about the right to health as a norm and ii) health policymaking at the micro level, in the Indonesian district of Gunungkidul,within the region of Yogyakarta.]]>
<![CDATA[A Comparative Analysis of the Status of Homosexual Men in Indonesia and the Philippines ]]>
<![CDATA[Ellisiah Uy Jocson]]>;
<![CDATA[Wisnu Adihartono]]>
<![CDATA[ Journal of Southeast Asian Human Rights Vol 4 No 1 (2020): June 2020 ]]>
Publisher : <![CDATA[Jember University Press ]]>
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DOI: 10.19184/jseahr.v4i1.12810
<![CDATA[Gender related discrimination has increased pervasively, especially as the fight for equality and acceptance takes center stage in the past few years. Women persistently demand the right to stand equally with men, and likewise, the Lesbian, Gay, Bi-Sexual, Transgender, Queer and Intersex Community (LGBTQI) seek the same equity. However, responses to gender and sexuality issues vary greatly across the world. The LGBTQI population is also difficult to determine given the intolerance of some Countries towards this community. On the topic of homosexuality, attitudes and presumptions prevail and act as barriers in acceptance of the ‘gay’ community. These obstacles hail from a multitude of concerns, spanning the areas of culture, religion and ethnicity, amongst others. This study seeks to analyze and determine the treatment of homosexual men in two multicultural countries: Indonesia and the Philippines. Repeated reports of gay suppression in Indonesia are a stark contrast to the seemingly high tolerance that gay people enjoy in the Philippines. This paper outlines the causes of these opposing treatments for gay communities in Indonesia and the Philippines.]]>
<![CDATA[Poor PLS of Security Sector Reform and Its Impacts on Human Rights and Civil-Military Relations in Indonesia ]]>
<![CDATA[Poltak Partogi Nainggolan]]>;
<![CDATA[Riris Katharina]]>
<![CDATA[ Journal of Southeast Asian Human Rights Vol 4 No 1 (2020): June 2020 ]]>
Publisher : <![CDATA[Jember University Press ]]>
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DOI: 10.19184/jseahr.v4i1.13597
<![CDATA[As emerging democracy, Indonesia is facing a formidable challenge from its Parliament whose capacity in conducting Post-Legislative Scrutiny is weak; this could prevent the country from fulfilling democratic consolidation. The country’s failure in fulfilling its democratic consolidation two decades after Soeharto’s resignation can bring it back to the authoritarian era as it has experienced only two years after the first 1955 democratic election until 1998. Applying an empirical research by directly observing PLS in the Indonesian parliament and using a qualitative method of analysis, this essay discussed the causes and repercussions of the parliament’s poor capability, which have brought the country into current setback, facing resistances from the old establishment that has made the military unable to continue reform and to change its political culture. Therefore, the Indonesian military still wants to involve in civilian affairs and businesses by making a more flexible interpretation of Military Operations Other Than War, on the one side. While, on the other, TNI’s existing culture of violence has led it to many alleged cases of gross human rights violations which could not be prosecuted until recently. In fact, Indonesian Members of Parliament’s poor capability and DPR’s weak supporting system give more complexity to the country in its struggle and success to be the third biggest democracy in the world.]]>
<![CDATA[Parliaments in Europe Engaging in Post-legislative Scrutiny ]]>
<![CDATA[Elena Griglio]]>;
<![CDATA[Nicola Lupo]]>
<![CDATA[ Journal of Southeast Asian Human Rights Vol 4 No 1 (2020): June 2020 ]]>
Publisher : <![CDATA[Jember University Press ]]>
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DOI: 10.19184/jseahr.v4i1.18017
<![CDATA[Post-legislative scrutiny (PLS) is not completely new to European parliamentarism. In the last few decades, this activity has experienced rapid development, either pushed by supranational trends on better regulation or fostered by national constitutional reforms. However, the involvement of parliaments in the ex post stage of law-making still remains under-theorised. This article aims at providing a comparative overview of the main rules, practices and trends on post-legislative scrutiny in Europe, focusing on the experience of three bicameral Parliaments: the French, Italian and Swiss Parliaments which have been selected as examples of three proactive approaches to post-legislative scrutiny, based on alternative bicameral arrangements. After providing a general overview of the main options that support the involvement of parliaments in the ex-post stage of law-making, the article examines how the benchmark case studies address the following variables: the internal organisation of the ex-post scrutiny, including the role of the administrative staff; the scrutiny object, either referred to single pieces of legislation or to a whole policy; the scope of the ex-post scrutiny, verifying whether it is interpreted as a purely legal dimension or it comprises also forms of impact assessment; the outcomes of the ex-post scrutiny, and more specifically its contribution to the legislative decision-making. The paper demonstrates that PLS in parliament may lead to political outcomes addressing the government when the form of government, the constitutional framework and the party dimension support a competitive use of this tool in the legislative-executive interaction.]]>
<![CDATA[Does Indonesian COVID-19 Emergency Law Secure Rule of Law and Human Rights? ]]>
<![CDATA[Herlambang Perdana Wiratraman]]>
<![CDATA[ Journal of Southeast Asian Human Rights Vol 4 No 1 (2020): June 2020 ]]>
Publisher : <![CDATA[Jember University Press ]]>
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DOI: 10.19184/jseahr.v4i1.18244
<![CDATA[President Joko Widodo announced a public health emergency at the end of March 2020. This policy demonstrates denial, too late and limited in responding to the spread of Covid-19. On the other hand, the state security approach during the pandemic has pressured civil liberties, especially criticisms against government policies. This phenomenon is not a new development in Indonesia whereby attacks on freedom of expression and academic freedom are common. This article analyses how the COVID-19 health emergency situation is handled by the government from the perspective of human rights law standards and the rule of law. This article argues the Indonesian COVID-19 emergency law violates many guarantees of legal protection under the rule of law standard. It is apparent how the issue of human rights has not yet become an effective strategy or approach in this non-natural disaster emergency situation.]]>
<![CDATA[Post-legislative Scrutiny (PLS) in the Process of Democratic Transition in Malaysia ]]>
<![CDATA[Khoo Ying Hooi]]>
<![CDATA[ Journal of Southeast Asian Human Rights Vol 4 No 1 (2020): June 2020 ]]>
Publisher : <![CDATA[Jember University Press ]]>
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DOI: 10.19184/jseahr.v4i1.13591
<![CDATA[Malaysia’s 14th general election in 2018 saw the fall of the Barisan Nasional (BN) regime after ruling the country for more than six decades. Prior to the election, Malaysia faced challenges ranging from the absence of state legitimacy, fragile institutions to corruption scandals, leaving little room to have robust discourse on legislative reforms. Promise 16 of the Pakatan Harapan (PH) election manifesto prior to the election, pledges to restore the dignity of Parliament to institutionalize the select committee system in Parliament and the Senate to enable them to function effectively. Whilst there is limited post-legislative scrutiny (PLS) in Malaysia for now, the various reforms in the phase of democratic transition to the administration of PH is a positive sign of the possibility for Malaysia to move into better law-making procedures. This paper examines the work that is currently being undertaken in the Parliament of Malaysia to assess whether the current parliamentary reforms can pave the way for the PLS mechanism to be put in place.]]>
<![CDATA[The Implications of the NGO Law on the Right to Freedom of Association of Human Rights Defenders in Cambodia ]]>
<![CDATA[Boravin Tann]]>
<![CDATA[ Journal of Southeast Asian Human Rights Vol 4 No 1 (2020): June 2020 ]]>
Publisher : <![CDATA[Jember University Press ]]>
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DOI: 10.19184/jseahr.v4i1.13397
<![CDATA[The right to freedom of association is of particular importance for human rights defenders. Freedom of association is an indispensable agent for human rights change that permits human rights defenders to maintain their civic space and pursue their mission in promoting and protecting rights and fundamental freedoms in a democratic society. In the current legal and political climate, human rights defenders face increasing challenges in the exercise of their freedom of association and other nexus rights vis-à-vis fulfilling their mission to advocate for other peoples’ rights. The Law on Associations and Non-Government Organizations, also known as LANGO, marks a significant turning point for the de jure and de facto exercise of the freedom of association, in particular for the most vocal and active human rights defenders and human rights organizations in Cambodia. This article first explores core elements, limitations and state obligations concerning the right to freedom of association provided by the international human rights treaties that Cambodia has ratified. It further examines key provisions of LANGO regarding the right to freedom of association of human rights defenders. It highlights that LANGO presents a critical challenge to the freedom of association due to its fundamental flaws, ambiguities and inconsistencies concerning its provisions on establishment, operation and suspension or dissolution of associations. This article concludes that LANGO offers extensive regulatory guidelines for all associations and NGOs in Cambodia; yet it also trigger concerns not due to the details, but the lack thereof which could undermine the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of association and other universally recognized human rights and fundamental freedoms in Cambodia as a whole.]]>
<![CDATA[Applying Post-Legislative Scrutiny to the Analysis of Legislation and SDGs in South and Southeast Asia ]]>
<![CDATA[Franklin de Vrieze]]>;
<![CDATA[Fotios Fitsilis]]>
<![CDATA[ Journal of Southeast Asian Human Rights Vol 4 No 1 (2020): June 2020 ]]>
Publisher : <![CDATA[Jember University Press ]]>
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DOI: 10.19184/jseahr.v4i1.17611
<![CDATA[Post-Legislative Scrutiny (PLS) is an emerging oversight technique which is applied by parliaments to scrutinise implementation and impact of specific laws or legal frameworks. This article takes stock of PLS practices in countries in South and Southeast Asia and argues that PLS can also be used to scrutinise complex processes at the national or supra-national level, such as the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). First, a wide introduction and the state of play in PLS is provided, with reference to different parliamentary and development approaches emerging from the application of PLS in parliaments worldwide, followed by two specific case studies: the law on microfinance in Myanmar and the law on social practice reform in Nepal. The examination of these case studies offers insights about the application of scrutiny techniques in different parliaments. The outcome of the analysis is used to respond to the main research question of this contribution: whether PLS techniques can be applied for the oversight of extended processes, as is the case with the implementation of SDGs. For this, details of the first world study on parliamentary oversight of SDGs are presented, with a regional focus on South and Southeast Asia. The results seem to support the authors’ claim that PLS as a technique can facilitate oversight both of specific legal provisions and complex multi-stakeholder processes, such as the monitoring of SDGs.]]>
<![CDATA[The Legislators’ Engagement in Policy-making and Post-legislative Scrutiny in Nepal Since 1991 ]]>
<![CDATA[Sanjaya Mahato]]>;
<![CDATA[Rupesh Kumar Sah]]>;
<![CDATA[Pooja Chaudhary]]>
<![CDATA[ Journal of Southeast Asian Human Rights Vol 4 No 1 (2020): June 2020 ]]>
Publisher : <![CDATA[Jember University Press ]]>
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DOI: 10.19184/jseahr.v4i1.17231
<![CDATA[Parliament enacts legislation and has a role to evaluate the implementation of legislation in meeting the intended outcomes. Post-legislative scrutiny (PLS) identifies defective legislation and rectifies it. As such, it contributes to better legislation and implementation of legislation objectives. However, this requires a strong commitment by the parliamentarians in the legislation process and policymaking. Along with a range of structural factors, including lack of expertise and experience and time constraints, the main reasons for the ineffective post-legislative review in Nepal stem from the Member of Parliaments’ (MPs) shallow engagement in policy-making and legislative review processes and stronger focus on expanding expenditure related to building roads, schools, and other vital infrastructure. For example, the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) provided to MPs has been continuously increased in consecutive elections since 1991. MPs appear to prioritize the political benefits of engaging with their electorate on funding and development projects, over their role in reviewing or scrutinizing legislation. This paper argues that the shallow engagement of MPs in the policy-making process and ineffective post-legislative review has resulted in not only defective and unsustainable policies but also defective legislation. This has created problems in the rule of law and accountability. This paper largely draws from reviewing contributions of delegated legislation committee for rule of law, evaluates the implementation of the committee recommendations in improving legislation and analyse the effects of noncompliance of committees’ recommendations in people’s justice.]]>
