Their representatives spoke to The Nation after attending an event at Government House, which heavily promoted human rights as a national agenda. “The right to justice and redress, political participation, inclusion of marginalised, disempowered and excluded groups, respect for fundamental freedoms and the rule of law are practical necessities for successfully mainstreaming human rights,” said Cynthia Veliko, regional representative of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights for Southeast Asia. “We hope that the current restrictions on fundamental freedoms, including on freedom of expression, opinion and assembly, will be lifted with urgency to allow for its successful implementation,” she added. “The EU places great importance on the promotion and protection of human rights all over the world and we are always encouraged when our partners commit to upholding these universal principles,” said Pirkka Tapiola, ambassador to the European Union Delegation to Thailand. “We will continue to engage constructively with Thailand on this.”“The announcement of this national human-rights policy is encouraging.

Source: The Nation Bangkok February 13, 2018 00:00 UTC