That "thousand flowers may bloom" is the spirit in which the ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS CHARTER -- a people's charter is offered. That there should be a state-sponsored human rights charter and that this would come about only through the efforts of the Asian people themselves are two premises that have been discussed by many persons and groups for over a long period of time. The reluctance and even the resistance of the Asian governments to discuss and agree on a human rights charter is well-known. In fact, Asia is the only region in the world where several governments has raised the objection to human rights to an ideological level. The "Asian Values" debate is quite well-known.

In this context the resistance to the ideological stance of the Asian governments against human rights has been lead mainly by the Asian people's organizations, NGOs and intellectuals. For people to express their views no authority need to be taken from the state. People's autonomy and the autonomy of the civil society are fundamental ideas and does not depend on any need for an authority. Moral conviction is the only authority on which the people's expression of opinions is based.

Consensus of the people can only be achieved by open debate in which all persons are invited to participate. This process must be open and as much advertised as possible. The process leading to the ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS CHARTER was one which was totally open to all persons and groups and as much advertised as possible within the limited resources available. The process has taken over 4 years and the Charter was repeatedly sent back to thousands of organizations and persons for comments and suggestions.

A process of achieving people's consensus in the whole Asian continent can only be done through various stages. This ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS CHARTER is another significant stage of working towards such consensus. The persons and organizations who have participated in this process does not claim this Charter as a final product. This Charter is offered for the purpose of taking the debate further and taking the debate to as many more persons as possible. Tens of thousands of copies of this Charter which are being distributed in English as well as in local languages is an attempt to reach a far wider audience than it had ever been attempted on a document of this nature in the Asian region. The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) have played and will play only a role of a facilitator. This document does not derive its authority from the AHRC or any other organization. The document's source of strength are the thousands of people who have read the document and a very large number of people who have been intimately linked in the 4-year consultation and drafting process. A number of people who are so connected with the process is quite representative from the point of view of different nations, different identities, different genders and different view points. As it is said before, such a process could never be exhaustive enough. The purpose of the declaration of this Charter is to seek greater publicity for this endeavor and to get many thousands of others involved in this debate. So far it has been a mass education exercise. We hope with this declaration it shall be even greater mass exercise. In this context the AHRC has not harbored any petty consideration of credit for itself. If credit is due for this Charter, it is due to thousands of persons who have voluntarily, spontaneously and with great generosity have participated in this process. And we hope that everyone else too would respond with that same spirit of equanimity and same determination to pursue the human rights of the Asian peoples. We hope that as a result of this effort a greater consensus will emerge and even a better document or documents of this nature will emerge from collective efforts of groups of Asian people. We also hope that the pressure generated in this way will intensify to bring about a state-sponsored Asian Human Rights Charter which will measure up to the expectations of the Asian peoples and in keeping with the international norms of human rights contained in the UN instruments of human rights.

This ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS CHARTER – a People’s Charter is an important landmark in a thousands miles journey for the achievement of human rights of the Asian people.