Considering the vastness and cultural diversity of the region, a sub-regional arrangement such as among the South East Asian countries, has been initiated by non-governmental organizations more than a decade ago. The Regional Working Group (RWG) for the Establishment of an ASEAN Human Rights Mechanism has been engaging governments through the ASEAN to establish an intergovernmental human rights system and since then, there have been significant developments, starting from the Joint Communiqué of the ASEAN ministerial meeting of 1993, ASEAN vision to 2020, the Hanoi Plan of Action in 1998, the human rights provision of the Vientiane Action Programme, the adoption of the ASEAN security community plan of action, the ASEAN social and cultural plan of Action, as well as the adoption of the ASEAN declaration against trafficking in person, particularly women and children and the declaration on the elimination of violence against women in the ASEAN region. The current efforts to draft the ASEAN Charter open a window of opportunity for the inclusion of human rights in the charter agenda, which in the long run could lead to such human rights mechanism.

Yet, there is a need for more active engagement with actors in ASEAN to push for such a mechanism. Existing National Human Rights Commissions in the South East Asia, (Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand) play an important role in leveraging support among ASEAN governments to put the human rights provisions in the various declarations into concrete action.

Thus, the four (4) national human rights commissions agreed that they should have a regular forum to discuss practical and the most feasible actions to facilitate the process of establishing an ASEAN Human Rights Mechanism. This regular forum seeks to foster collaboration among the four Human Rights Commissions on measures to respond to human rights issues of common concern or with inter-border implications; international terrorism; trafficking in persons (particularly women and children); migrant workers; economic, social and cultural rights and the right to development; and human rights education.

During the 4th Consultative Meeting of the National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs) of Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, and Thailand in January 2008 in Manila, Philippines, they agreed to adopt "ASEAN NHRI Forum" as the official name by which they shall be collectively known.