Petition for national human rights commission
By Keith Lin
A GROUP of human rights activists on Sunday launched a petition calling for the setting up of a national human rights commission.
The call comes from SG Human Rights, a nine-member informal group set up in October following the July decision by Asean leaders to include a provision for a human rights body in the Asean Charter.
Its petition launch took place at the Speakers' Corner in Hong Lim Park and was one of several activities held around the island at the weekend to commemorate Human Rights day on Monday.
The day marks the anniversary of the United Nations General Assembly's adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights on Dec 10, 1948.
Founding member Chia Ti Lik, a lawyer and former Workers' Party member, said the group felt that more attention needed to be paid to human rights if Singapore was to become a truly first-world nation.
He hopes for an independent panel that would check human rights abuses and educate the public on human rights issues.
Read the full story in Monday's edition of The Straits Times.
http://www.straitstimes.com/Latest%2BNews/Singapore/STIStory_185114.html