Rights Beautiful Collection of Professor Saneh Chamarik Community Rights in Global Perspective* -Saneh Chamarik- Introduction Let me first of all express my deep gratitude for the honour of addressing this highly important III MMSEA conference. It is indeed a rare opportunity for myself to learn and be associated with the distinguished participants here who are in the know, actually a great deal more so than I. In this regard, may I also convey my everlasting thanks to all the Thai friends and colleagues as well as Dr. David Thomas for their kind support and collaboration in bringing me up into this realm of creative down-to-earth learning. That was a most refreshing experience, still vivid in my mind with a kind of intellectual uplifting for me as student of politics. I am glad they also take an active part in this forum right from the beginning with Chiangmai conferences some seven years ago. One only hopes all these persistent and continuing efforts will eventually bear fruits in fulfilling the common people’s aspiration to be free to live their own lives with dignity. Looking over the scheduled agendas, it is obvious that practically everything is well taken care of. On my part and with all due respect, I only wish in my small way to add something to enlarge the scope of our thought. It is not about the body of knowledge and expertise as such which I shall have nothing to contribute to, but concerning the ways and means of social learning on the local people’s part. I am sure this is the * Keynote delivered at the III MMSEA (Montane Mainland Southeast Asia) Conference, Yunnan, 25 – 28 August 2002. OFFICE OF THE NATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION OF THAILAND 23