Rights Beautiful Collection of Professor Saneh Chamarik all along. For, as the Thai NHRC’s own experiences can tell, effective human rights protection and promotion depends in the final analysis on the society’s capacity to defend itself. And this, I am sure, is true of all the others. Otherwise, human rights institutions, so-called, would end up turning into an exclusive politics of elitism that serves no useful and positive purpose in terms of human progress. So I would urge this forum, if I may, that this vital part of the concept paper be put on the agenda of action. To get the ball rolling, the national human rights commissions, academic communities, and civil society groups are to be mobilized into networking. Mind you, this is not just for the purpose of facilitating contacts or exchange of ideas and experiences for their own sake, but for real, concrete and relevant action. One would rather not to go into lists of activities involved here. But, to serve as the basis for human rights capacity building, a certain common groundwork could very well be looked into here, taking into account the perceived common needs of the Southeast Asian peoples. First and foremost, promote freedom of thought and expression. This may sound commonplace enough! And of course we can take it for granted for the middle classes and those in the modern sector. But, believe me, it is so vitally important in the context of our Southeast Asia where traditional authoritarianism prevails, especially among poor and marginalized people in both urban and rural areas. More often than not, they have been deprived of appropriate means of livelihood and self-development, as a result of the so-called economic development in which Western-styled industrialization takes the topmost priority. All this is well known and comes to be recognized by the international economic and financial institutions like the World Bank and the IMF. There is so much talk about poverty eradication and sustainable development lately, whatever that means. But that is about all. From the standpoint of establishments, the solution could at best be seen in the manner of welfare, or lately “social safety net” in the World Bank’s jargon with holier-than-thou posture. All of which is in defense 6 OFFICE OF THE NATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION OF THAILAND