ASEAN will take an evolutionary approach to human rights, said Foreign Minister George Yeo, as he made clear that the regional human rights body due to be set up later this year will not mark the end of the journey.

In a written answer to a Parliamentary question from Nominated MP Siew Kum Hong on Monday, Mr Yeo stressed that the current terms of reference for the human rights body was not meant to 'exhaustively determine every single detail of Asean's approach to human rights in advance'.

He said: 'Over time, the body will have to build up its own practices and positions in a way analogous to case law. Ultimately, the effectiveness of the Asean human rights body will depend, not just on the terms of reference but on our evolution as an Asean Community and our growing sense of a common destiny.'

Mr Siew had asked for Singapore's position on the terms of reference, a document which, among other things, outlines the purpose, structure and scope of the body. He also asked for an update on the work of the High Level Panel tasked with hammering out those details.

In his reply, Mr Yeo said the panel had submitted the first draft of the terms of reference to foreign ministers during the Asean Summit in Thailand in February.

There the foreign ministers agreed that the human rights body should be launched at the next Asean Summit, to be held in October.

If that target is met, it would mark the culmination of a process that started more than 15 years ago when Asean leaders first agreed to work on a common approach to human rights. Progress has been slow due to disagreements among Asean member states.

Mr Yeo stressed that the path ahead would be no easier, as views among the 10 Asean countries are still polarised.

'This diversity is a political reality that cannot be wished away. Some Asean member States preferred a body which is less intrusive because they believe that Western countries and NGOs might manipulate it to interfere in their domestic politics. Others made the opposite argument, that a robust and credible human rights body will help us address this issue on our own terms,' he explained.

But the Foreign Minister stressed that he was 'not pessimistic' about the prospects of the human rights body.

He said: 'I hope the High Level Panel will be able to improve the terms of reference. We will certainly try. But we should not forget that this is a very delicate negotiation where every word and every comma has been and will continue to be carefully scrutinised and debated before being agreed.'

'The final document will be a political compromise. So it will not be a perfect document, but a document that reflects the current state of consensus on human rights in Asean at a particular time,' he added.