Maqāṣid al-Syarī‘ah and the Reinterpretation of Human Rights in ASEAN: An Ethical and Contextual Approach to the Universality of Human Rights

Abstract

The discourse on human rights in Southeast Asia often faces tensions between claims of universality and the complexity of local contexts, which are steeped in cultural and religious values. The ASEAN Human Rights Declaration (AHRD), as a regional instrument, reflects efforts to ground human rights within collective norms and the principle of non-intervention, yet it remains subject to criticism for being perceived as overly compromising towards national interests. In this context, maqāṣid al-syarī‘ah—as an ethical-philosophical principle in Islamic law that emphasises the common good and the protection of basic human rights—offers an alternative approach capable of bridging global norms and local realities without being relativistic. This study aims to evaluate the potential of maqāṣid as a framework for reinterpreting human rights in ASEAN in a more ethical, contextual, and spiritual manner. The research method used is juridical-normative with a conceptual and comparative approach, through a textual study of the AHRD, international human rights documents, and human rights policies in Muslim ASEAN countries (Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei). The results of the study show that maqāṣid can be used as a normative foundation for assessing and formulating human rights policies that do not conflict with local values and religiosity, while upholding universal dignity and justice. Beyond mere compatibility, maqāṣid enables the formulation of a more dialogical, integrative, and sustainable human rights model, and offers a novelty in the form of an ethical-conceptual formulation of regional human rights based on maqāṣid that can enrich the normative architecture of ASEAN.