Book excerpt: Many publications dealing with human rights contain a wealth of materials from the United Nations, Europe, and even the Inter-American and African regional human rights systems, but none cover the geographical region which encompasses Asian and Pacific states. The collection of documents contained in this volume is an attempt to rectify this situation. A unique reference tool to those with an interest in human rights in Asia and the Pacific, be they students of law, Asian studies or international relations, or lawyers or researchers using human rights materials, this volume contains various inter-governmental and non-governmental documents, as well as a section on numerous human rights organisations and resources. Despite the Asia-Pacific area now being the world's only region without a human rights instrument, the volume of constitutional provisions, treaty provisions, governmental and non-governmental declarations on human rights as well as other types of relevant documents is very substantial, putting to lie the argument that human rights are of little concern or secondary to other considerations. This huge amount of material has made it necessary to edit certain documents to their most essential elements. Other documents are included in their entirety where they are deemed to be of particular significance.