The initial workshop for the ASEAN Human Rights Mechanism was assembled in Jakarta from 5th to 6th July 2001. It was co-hosted and organized by the ASEAN Human Rights Mechanism (Working Group), the Indonesian National Human Rights Commission (also known as KOMNAS HAM) and the Department of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia.

The main objective of ASEAN Human Rights Mechanism (Working Group) is to institute intergovernmental human rights commission. Therefore, AICHR (ASEAN Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights) was inaugurated in the ASEAN Summit of 2009, organized in Thailand. The ASEAN Human Rights Mechanism (Working Group) is an alliance of nationwide functioning groups from ASEAN states, which consists of legislatures from the NGOs, parliamentary human rights committees, government institutions, and the academy.