Freedom of association is explicitly guaranteed in all leading human rights instruments, including Article 20 of the UDHR, Article 22 of the ICCPR, Article 16 of the ACHR , Article 10 of the ACHPR, and Article 11 of the ECHR.
The right to form and participate in trade unions, as a specific form of association, is also explicitly guaranteed in Article 8 of the ICESCR, as well as the ILO Convention of 1948 concerning Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organize (ILO Convention No 87) and the ILO Convention of 1949 concerning the Application of the Principles of the Right to Organize and Collective Bargaining (ILO Convention No 98).
The right to freedom of association is guaranteed by Article 24 of the Arab Charter on Human Rights; however, the Charter does not set the same internationally recognized standards for restrictions, therefore the global standards are recommended to be used in the relevant countries. The ASEAN human rights declaration, Article 27 (2), includes recognition of the freedom to form and join trade unions.
