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Preparing a good and credible report on the country's human rights record is a daunting task, which every UN member must go through these days.

But in Thailand, the process is more difficult and complicated because human rights issues are handled by three key agencies - the Justice Ministry, Attorney-General's Office and Social Welfare and Human Security Ministry. The Foreign Ministry is responsible for the final report.

It is imperative for the government to set up an inter-agency task force to coordinate and collate the report from all concerned agencies, including the National Human Rights Commission and civil society groups dealing with human rights.

Thailand took seven years to prepare its first human rights report for submission to the UN in July 2005. At that time extrajudicial killings of drug suspects and insurgents in southern Thailand, as well as enforced disappearances, were the red herrings.

Thailand's delegates had to answer questions regarding the country's human rights records for the first time at a UN forum.

In the past, the UN human rights commission was often criticised for its selectivity and double standards in responding to the situation of human rights within countries. So the UN General Assembly created a new mechanism in 2006 through resolution 60/251 that required all 192 member countries to be reviewed.

In this process, the new Human Rights Council will examine a country report prepared by the government, a UN report outlining key findings by UN agencies, and treaty bodies on the human rights situation in Thailand and a report summarising civil society submissions highlighting key grassroots issues.

Thailand is in the last group (12th session) of the four-year cycle (2008-2011). Indonesia and the Philippines were the first two Asean members that were examined last year. Malaysia went through the same review last month. In May, Vietnam will be next, followed by Brunei and Cambodia later in the year.

Laos' human rights record is up for a closer look in the middle of next year followed by Burma. Singapore and Thailand will be the last two Asean countries up for peer review in 2011 before the UNHRC starts its second four-year cycle.

During the human rights sessions of Indonesia and the Philippines last year, their delegates were asked questions related to the rights of women and children, fighting poverty, efforts to combat terrorism and respect for the rights of migrant workers, among others.

The same issues popped up at Malaysia's human rights review in early February, coupled with the impact of its notorious Internal Security Act. As part of the responses, Thailand welcomed the constructive participation of Malaysia in human rights in Asean and the Organisation of the Islamic Conference.

Bangkok also praised Kuala Lumpur for its efforts to promote and protect vulnerable groups including women, children and people with disabilities.

Thailand recommended that special attention should be given to capacity building for public officers. Obviously these comments by the Asean members were reflective of their own relative strengths and weakness. The review system allows interactive responses from members and observers.

In the case of Thailand, similar issues and questions will surface. Additional topics such as lese majeste and the treatment of the Rohingyas and other migrant workers will certainly be brought up.

In the four years since the first UN human rights report, no major improvement in human rights has been achieved. For instance, despite Thailand's ratification of the UN Treaty Against Torture in 2007, the practice still continues, leading to the death of Imam Yapa Kaseng last March and three dozen lesser-known cases.

Furthermore, our country has a disgusting record in enforced disappearances. It is not the number that counts, as other countries have a lot more. Instead, it is the lack of accountability and moral courage to state that the 35 missing persons officially reported to the UN since 1992, including Somchai Neelaphaichit, are dead.

Although Thailand has one of the world's leading human rights experts, Prof Vitit Muntrabhorn of Chulalongkorn University, human rights expertise at the government and non-government levels is mediocre at best.

Top priority should be given to capacity building for persons investigating, collecting, archiving data and doing cross analysis.

After the establishment of the National Human Rights Commission in 1997, an annual report on the Thai human rights condition has been compulsory. Only one report was released three years ago.

Insufficient numbers of capable persons to write the report in Thai and English is and will remain the main barrier in coming years. Various UN agencies have expertise and training programmes that can improve our capacity greatly. We should not shy away from these resources.

The Abhisit Vejjajiva-led government has put a high premium on human rights. Despite the PM's strong conviction and public pronouncements on the protection of human rights and freedom of expression, authorities at various levels continue to turn a blind eye to infringements.

In all the overseas trips he has made so far, he was asked the same questions over and over again on lese majeste and online censorship.

Without a drastic turnaround, these human rights abuses will be featured in the report om 2011, one way or another.

The prime minister has to be extraordinarily vigilant with law enforcement officials. He must not leave any room for ambiguity. Otherwise, when the time comes for the peer review, whether he is still the prime minister, his name will be ostracised and condemned.