In a striking departure from traditional Asean diplomacy, a Malaysian representative to Asean called for a firm stand against human rights abusers, even if it means violating long-established conventions in the regional bloc.

Malaysia’s chair of the Asean Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR), Edmund Bon, delivered a forceful critique of what he described as a growing “dilution” or willful blindness of international human rights law...