From Market Access to Substantive Equality: Social Reproduction and Human Rights in ASEAN-Related Free Trade Agreements

Free trade agreements (FTAs) are rarely analysed as human-rights-relevant instruments. This article examines selected ASEAN-related FTAs through Fredman’s four-dimensional substantive equality framework: redressing disadvantage, countering stereotyping, enhancing participation and enabling structural change. Social reproduction theory specifies why care, dependency and social protection matter for rights enjoyment. Using comparative doctrinal analysis of six treaty cases, contextualised by an archived inventory of 126 initiatives, the article finds social protection and gender provisions alongside uneven institutional responsibility and follow-up. It proposes equality-oriented design principles for trade governance, distinguishing existing cooperation powers from reforms requiring agreement and making no claims about observed welfare outcomes.