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************************************************************** Liberal Times Manila A monthly newsletter of the Friedrich-Naumann-Foundation’s Philippine Office ************************************************************** Ladies and Gentlemen, dear friends of the Friedrich-Naumann-Foundation, 29/10/2004 there has been quite a lot of strategizing in the liberal family recently. Following what is perceived as a significant strategic planning workshop of the Liberal Party in late July the National Institute for Policy Studies (NIPS) held a strategic planning session in Batangas City in late September. There, the organization accentuated its role as “an independent think-tank providing policy support to the Liberal Party in order to realize the liberal vision for the Philippines.” The educational formation of LP members and supporters was highlighted as a core activity. It is in this field that the liberal foundation and the liberal think tank have been cooperating over the years and intend to continue doing so in the future. While strategic planning is essential for advancing one’s objectives, the best plan is worthless if it is not implemented. This was one of the issues at a joint session of the FNF’s Philippine staff with the NIPS board earlier this week at which we discussed programs and activities for the rest of the year and 2005. Beyond a series of basic orientation workshops on liberal democracy, NIPS and the liberal Foundation intend to cooperate regarding training sessions and seminars on the side-lines of the National Congress for the Young Liberals of the Philippines (Kalipi) slated for late November in Roxas City. Go to www.nips.org.ph for more information. Meanwhile, our office has been fairly busy these days coordinating a major international activity … far away. The Young Leaders’ Workshop of the Young Liberals and Democrats of Asia (YLDA) will be held next week in Kathmandu/Nepal. Young liberal activists from more than a dozen Asian countries will convene in the capital of the mountain kingdom to deal with the theme “Liberalism and Fundamentalism” and hold their Annual General Meeting. YLDA has just set up what may be termed the rudiments of a permanent secretariat at the joint FNF-CALD-premises in Makati City. This, once more, underscores the role of Manila as a hub of liberal networking in the wider region. For more info on YLDA and the upcoming activities go to www.yldasia.org. Earlier this month I was invited to Taipei for a series of meetings on how best to promote democracy in Asia. To my knowledge, this get-together of democracy activists and political party representatives was the first of its kind in Asia to be organized and fully sponsored by an Asian organization: the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy. Regrettably, democracy assistance and promotion in this part of the world has thus far been the exclusive domain of players from outside the region, mainly North America and Western Europe. In a commentary, excerpts of which are attached to this note, I argue that it is time that this is changed and the wealthy East Asian democracies, namely South Korea and Japan, take a lead. The full text of my commentary as well as other liberal writings may be found at http://www.fnf.org.ph/liberalopinion/2004-10-19-spreaddemocracy.htm Finally, I wish to announce that two new staff members have joined the FNF-team in Manila. Find out more about our new colleagues and their responsibilities at http://www.fnf.org.ph/index.htm Thank you and kind regards, Dr. Ronald Meinardus ************************************************************* The monthly Liberal Times Manila-newsletter informs about activities of the Friedrich-Naumann-Foundation in the Philippines and beyond. This issue has been sent to 1227 individuals and organizations. If you do not wish to receive our messages anymore, please return this note and put “unsubscribe” in the body of the text. More information on recent FNF-activities is waiting for you at www.fnf.org.ph. ************************************************************** Asians must do more to promote democracy (Excerpts) … Recently, I attended a workshop in Taipei that dealt with the question what could be done to strengthen and coordinate the efforts of promoting democracy in Asia. I have attended numerous such discussions in the past. But this session in the Taiwanese capital was an exception. As far as I can recall this was the first time the hosting organization was Asian, and so were the majority of the participating democratic activists and politicians. The host was the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy. This organization -- the first democracy assistance foundation in the Asian continent - was established just over a year ago with the declared objective to study and promote democracy both at home and abroad. It follows in the footsteps of the European and North American political foundations, which the Taiwanese say they are trying to emulate. The eagerness of the Taiwanese government to set up such an institute in this part of the world is not coincidental. For many Taiwanese, democracy is more than a system of government. For them, democracy has become a unifying element and a source of strength in the confrontation with the Chinese mainland. … "Taiwan is the first democracy in Chinese history," says Jou Yicheng of the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy. "We want to serve as a model and make the point that democracy and Chinese culture are compatible." Democratic rule has played -- and continues to play -- an important role in what one may term Taiwanese "nation-building." Put differently, the growing desire for independence and self-determination in Taiwan would be far less pronounced if democratic rule would prevail on the Chinese mainland. While Taiwan is moving ahead with its democracy promotion programs, other Asian countries are lagging behind. In Japan, the richest country in the region, discussions aimed at setting up democracy assistance projects have been going on for several years. But so far, these have had no tangible results. Kazuo Inoue, a Member of the Japanese House of Representatives, and one of the driving forces behind many initiatives, says that the lack of progress has mainly two reasons. First, Inoue argues, civil society and the non-governmental sector are not as strong in Japan as in other countries. Second, the initiatives to set up a democracy assistance organization are not supported by the bureaucracy. "The bureaucrats," Inoue says, "are very strong in Japan, and it takes time to get such things done." While the lawmaker from Tokyo remains optimistic that his country will sooner or later come up with its own democracy assistance programs for the Asian region, South Korea, which used to pursue outward-reaching democracy initiatives has actually fallen back. Former South Korean president Kim Dae-jung was not only a champion of democracy and human rights in his own country, he also promoted a democratic agenda internationally setting up the "Forum of Democratic Leaders in Asia-Pacific" and pushing for independence of East Timor and democracy in Burma. When Kim Dae-jung received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2000, this international commitment was explicitly mentioned by the awarding committee. Unfortunately, Kim's successor Roh Moo-hyun has not shown the same dedication to promoting democracy outside the shores of the Korean peninsula. With the exception of the Taiwanese contribution, democracy assistance in Asia therefore remains very much an exclusive domain of outside-regional players from the West. For many Asian democrats this is unsatisfactory and not compatible with the economic advances and democratic consolidation in many parts of the region. "I think it is time for Asians to do more about democratization in this part of the world", says Dr. Chee Soon-juan, the leader of the Singaporean opposition who has been harassed by the authoritarian rulers of his country for most of his political life. Thus far, only the Taiwanese have heeded Chee's and other democratic activists' call for more Asian involvement and democratic solidarity. © The Jakarta Post, Oct. 19, 2004 ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> $9.95 domain names from Yahoo!. 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