After the Second World War, Japan’s search for a guiding framework for renewed relations with Southeast Asia led to the adoption, 32 years after the end of the war, of the Fukuda Doctrine on 18 August 1977. The doctrine had at its core a “heart to heart” approach to its foreign policy in the region. However, forty years later, at Asia Centre’s roundtable discussion on Japan-ASEAN Relations in a Multipolar World, it became clear that Japan needed to develop a human rights dimension to its foreign policy with Southeast Asian countries in order to distinguish itself from other major Asian…

An effective national human rights institution (NHRI) requires a creative, purposive interpretation of the mandate, and a proactive approach to implementation, this was one of the key takeaways from Asia Centre’s International Conference on National Human Rights Institutions in Southeast Asia: Challenges of Protection held on 13 and 14 July at the Centre’s premises in Bangkok, Thailand. The conference brought a diverse group of participants including representatives from United Nations, NHRIs and civil society for critical discourse into the effectiveness of the regions NHRIs. The conference also featured the UN Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights of Internally Displaced Persons,…

  On 12 May 2017, Asia Centre launched the International Faculty Club (IFC) with some 40 academics, researchers and graduate students in attendance.   The event filled a gap in the Bangkok social landscape that brought together people across different tertiary institutions allowing those from diverse academic disciplines to dialogue, share innovative ideas and forge friendships in a convivial setting.     The evening turned out to be an engrossing academic networking event as the inaugural gathering saw a series of speakers taking to the floor to share their ongoing research and interests.   These included: Evgeniia Sidorova, Thammasat University,…