Asia Centre – Page 7

Google: Authoritative Information Important for Electoral Integrity

Post author:Asia Centre
Post published:7 September 2023
Post category:News

Google, title partner for Asia Centre’s 8th International Conference "Democracy and Elections in Asia" on 23 to 25 August 2023, through its welcome remarks and panel outlined how the technology company and its partners seek to address some of the negative online influences on election integrity.Vice President of Google’s Government Affairs and Public Policy Markham Erickson in his welcome remarks on 24 August 2023 said the technology company supports electoral integrity by engaging users to disseminate authoritative information about their elections; protecting online electoral information and combating disinformation; and supporting elections campaigns by managing their digital presence, alongside trainings for…

International IDEA: Support Needed for Democratic Actors in the Region

Post author:Asia Centre
Post published:7 September 2023
Post category:News

The International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA), a title partner for Asia Centre’s 8th International Conference on “Democracy and Elections in Asia”, hosted two panels and a demonstration session. During the three-day conference, panel speakers convened by International IDEA emphasised the importance of offering support and fostering solidarity with democratic actors in Asia. This importance was underscored during the opening remark on 23 August by Leena Rikkilä Tamang, International IDEA’s Director for Asia and the Pacific. She emphasised that, given the numerous challenges to democracy posed by electoral manipulation, the importance of solidarity and cooperation among civil…

IDRC: Strengthen Inclusivity & Research Capacity in Asia

Post author:Asia Centre
Post published:6 September 2023
Post category:News

IDRC, as title partner for Asia Centre’s 8th International Conference "Democracy and Elections in Asia" from 23 to 25 August 2023, called for greater inclusivity and the strengthening of research capacity in Asia. IDRC made these calls through the two panels it convened at the three-day conference, in which speakers discussed the key challenges women in Asian countries face to engage in politics and how researching democracies can be improved. These calls were framed by the opening remarks of Caroline Ford, Director for Democratic and Inclusive Governance at IDRC, who said that civic spaces serve as a vital platform for…

Asia Centre Panel Discussion at ASEAN Civil Society Conference / ASEAN Peoples’ Forum Side Event 2023

Post author:Asia Centre
Post published:5 September 2023
Post category:News

Emergency measures imposed by governments across Southeast Asia during the COVID-19 pandemic negatively impacted human rights and democracy in the region, leading to the shrinking of civic spaces and repression of human rights activists, CSOs, independent journalists, and other civic actors. Although most of these measures were initially and publicly meant for public health and safety, these governments, in practice, used these to curb civic freedoms. These include laws that criminalise protestors, silence calls for public accountability, restrict electoral campaigning, and closely surveil the population. In this context, Asia Centre, in partnership with the International Center for Not-for-Profit Law (ICNL),…

Team Malaysia Wins Hackathon on ASEAN-EU Relations: Will Travel to Germany

Post author:Asia Centre
Post published:26 July 2023
Post category:News

Between 21 and 23 July 2023, the Asia Centre and Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom Southeast & East Asia jointly organised the #Reshaping Europe: Hackathon on the ASEAN-EU Relations. The primary objective of the Hackathon was to provide young leaders with an opportunity to propose initiatives aimed at enhancing the relationship between ASEAN and the EU. During the event, ten teams of two participants each from Southeast and East Asia worked on developing and presenting their project ideas to a wider audience. Participants were required to align the goals of their initiatives with trade and economic cooperation between ASEAN and…

Oxfam Young Leaders Fellowship Programme 2023 Kicks Off

Post author:Asia Centre
Post published:18 July 2023
Post category:News

A total of seven speakers, one facilitator, three project coaches, and two field visits made up the programme activity for Induction Meeting for eight Oxfam Fellows from 10 to 14 July 2023 in Bangkok, co-convened by Asia Centre and Oxfam. The Induction Meeting was part of the Oxfam Young Leaders Fellowship Programme 2023, which aims to provide tools to empower young people with hands-on training and close mentorship to strengthen their capacity to make social change happen. The eight fellows, constituting the inaugural cohort of the fellowship programme, who participated in the event are Lamia Mohsin from Bangladesh, Sanjana Chettri and…

Political Hate Sites in Singapore: Flourishing without Repercussions

Post author:Asia Centre
Post published:7 July 2023
Post category:Baseline Studies Reports

Download Full Report Political Hate Sites in Singapore: Flourishing without Repercussions explains how hate sites and internet brigades seek to maliciously negate the criticism of public officials and policy in Singapore. Targets of hate sites include activists, bloggers, civil society organisations, independent media outlets and journalists, human rights lawyers, and opposition political parties and politicians. Singapore, a one-party dominated state, has regularly updated and passed new legislation that criminalises criticism of its public officials and policies, leaving only a narrow margin for expressing dissenting views within the established legal boundaries. As a result, the government can repress opposition voices through…

The Threat of State-sponsored Disinformation to the Integrity of Election in Thailand

Post author:Asia Centre
Post published:12 June 2023
Post category:Podcasts

This podcast episode is part of the report “State-Sponsored Online Disinformation in Thailand: Impact on Electoral Integrity in Thailand”. The report examines government-backed disinformation campaigns, known as information operations, and assesses their impact on the integrity of elections. The report identifies key actions domestic and international state actors contribute to false information campaigns. Based on the evidence of information operations in Thailand and the absence of effective legal and non-legal measures to address them, the 2023 Thai General Election is expected to experience its share of state-sponsored disinformation over social media platforms. So what happened? This episode examines these issues. Our…

Burmanisation and Buddhisation: Accelerating the Decline of Religious Rights in Myanmar

Post author:Asia Centre
Post published:9 June 2023
Post category:Baseline Studies Reports

Download Full Report Burmanisation and Buddhisation: Accelerating the Decline of Religious Rights in Myanmar exposes the rapid decline of religious rights among minority communities following the 2021 military coup. Burmanisation and Buddhisation, two policies that have shaped Myanmar’s identity landscape since the colonial era, are now justified as a response to ensure national security and address the threat of terrorism. Under this response, minority ethno-religious communities are being targeted as subversive forces to be dealt with. This results in four key impacts. One, ethno-religious communities are targeted with violence and military attacks to silence their calls for autonomy. Two, religious…

ข้อมูลบิดเบือนออนไลน์โดยรัฐ: ผลกระทบต่อความสุจริตและสมบูรณ์ของการเลือกตั้งในประเทศไทย

Post author:Asia Centre
Post published:30 May 2023
Post category:Podcasts

ข้อมูลบิดเบือนออนไลน์โดยรัฐ: ผลกระทบต่อความสุจริตและสมบูรณ์ของการเลือกตั้งในประเทศไทย เมื่อวันที่ 28 เมษายน 2563 สองอาทิตย์ก่อนหน้าการเลือกตั้งทั่วไป สถาบันวิจัยเอเชีย เซ็นเตอร์ ได้เปิดตัวรายงานเรื่อง "ข้อมูลบิดเบือนออนไลน์โดยรัฐ: ผลกระทบต่อความสุจริตและสมบูรณ์ของการเลือกตั้งในประเทศไทย" ที่ศึกษาการเผยแพร่ข้อมูลบิดเบือนออนไลน์โดยรัฐและประเมินผลกระทบต่อความสุจริตและเที่ยงธรรมของการเลือกตั้ง ในพอดแคสตอนนี้ เอเชีย เซ็นเตอร์ได้รับเกียตริจากคุณพรเพ็ญ คงขจรเกียรติ ที่จะมาพูดคุยในประเด็นข้อมูลบิดเบือนออนไลน์โดยรัฐและผลกระทบต่อการเลือกตั้งในไทยที่พึ่งผ่านพ้นไป คุณพรเพ็ญ คงขจรเกียรติ เป็นผู้อำนวยการมูลนิธิผสานวัฒนธรรม ซึ่งเป็นองค์กรที่ทำหน้าที่เฝ้าระวังและบันทึกเรื่องราวกรณีการทรมานและการปฏิบัติอันโหดร้ายในประเทศไทย คุณพรเพ็ญเป็นหนึ่งในแนวหน้าของผู้ที่ต่อสู้ด้านสิทธิมนุษยชนในประเทศไทย นอกจากนั้นแล้วคุณพรเพ็ญยังทำหน้าที่เป็นทนายความฝ่ายโจทก์ร่วมในคดีการหายตัวไปของ บิลลี่ พอละจี รักจงเจริญ นักปกป้องสิทธิมนุษยชนชาวกะเหรี่ยงบ้านโป่งลึก-บางกลอย On 28 April 2023, about 2 weeks before the Thai general elections, Asia Centre launched its report on Thailand. “State-Sponsored Online Disinformation: Impact on Election Integrity in Thailand” which examines four types of government-backed disinformation campaigns and assesses their impact on the integrity of elections. Pornpen is the Executive Director of CrossCultural Foundation, an NGO that monitors and documents torture and inhumane treatments by the state in Thailand. She…