Event

Global Democracy Coalition Asia Regional Forum 2025: Youths, Democracy & Electoral Legitimacy in Asia The Asia-Pacific region is characterised by a wide range of political systems, from full democracies to authoritarian regimes. Recent reports indicate a decline in democratic governance in the past decade, with concerns over electoral integrity being particularly prominent. The region is also home to over 700 million young individuals, many of whom face significant barriers to political participation. Institutional restrictions, limited representation, and political repression create a challenging environment for youth engagement. Nevertheless, their involvement is essential for sustaining democratic governance.The upcoming special issue of the Kyoto Review of Southeast Asia, published by Asia Centre, will examine how ruling regimes manipulate or dismantle electoral systems to maintain their control. Despite these challenges, young people are leading the charge for democratic advocacy. This forum brings together both regional and international voices to explore ways to enhance youth political participation and safeguard democracy.To find out more, attend the regional forum: Date: 4 April 2025Time: 8:30 AM to 5:30 PM (Bangkok Time, GMT+7)Venue: Online and On-site (Bangkok, Thailand)Language: EnglishRegister here: https://forms.gle/vTmBkkMjx8kSF6xB6 

Digital Security for High-Risk Users in the Asia-Pacific examines the key challenges that users such as parliamentarians, policymakers, rights defenders, and journalists – among others – face in the online sphere that impact their digital security. Since the mid-2000s, the internet has increasingly influenced politics in the Asia-Pacific region. With the rise in internet and social media penetration, individuals and organisations using these technologies to advocate for public accountability face growing risks. In 2022, the region accounted for 31% of global cyberattacks, with governments and their proxies often identified as key perpetrators. Targets range from governments to opposition politicians and rights defenders. Methods of attack include digital surveillance, hacking, and disinformation campaigns. Existing mitigation measures, such as VPNs and multi-factor authentication, remain inadequate, and digital security is not widely prioritised. Against this backdrop, there is an urgent need for enhanced digital security training tailored to the needs of high-risk users. This report presents a needs assessment to identify critical elements required to bolster digital security in the region. The findings highlight three key clusters of threats: legal regulation, digital surveillance, and information operations. To address these challenges, the report recommends: Developing contextualised and region-specific digital security training. Strengthening monitoring systems to detect and respond to threats. Promoting the use of open-source technologies to build robust defences. As technology evolves, regularly updating digital security strategies and training curricula is vital to ensure ongoing online safety for those advocating for public accountability. To find out more, attend the report launch and discussion. Discussants  Michelin Rama, Social and Behavior Change Specialist, The Asia Foundation Marc Howard, Founding Engineer of Google’s Project Shield  Nenden S. Arum, Executive Director, Southeast Asia Freedom of Expression Network (SAFEnet)  (Awaiting confirmation) Takaya Terakawa, CEO, Technica Zen Ltd  Moderator: Dr Marc Piñol Rovira, Asia Centre Research Manager Emcee: Lina Sakina Salim, Asia Centre Programme Coordinator  Date: 10 December 2024 Time: 4pm to 5pm (Bangkok time, GMT+7) Venue: Online on Google Meet Language: English Registration link: https://tinyurl.com/10DecReportLaunch  Contact: research@asiacentre.org  

Foreign interference, characterised by cyberattacks, disinformation campaigns, and manipulative strategies, poses a severe threat to democratic societies in our era of global connectivity. Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) play a pivotal role as defenders against these consequences. They serve as vigilant monitors in the digital sphere, equipping individuals to discern fact from fiction and contributing to the resilience of society against external manipulation. Despite their crucial role, CSOs face vulnerabilities, particularly in regions where foreign interference manipulates communication. This session will illuminate the challenges encountered by CSOs operating in such environments. Concrete examples will be shared, shedding light on the real-world impact of foreign interference on CSOs. Additionally, the discussion will delve into the existing legal and regulatory frameworks governing CSOs. These frameworks, while intended to provide guidance, may inadvertently limit the freedom of expression and operation for CSOs. We invite participants to contribute their experiences and insights, fostering an engaging dialogue on strategies to address vulnerabilities and enhance the resilience of CSOs in the face of foreign interference. The event is a part of the Digital Rights Programme, co-convened by Asia Centre and Google Asia Pacific. Asia Centre and Google Asia Pacific built “Digital Rights Programme for Civil Society Organisations” spanning for nearly a year, which started in December 2023 to engage International NGOs (INGOs) and their CSO partners that currently work on the issues facing digital rights in the Asia-Pacific region. The programme is covering a series of thematic online and onsite activities to address potential gaps that CSOs experience in collaboration when working under this programme. Speakers: To be confirmed   Date: 15 August 2024 Time: 5 PM – 6.30 PM (GMT+7) Venue: Google Meet Registration: https://forms.gle/xspqQnJcLyWUkYLc6 Contact: karin@asiacentre.org