Asia Program Highlights 2010

The Endowment also expanded its work in Thailand and the Philippines, until recently two of Southeast Asia’s freest and most democratic countries. NED expanded its programming to include projects which seek to address the erosion of independent democratic institutions and build networks of human rights lawyers in both countries. The Bangkok-based Campaign Committee for Human Rights launched a public education campaign, monitored government policy and worked to protect human rights defenders.

After only a decade since its transition from authoritarian rule, Indonesia has made significant strides toward the establishment of durable democratic institutions. In an effort to consolidate these gains, NED supported the work of the Solidarity Center, CIPE, IRI and NDI to strengthen trade unions, bolster corporate good governance, support political party development, and engage in regional democracy promotion efforts. NED also provided modest funding for programs in Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, Timor-Leste and Cambodia.

Reaction to the Nobel Peace Prize dominated the news in the last quarter of 2010 as the Chinese government sought to suppress mention of the award in the Chinese press and crack-down on dissent. China remained the Endowment’s priority in East Asia, where grantees continued their efforts to open up political space and increase access to critical and thoughtful political analysis. Programming focused on four inter-related sectors: human rights, independent media, civic education and public policy. In particular, NED supported efforts to advance labor rights, including through worker education, legal assistance and assistance for petitioners. NED also supported programs to foster more open policy debate on a wide range of issues, including the environment and public health, disability rights, land and property rights, women’s rights and access to justice.

Elsewhere in China, the Endowment continued to prioritize the rights of ethnic minorities, with projects focused on Xinjiang/East Turkistan, Inner Mongolia and Tibet. Projects centered on Han-Tibetan and Han-Uyghur relations, human rights, public policy alternatives and the free flow of information. Grantees produced ground-breaking human rights reports, provided detailed coverage of events in Tibet and Xinjiang, and convened forums and organized events to bridge the divide between Han Chinese and minority communities.

In North Korea, NED pursued a two-pronged approach: to increase the free flow of information and to increase understanding of human rights conditions in the country. Among these efforts are Daily NK, a website published in Korean, English, Chinese and Japanese that focuses on providing first-hand reporting on the Hermit Kingdom.

Other areas of programming in Asia included regional efforts to establish human rights and labor norms, build networks among activists in different countries, and strengthen a regional domestic election monitoring network.

These highlights were written for the 2010 Annual Report, published in August 2011.