Southeast and East Asia
The Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom (FNF) promotes democracy, human rights, economic freedom, and curbing climate change. In Southeast and East Asia, we have offices in Bangkok, Hanoi, Jakarta, Manila, Seoul, Taipei, and Yangon. We also work in Malaysia. The FNF regional team works with the Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats, the Working group for an ASEAN Human Rights Mechanism, the Asia Centre, and the ASEAN Prosperity Initiative, which is part of the Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs. Should you have questions or suggestions about our work, please contact us. You can also meet our team here.
News
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Digital Brochure: Democracy – Economic Freedom – Human Rights
What do we, the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom, do in Southeast and East Asia? Have a look: We are thrilled to present our new Digital Brochure, which gives an overview of who we are, what we focus on and who our partners are.
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Annual Report 2022
An overview of the Foundation's most important projects and topics can be found in the Annual Report 2022.
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Finding Policies That Work
Freelance is becoming an attractive options for Filipinos, however, there exists a legislative gap regarding the protection of freelance workers in the country. The subsequent paper recommends short-term, medium-term, and long-term recommendations to integrate freelancers into the formal economy.
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ABCs of Entrepreneurship:
The Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom Regional Office, in collaboration with WOWs Global, kick-started the inaugural ABCs of Entrepreneurship event on May 13th at The Great Room, Gaysorn Tower. The event witnessed an impressive turnout of over 90 founders, co-founders, and investors.
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Green Smart City Busan Forum 2023: Towards a Greener and Smarter City
The Friedrich Naumann Foundation Korea office, Busan IT Promotion Agency, and Busan Development Institute partnered up to host the quarterly Green Smart City Busan Forum 2023. They held the first forum on April 7th to discuss smart city technologies and solutions and World Expo Busan 2030.
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Disfactory Project: How to Detect Illegal Factories by Open Source Technology and Crowdsourcing
The existence of illegal factories in agricultural lands has been a serious problem for environmental protection in Taiwan. However, CET, an active environmental NGO in Taiwan, and members of g0v, one of the biggest civic tech communities in Asia, co-created the Disfactory project as an effective solution. The story of Disfactory was featured in the 3rd episode of FNF Global Innovation Hub's Innovation for Democracy Cafe.
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How to strengthen ASEAN - EU relations:
Aligned with FNF's global theme of #Reshaping Europe, FNF Southeast and East Asia is collaborating with Asia Centre on a hackathon centered around the question of "How to strengthen ASEAN - EU relations: What are your ideas on what could be done to bring ASEAN and the EU closer together?' Our aim is to inspire our young participants to conceive original and inventive concepts that can pave the way for a policy plan, project, or campaign that will foster stronger ties between ASEAN and the EU.
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EU-Thailand FTA Negotiations: Competition clauses, human rights implications and the impact of environmental provisions
After a 10 year hiatus, the EU and Thailand will resume Free Trade Negotiations. Commissioned by the Friedrich-Naumann-Foundation for Freedom, VA Partners, a Bangkok-based laws and economic consulting firm, examines core topics of the future FTA. Their in-depth research paper includes recommendations for negotiators to promote sustainable and responsible trade relationships.
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Macrons große Fehler
Politische Beobachter fragen sich, wie dies geschehen konnte. Emmanuel Macron, ein erfahrener Präsident eines hoch angesehenen demokratischen Landes, reist nach China und erklärt, dass (1) es nicht Europas Sache ist, in Krisen verwickelt zu werden, die nicht die unseren sind, und dass (2) die strategische Autonomie es erfordert, dass Europa im Falle einer Taiwan-Krise nicht ein Gefolgsmann der Amerikaner sein sollte.
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The Rise of China?
French President Macron and EU Commission President Von Der Leyen have arrived in Beijing for a three-day state visit. Together they want to convince China's head of state Xi Jinping to use his influence on Russian President Putin to achieve a peace solution in Ukraine. The Russian war of aggression shows that modern conventional warfare can be long and difficult even for a great power. But that does not stop Jinping from stepping up his rhetoric towards his neighbours Taiwan.
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Don't Miss the ABC's of Entrepreneurship Series
The ‘ABCs of Entrepreneurship Series’ is co-hosted by the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom and WOWS Global with a primary objective to empower and educate the local startups and young professional ecosystem on entrepreneurial best practices. By convening panels of experienced expert founders as well as investors, attendees gain exposure to seasoned leaders who are best positioned to guide future leaders.
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Defending Democracy
2022 might be a breakthrough year in the global fight to defend democracy. Our regional partner the Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats (CALD) have written a report which features its in-person projects and activities. It also includes an opinion piece on Disinformation by CALD Chair Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan, and a feature article on the 3-year Smart Mobility Project of CALD.
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International Women's Day 2023
Here at the Friedrich Naumann Foundation we want to see a world where differences are valued and celebrated. Together we can forge women's equality. Collectively we can all #EmbraceEquity.
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Anwar Ibrahim’s first 100 days in office
Germany´s President Frank-Walter Steinmeier visits Malaysia. He will meet Anwar Ibrahim, the new Prime Minister. Mr. Anwar leads a broad coalition, which includes previous arch-rivals. He spent 25 years in opposition, ten of them in jail due to politically moticated convictions. As Prime Minister, Mr. Anwar has to strike a delicate balance to secure his and his government’s positions. Tricia Yeoh, CEO of Malaysia´s Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs, analyses Anwar Ibrahim´s first 100 days in office.
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Long Take Politics and Elections:
The Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom along with our partners King Prajadhipok’s Institute, Faculty of Political Science, Thammasat University, and Sanya Dharmasakti Institute for Democracy has organized a three part series to discuss the usage of political misinformation, innovation and technologies as tools for political campaigns, and finally an analysis on the current political landscape of Thailand.
