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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Asia Liberty Forum 2023
The Asia Liberty Forum (ALF) 2023 is a forum by Atlas Network and this year co-hosted by Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs (IDEAS). The forum took place in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and held from 07 – 08 September 2023. The event gather students, scholars thinkers, and friends of human freedom to learn and connect with each other and also to gain knowledge and network with captivating speakers.
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EmpowerHER: Unlocking the Potential of Women Leaders in Startups
On September 13, an inspiring event was unfolded at Google for Startups Campus, Seoul as Friedrich Naumann Foundation Korea office (FNF Korea), in collaboration with ALLY Business Consulting, organized the "EmpowerHER: Unlocking the Potential of Women Leaders in Startups" workshop. This dynamic gathering was tailored for female leaders in the thriving startup ecosystem of South Korea.
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Fritz Kuermayr: A little closer to the world of liberalism
Fritz Kuermayr, an Austrian student, had a chance to serve abroad as an intern at the project locations of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation in Madrid (Spain) and Hanoi (Vietnam), from September 2022 to July 2023. Here he shares some thoughts upon concluding his journey as he gained valuable experiences and memories.
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GCD Talk concert: Climate Crisis and Sustainable Consumption
On August 29, 2023, the second event of the Global Citizen Dialogue (GCD) series of the year unfolded at POSWEL, Gwangyang, addressing a critical issue of our times – climate change. This talk concert, hosted by FNF Korea in partnership with the POSCO TJ Park Foundation, gathered experts and Asian youth from different countries to discuss practical solutions for dealing with the challenges posed by climate change and the importance of sustainable consumption.
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Human Rights Defenders: Journalists
The UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders was adopted 25 years ago. The third edition of the publication "Human Rights Defenders" portrays media professionals who often accept personal threats to expose injustice and thus become human rights defenders in their home countries. „Our freedom, too, is only as secure as we ourselves are willing to stand up for it. Freedom of media and opinion was, is and will remain a definite indicator of how free the people in a country really are", says Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger, Deputy Chairwoman.
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A Decade of the ASEAN Human Rights Declaration
This brief by Edmund Bon Tai Soon and Umavathni Vathanaganthan traces the development of human rights institutions in Southeast Asia and shows how limited the ASEAN Human Rights Declaration´s impact has been
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Taiwan's Vice President at CALD's 30th Anniversary
The Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats (CALD) celebrated its 30th Anniversary in Taipei. Taiwan's Vice President William Lai and CALD-Leaders signed a joint statement on the Future of Democracy in Asia.
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Navigating a Prolonged Funding Winter: Strategies for Startups
Discover how entrepreneurs tackle funding hurdles in an evolving landscape. Join us in revisiting the impactful event featuring Gagan Singh, Tharin Sethi, and Samantha Kapunan. Held as part of the ABCs of Entrepreneurship series, this collaborative initiative by Friedrich Naumann Foundation, WOWSGlobal, and The Great Room addressed the funding crunch in sync with a 56% decline in Southeast Asian startup funding.
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Thailand's New Prime Minister: Srettha Thavisin
Thailand´s new Prime Minister, Srettha Thavisin, and his Phue Thai Party will form a broad, but controversial government coalition. The coalition includes conservatives, who had lost the election. Excluded is the Move Forward Party, which had won the election. Freiheit.org´s Sky Chatuchinda spoke with Dr. Pimrapaat Dusadeeisariyakul, Program Manager Thailand at the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom´s Thailand Office in Bangkok.*
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Historic summit at Camp David
US President Joe Biden, South Korean President Yoon Suk-Yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will meet at Camp David on 18 August. The recent rapprochement between the two Asian liberal democracies paved the way for the meeting. The improved relationship between Japan and South Korea is also in the interest of the USA and the EU. Deeper cooperation has long been a goal of American foreign policy and an important pillar of Biden's Indo-Pacific strategy. However, Beijing views the rapprochement of the three democracies with scepticism and even speaks of a "mini-Nato".
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Empowering Entrepreneurs: Highlights from the ABCs of Entrepreneurship Ep2
The ABCs of Entrepreneurship event held on July 15th proved to be a resounding success, empowering entrepreneurs with valuable knowledge, insights, and networking opportunities. Through sessions on start-up fundraising, investor diversity, and pitch practices, attendees gained a deeper understanding of the entrepreneurial landscape in the Philippines.
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FNF Hackathon Empowers Asian Youth
The Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom Southeast and East Asia (FNF) and the Asia Centre organized a Youth Hackathon on how to improve ASEAN-EU relations in Bangkok. 20 participants from the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Taiwan, South Korea, Myanmar and Vietnam pitched their ideas. The winner will travel to Berlin.
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CALD and FNF meet East Timor´s President Ramos-Horta
A delegation of the Council of Asian Liberal and Democrats (CALD) met the President of the Republic of Timor-Leste, José Ramos-Horta, in Dili on July 17th.
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ABC's of Entrepreneurship Ep2
Download our newest booklet on Entrepreneurship!
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We are looking for a Regional Programme Coordinator
We are hiring a Regional Programme Coordinator. Come and join our team!
