By Meg Davis
Asian NGOs and government representatives met in Bangkok from March 29-31 at the Asia-Pacific Regional
Consultation on Universal Access. They consulted together to make recommendations on how to ensure universal access to AIDS treatment – one of the Millennium Development Goals. This time, human rights was included, and it was fascinating to see the process and participate in it.
by Ken Oh
Around Asia, internet users face several barriers to doing legal research. The barriers can be political, as the recent row
between China and Google demonstrates. In some cases, developing countries do not have the capacity to provide internet access to their citizens. Finally (and likely the most easily fixed), the barriers can be more practical: once you have internet access, how do you know where to search?
by Hye Gi Shim
“To be a journalist is to bear witness,” wrote Roger Cohen of The New York Times, “The rest is no more than ornamentation.” Today, bearing witness is made easier than ever thanks to the revolution in information and communication technology. The power to find, produce, and distribute information has expanded through the Internet and via digital cameras and cell phones leading to a growth of citizen journalists — people without professional training in journalism who produce, augment, or fact-check the news.
Asia is home to some of the most wired countries in the world (South Korea, Japan, Taiwan) as well as to some of the most restricted ones (North Korea, Burma, Cambodia). The rising tide of the Internet, however, is lifting all boats. Citizen journalists are sharing opinions about corruption and food safety in Cambodia and China and are influencing presidential elections in South Korea and India, and influencing the outcome of major events.
Despite pledges by world leaders and the UN to support
civil society, AIDS nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) face heavy
restrictions in Cambodia, China, Myanmar and Vietnam, Asia Catalyst
said in a report released for World AIDS Day. English press release (pdf) Download the report in English (pdf)
An interesting development: drug users from around Asia met last week to formalize the Asian Network of People Who Use Drugs. ANPUD aims to create a network that can advocate for the rights of drug users. They’ll also, hopefully, provide some useful input into national and regional policies on narcotics, treatment, and HIV/AIDS. The full statement from ANPUD follows.
