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. “Heads of state have learned to pay lip service to the role of NGOs in order to gain international support, but the reality on the ground can be quite different,” said Sara Davis, executive director of Asia Catalyst. “Restricting civil society has slowed Asia’s response to the AIDS crisis.”
[REPORT] How Chinese Activists Access Information Resources
By Chang Kun
Chinese activists have been using different types of social medias to
post their works and raise international awareness to assist special cases. Following
are examples of some public ways in which Chinese activists have automatic access
to information resources. In the past few years, because of the Internet and increasing
work in this sphere by some HIV/AIDS organizations, such as Beijing AIZHIXING
Institute, a lot of grass-root organizations have grown in skills on how to use
Internet tools for their work and community, especially for posting human
rights cases to increase attention.
On the Road to Beijing
For the next two weeks, Meg and Gisa will be “vlogging” (video blogging) our trip to Beijing and Yunnan to do on-the-ground work for Asia Catalyst: lobbying officials, coaching NGO partners, and holding a party to celebrate the accomplishments of our first “incubation” project, the Korekata AIDS Law Center.
Meanwhile, we have to kill a little time in the airport…
[COMMENTARY] ASEAN’s Human Rights Commission: Where are your teeth?
It was unsurprising that the launch of the new Human Rights Commission of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) was so ill-attended. Not only did leaders of several member states not bother to show for the ceremony; civil society leaders also walked out in protest.
[REPORT] China Goes to Bali
[:en]The sun is setting over the palm trees, and we’re finishing up a wonderful, exhilirating and intense week in Bali for the International Conference on AIDS in Asia and the Pacific (ICAAP-9). For the first time, Asia Catalyst supported a delegation of 9 Chinese AIDS activists, provided translation throughout, and hosted events that brought Chinese and other Asian activists together at meetings, at workshops, and at a beach barbecue party under the stars (do you hate us yet?).
