SOCDEM Asia is committed to advocate for the strengthening of social security in particular here in Asia. The right to social security must be extended to both domestic and migrant workers. Workers who labour for the country must be allowed to enjoy the fruits of their labour, share in the nation’s prosperity and be cared for in return when they can no longer contribute their labour. Without social security, a worker labours in vain for others, sacrificing the best part of his or her life without any hope of reaping a return. This situation is very real in Asia with studies showing only about 25% of workers in major parts of the region are covered by some kind of pension schemes. Governments in this region must begin to listen to the cries of the workers. The recent revolutions in Africa and the middle east displayed the strength of the working class who will react when governments continually ignore our pleas. The workers who generate economic growths can also generate political changes.

In solidarity,

Steven Sim
Executive Secretary
Network of Social Democracy in Asia
01 May 2011

(Pic: May Day 2011 protest in Malaysia-Souce: the Internet)

Map of Japan (Pic source: Wikipedia)

On behalf of the Network of Social Democracy in Asia (SOCDEM Asia), I would like to extend our solidarity to the people of Japan and its government in these challenging times. We offer our hands of friendship and support even as the Japanese people brace the healing and reconstruction of their beloved country.  In times like this, we salute the display of the human spirit of bravery, generosity and selfless sacrifice of the emergency teams, aid workers, donors and the regular men and women on the street.  We are hopeful that healing will come and  Japan will emerge out of this ordeal stronger.

Steven Sim
Executive Secretary
SOCDEM Asia

President Aquino last night named Akbayan president and former activist Ronald Llamas as presidential adviser on political affairs.

President Aquino speaking to Ronald Llamas (in dark jacket)

The President made the announcement at a gathering in Malacanang last night to celebrate the 65th anniversary of the Liberal Party.

Llamas himself confirmed the announcement with Newsbreak but declined to elaborate, noting that his appointment papers have yet to be signed.

One Palace source quoted the President as saying last night in Pilipino to his party-mates that Llamas has been “our longtime ally and comrade.” Llamas, in a short response, vowed to push for political reform that would help government address poverty and corruption.

With his appointment, Llamas will thus have to resign as board member of the Development Bank of the Philippines, a position he got after campaigning for the President.

This is an unusual appointment because presidents usually name their party-mates to this position. But Llamas has been a known close adviser of the President since the campaign. Akbayan is also a coalition partner of the LP.

Before the campaign, Llamas also served for a short time as one of former Sen. Mar Roxas’s political strategists.

A source close to the President says Llamas was the choice because he’s “acceptable” to the two dominant factions in the Aquino government, the so-called Samar and Balay groups.

A 1982 journalism graduate of the University of Santo Tomas, Llamas was a student activist and campus journalist under the Marcos years. He helped found Bisig (Bukluran sa Ikauunlad ng Sosyalistang Isip at Gawa) in the late 1980s, a political movement of socialists that included Inquirer columnist Randolph David and former UP President Francis Nemenzo.

The Bisig core, together with key sectoral groups from labor, the youth, and ex-communist and Muslim guerrillas, later established Akbayan, which won one seat in the first party-list elections in the country in 1998.

The first Akbayan congressional representative was Loretta Ann Rosales, now chairperson of the Commission on Human Rights. Another Akbayan member in government is Secretary Joel Rocamora of the National Anti-Poverty Commission.

The recent speech by Madam Sonia Gandhi is an apt closing to 2010, it is sobre call to renew our strength and at the same time hopeful for the future of social democracy in India, and we believe, as well as Asia.

We are also pleased to inform you that the report for our 3rd Regional Conference in Jakarta has been completed and is now available for download online. You can view the document here.

Once again, thank you for support and solidarity. The future is bright, let’s move towards it together!

———-

Speech by Sonia Gandhi, President of the Indian National Congress Party at the 10th Indira Gandhi Conference 2010, Friday 19th November 2010 at Teen Murti House.

Source: Congress.org.in

Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh ji,
Distinguished participants
Friends

A warm welcome to all of you.

Today we commemorate Indira Gandhi on her birth anniversary. She is celebrated for her unflinching courage, for her determined leadership and for her deep and genuine concern for the poor. Among Indira Gandhi’s many personal qualities was her wide range of interests – her great curiosity about people, places and, most of all, about ideas. She kept abreast of new thinking in diverse fields and interacted with many individuals around the world who were exploring new ways of tackling contemporary issues. The Indira Gandhi Conferences honour this aspect of her personality. They also serve the broader purpose of shaping public opinion and contributing to public policy. These conferences are not just about developing a visionary agenda, they are also about ways of giving it political and economic momentum.

This year’s theme of An Indian Social Democracy may not appear apt, at a time when social democracy is under stress in the very countries where it was born and where it flourished. Today those countries are all much wealthier than India, and skeptics might say that it is too soon for India to talk about social democracy. That misses the point. In country after country, where social democracy took root, it was once for them a dream for their tomorrow. It was built, brick by brick, over many generations, energized by economic growth. In turn, it stimulated and sustained economic growth – by opening up opportunities for human development, by building social cohesion and solidarity, and by providing the framework of an intellectual and political consensus. In those countries, social democracy not only proved to be good politics, it also turned out to be good economics. It brought the state, business and labour onto a common platform in pursuit of a shared vision – the vision of a more equal, more caring society.

The issue of fairness is important in any democratic society. The broad mass of people must believe in the fairness of the system, if it is to survive. At the very least, it must offer equality of opportunity to all through universal and better education, health care and skills. This is not a matter of choice. It is a known fact that unequal societies cannot achieve their full potential or even sustain a high level of growth indefinitely. In other words, islands of prosperity in a sea of deprivation can only give rise to storms of conflict and instability. The story of India’s contrasts is well known: ability, aspiration and achievement coexist with injustice, inequity and inequality. We have more millionaires than ever before, alongside millions who struggle for two square meals a day.

We are right to celebrate our high rate of economic growth. We must do all that we can to sustain it. However, let us not forget that growth is not an end in itself. Much more important to my mind is what kind of society we aspire to be, and the values on which it should be built. Our economy may increasingly be dynamic, but our moral universe seems to be shrinking. Prosperity has increased but so has social conflict. Intolerance of various kinds is growing. Graft and greed are on the rise. The principles on which independent India was founded, for which a generation of great leaders fought and sacrificed their all, are in danger of being negated.

A coherent social democratic agenda is therefore essential. It must be based on rights and entitlements, not charity. The Right to Information, The Right to Work, the Right to Education, and the proposed Right to Food Security, represent a landmark shift in our approach to issues of welfare and human development. A new architecture of social provisioning is being put in place.

I am, of course, conscious of the gap between promise and delivery. The debate on social democracy in the West is often about ‘big versus small government’. This is less relevant to India. What we need is more effective and efficient government. The Indian state, at its many levels, needs to augment its financial and managerial capacity to deliver public goods and services better. We need greater probity, more transparency, an open attitude and a willingness to try out fresh ideas.

No social democracy is possible without a thriving and dynamic business sector generating wealth. There is a new spirit of entrepreneurship, a new awakening of enterprise in India, it needs to be encouraged. But surely, it is in the interest of business to be a major partner in promoting social objectives and caring for the environment. Some corporate leaders stand out for their dedicated engagement in purposeful and meaningful philanthropy. It is my hope that the swelling ranks of India’s wealthy will be inspired to follow their example.

Civil society has been in the forefront of giving voice to the weak, organizing them collectively and mediating on their behalf. It is also able to provide models of service delivery that are, at times, more effective than those of the Government. Partnerships with NGOs can only enrich our social democracy.

India has long presented the paradox of a democracy, where the poor majority, despite its voting power, has not always commanded its due. The challenge before us is to transcend the divides in our society to ensure that this changes. Social democracy is not populism. It is not generosity. It is the justice that our Constitution promises. The backlog is huge. Without social democracy, Indian democracy could well be undermined.

Much of what I have said reflects Indira Gandhi’s own vision of An Indian Social Democracy. As I understand it, this had four essential pillars.

First, a belief that social democracy must not only be responsive and responsible, but also representative of the many diversities in society.

Second, a conviction that social democracy is unachievable unless economic growth empowers the disadvantaged, deprived, and discriminated against.

Third, a yearning for social democracy that pays the highest attention to the preservation of the environment and regeneration of natural resources.

And fourth, a passion for social democracy that provides for a nation-state as an instrument of change and protection of national sovereignty. These issues are central to the welfare and future of any society. Drawing inspiration from this vision we in India will continue to work towards a consensus for a social democracy that will ameliorate the lives of our people.

I now have great pleasure in requesting the Prime Minister to inaugurate the 10th Indira Gandhi Conference.

In the aftermath of the recent global economic depression, the core principles of social democracy have come to the fore of the global socio-political and economic discourse and political practice. This highlights the direct relevance of social democracy to global and South Asian reality. The effects of the global economic slow-down do certainly not spare South Asia.  Nations of this region seeking solutions – in some way or the other – are having social democratic principles in their minds.

It is besides this background of reality that the organizers consider it is timely and necessary to subject to debate and discussion the emerging situation with specific reference to the region’s endemic problem of poverty and distributive justice. The conference primarily seeks to interact with local knowledge on the subject and understand the South Asian economic and social challenges in order to generate regional understanding and cooperation.

The Network will be organizing its 3rd Regional Conference in Jakarta, Indonesia from the 19-22 October, 2010. The Conference this time is entitled, “Growth, Social Balance and Sustainability: Perspective for Social Democratic Economic Policies in Asia“.

Jakarta is expecting to host participants from all over Asia, including SEA countries, China, Japan, Korea, South Asia countries, Sweden and Australia. Conference brief will be uploaded to this website later.

The Conference is jointly organized with the Jakarta-based Institute of Welfare Democracy, Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES) and the Olof Pale International Centre.

Truly, this is a sad day for us as a country and as a people. Beyond the shame to our national pride and image in the eyes of the international community, the act is reprehensible and heartbreaking as it resulted in the loss of innocent lives. There is no reason in the world that could be used to justify such brutal act of lawlessness and violence.

However, while we strongly denounce this heinous act of violence against innocent people, we call for sobriety and clarity. Let us not further clutter the issue by joining those that want to use this incident to cause further chaos and confusion or moreover, by those that will immediately benefit from such, as they wash their hands of any culpability and negligence with regards to the hostage incident.

Hence, we call on President Benigno Simeon Aquino III and Department of Interior and Local Government Secretary Jessie Robredo to immediately call for a swift, comprehensive and impartial investigation of the incident. We call on the Philippine National Police Chief Director General Jesus Verzosa to exercise due discretion and judiciousness by putting all police personnel involved in the assault in preventive suspension so as not to interfere in whatever way in the investigation of the case.

Furthermore, we call on the government to comprehensively review the country’s security program with the end view of implementing significant reforms that will fully professionalize our security forces particularly our national police. The recent hostage-taking event and how it was handled together with the recent controversy surrounding the reported cases of torture as practiced by alleged members of the police must be seen as grave consequences of how our police system works, or is not working.

The government can start this process in the immediate, by enhancing police accountability, and in the strategic, by implementing institutional reforms… This must be done in partnership with the local government, the Department of Justice, the Commission on Human Rights and other active stakeholders to achieve concrete changes not only in terms of professionalism, responsiveness and accountability but also of its respect, protection and promotion of human rights to its constituents.

Lastly, we call on the media and the police sector to establish clear and professional guidelines on how to harmonize their functions as they perform their respective roles. We believe, despite clashing institutional goals and values, they are mutually dependent and must cooperate to inform the public and hold government accountable over security policies.

Akbayan
24 August 2010

We would also like to congratulate our Filipino Comrades from Akbayan for their overwhelming success in the recent General Election. Congratulations especially to Akbayan’s Rep. Walden Bello and Rep. Arlene “Kaka” Bag-ao for their election to the Congress. We are proud of Akbayan’s achievement and reaffirmed our solidarity with the Party as they now set to be an important partner in President Aquino’s government to generate transformation in the Philippines.

Finally, we echo the words of our Comrades in Akbayan that this is indeed a victory of the people, panalo ang mamamayan. Therefore our best wishes are with the people of the Philippines, may you achieve the greatness you aspire under the administration of the new government.

In Solidarity,

Steven Sim
Executive Secretary
Network of Social Democracy In Asia

(Photo source: The Internet)

Source: www.liewchintong.com

If there is a figure in recent South East Asian history who represents the inextinguishable struggle for democracy and human rights, it is Aung San Suu Kyi.

There have been an increasing consciousness for a greater democratisation in South East Asia and this was evidenced by the electoral success achieved by the political oppositions in traditionally hegemonic governments.

A strong democracy will ensure that the interest of the people is protected against the onslaught of self-interested governments and big businesses and a strong democracy will ensure that the resources and wealth of the nation is responsibly managed.

Aung San Suu Kyi remains imprisoned and incarcerated for the last 20 years for advocating for democratisation within her homeland, Myanmar.

Neither she nor her party, the National League for Democracy (NLD) has been allowed to fulfil the mandate of the citizens of Myanmar as a democratically elected Government.

The strongest words have been said to and about the current military junta, but nothing is more forceful than the fact that the people of Myanmar continue to live in poverty while their ASEAN neighbours are prospering.

The conscience of the junta is imprisoned where Aung San Suu Kyi is. And it is not too much therefore to say that Myanmar lives in Aung San Suu Kyi, and until she is free, Myanmar will continue to live in the prison of socio-political and economic oppression.

The Democratic Action Party (DAP) of Malaysia joins the world to wish a solemn happy birthday to Aung San Suu Kyi. We pray for her earlier release and the democratisation of Myanmar.

(Photo source: The Internet)

The Israeli forces’ attack on an aid flotilla heading towards the blockaded Gaza is a flagrant violation of human rights, countering any form of internationally recognized norms.
More than 10 pro-Palestinian activists have been killed during the raid by the naval commandos while scores remain missing.

The Al-Jazeera TV reported by telephone from the Turkish ship leading the flotilla that Israeli forces fired at the ship and boarded it, wounding the captain. The broadcast ended with a voice shouting in Hebrew, “Everybody shut up!”

Turkey’s NTV network reported that at least 30 activists were wounded.

This is clearly a massacre.

More than 700 peace activists are on the boats and they include Malaysians, Australian journalists, 1976 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Mairead Corrigan Maguire of Northern Ireland, European legislators and an elderly holocaust survivor.

The six-ship flotilla began the journey from international waters off the coast of Cyprus on Sunday afternoon after two days of delays. It had expected to reach Gaza, about 250 miles away, this afternoon amid threats from the Israeli government which had declared it would not allow the ships to reach Gaza.

The freedom flotilla was carrying 10,000 tons of aid to the besieged people of Gaza. The Gaza strip is smaller than the Isle of Wright but crammed with 1.5 million people who can never leave.

Israel announced that it was blockading Gaza to pressure the entire civilian population to reverse the democratic process, allowing only a small trickle of food, medicine and fuel.

Journalists have reported about hospitals turning away the sick because they were running out of medicine and hungry children scavenging for food on the streets.

Despite the derogatory conditions under which Israel has subjected the people of Gaza by keeping them under siege and through violent military occupation of the West Bank, world leaders have remained either silent or non-committal.

Apart from a wimpy statement from the United Nations stating that poverty in Gaza has reached unprecedented level, we have not seen as forceful action. Neither has the Malaysian government said a word.
It is reported that the fate of the two local journalists who were in the ship attacked by the Israeli army is still unknown. However, Dr Rani Osman, the PAS/PR ADUN for Meru is said to be safe.

The Pakatan leaders, on Tuesday, should make a declaration condemning the violent aggression by the Israeli navy against the peace activists on board the flotilla.

In line with that, I call on Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak to lobby the Organisations of Islamic Conference (OIC) and ASEAN to call for a halt to the Israeli aggression against the Palestinians and lobby for a sustained and unconditional opening of the crossing for the free flow of humanitarian aid, essential goods and persons to and from Gaza.

After years of malign neglect by the US towards the Palestine-Israel peace talks, it would be an image-cleansing exercise for the President, Barack Obama, to abandon the theatrics and make a stand against these attacks.

I urge fellow Malaysian’s to offer special prayer for the safety of all those who have come under attack, including our two journalists.