In Asia: Weekly Insight and Features from Asia

Amidst the chaos and seemingly endless obstacles confronting Afghanistan every day, a small dedicated  – and unheralded  – group of Afghan leaders has taken on the enormous challenge of combating corruption. The High Office of Oversight for Anti-Corruption (HoO) was established by President Karzai in June 2008 following repeated calls from the international community to [...]

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Much is at stake as Afghanistan anxiously awaits the results of the August 20 presidential election. As Afghans and the international community debate the election outcomes, one issue remains of significant concern to the people of Afghanistan. Over the past eight years, much progress has been made in rebuilding Afghanistan’s education infrastructure, but more needs [...]

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This past July, the community of the Islamic City of Marawi gathered to celebrate the enthronement of Attorney Saidamen B. Pangarungan as Sultan of Madaya. For over 10 years the leadership of the Sultanate of Madaya was vacant because of conflict between the Sarip Batua and Datu a Pitiilan family clans. Through the efforts of [...]

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“In 1990, when I was the Deputy Country Representative in the Philippines and teaching at Ateneo de Manila University Law School, my dear friend Tony Oposa approached me and said, ‘The legal system has to do more to enforce the environmental laws of the Philippines and respond to public demand for environmental protection, and I [...]

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Earlier this week on August 30, under clear blue skies and a hot Dili sun, President José Ramos Horta delivered remarks at the official ceremony of Timor-Leste’s 10-year anniversary since the popular consultation, when nearly 80 percent of the people voted for independence from Indonesian occupation. In front of a military parade and stands filled [...]

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Agha Gul could not have asked for anything better than a horse and an escort familiar with the rugged terrain to accompany him as he made his climb up the mountain path. His journey would have otherwise taken two hours to tread by foot. Thankfully, the village headman had provided the horseback ride to Agha [...]

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Malaysia is among the most successful middle income nations in the world. Fuelled by export-led economic expansion with GDP growth rates between 4-8 percent sustained for 30 years, Malaysia now has a substantial middle class and a relatively well established institutional infrastructure. The country’s population is both ethnically diverse (Malay 50 percent; Chinese 24 percent; [...]

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Raymond Manalo was napping when they came in combat boots and ski masks on Valentine’s Day in February of 2006. He had a date that night with his girlfriend. He never made it. The men entered the house, punched Raymond in the stomach and demanded to know the whereabouts of his brother Bestre, whom they [...]

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Within a single week, the San Francisco headquarters of The Asia Foundation hosted 16 new Luce Scholars, a Congressional Fellow from Thailand, and two participants in the Young Diplomats Program from China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. These are recent examples of Asia Foundation programs contributing to leadership development in the Asia-Pacific region, particularly those with [...]

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It took us much longer than expected to get to Ta Ca, a highland commune in Vietnam’s Nghe An province near the Lao border. Although it was a sunny afternoon, the narrow road from our hotel to our destination, Ta Ca’s Cultural Post Office (CPO), was riddled with potholes filled with slick mud that threatened [...]

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