CALD Participates in Asia Democracy Assembly 2023

The Asia Democracy Network (ADN) marks its 10th anniversary this year with the largest gathering of Asian civil society activists and democracy supporters in Bangkok, Thailand last 20-22 November 2023.

With over 200 participants from across the region, Asia Democracy Assembly 2023, with the theme “Fostering Democracy Movements: Building Strategic Partnerships and Sustainable Cooperation”, commenced with thematic conferences organized by ADN members and partners, followed by two days of intensive plenary and breakout sessions. The event was keynoted by Jose Ramos-Horta, president of East Timor and Nobel laureate, and he was joined by other notable speakers such as Myanmar activist Thinzar Shunlei Yi, Human Rights Watch’s Phil Robertson and Malaysian politician and activist Maria Chin-Abdullah. High-ranking government officials and political leaders from Thailand also graced the gathering.

The Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats (CALD) was represented in the Assembly by its executive director, Celito Arlegue.  Arlegue was invited to speak on two occasions: 1) RiseTalk 2: Looking for New Paths Toward Effective Defense of Democratic Institutions and Processes; and 2) RiseHuddle 2: Forging Meaningful Engagements with Authorities to Protect Democratic Principles.

In his first intervention during the plenary session, Arlegue tackled the new ways civil society and social movements can engage legislative bodies and political parties to ensure maximum protection of democracy and human rights.  He started with the key trends which challenge democratic institutions and processes, which he identified as: 1) slow-motion democratic breakdown or death of democracy by a thousand cuts; 2) democracy’s real or perceived failure to improve the lives of the people; and 3) role of money in politics.  After which, he discussed possible ways to successfully engage legislative bodies and political parties, such as adopting a multi-pronged approach in engagement, framing the advocacies well and working with all possible allies across the political spectrum.

Arlegue’s second presentation, this time in a breakout session, focused on lessons learned on engagement, and how civil society and social movements can elevate their engagement capacity. He emphasized three strategies in particular: 1)grounding the engagement on evidence-based analysis, 2) practicing empathy in engagement, and 3) communicating advocacies in ways that resonate.  He also tackled the importance of strengthening pro-democracy narratives amidst the propaganda trumpeted by populists and autocrats.

Arlegue concluded one of his interventions by citing a quote from CALD Chairperson Mardi Seng, which is of great relevance to engagement: “In this day and age of authoritarian populism, we need to forge solidarity with all democratic actors – whether they are liberals, social democrats or conservatives. The gravity of the issues and problems we are confronting today entail cooperation, not division. While we may disagree with other democratic actors in degrees or in specific details of policies, let us not forget that we are all united in our fight against autocracy.”