CALD’s Journey is Freedom’s Journey

Asia’s journey to freedom is complex, even difficult.  The same can be said about the quarter-century journey of the Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats (CALD), which celebrated its silver anniversary in 2018 amidst democratic challenges. These parallel journeys were captured in CALD’s latest Annual Report entitled, “Realizing Freedom.”

“It appears that Liberals and Democrats will continue to face many difficult challenges ahead, so a close-knit network like CALD would remain to be a source of strength and inspiration for many of us who fight to keep the principles of democracy, human rights, and the rule of law alive in our societies,” said former CALD Chairperson Abhisit Vejjajiva in his message.

“CALD would need to expand strength and cooperation to address and bridge differences”, noted Cho Jung-Tai from CALD chair-party, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) of Taiwan. “Its members and partners (should) collectively take concrete actions to bring about significant improvements in building stronger and more inclusive communities in different continents of the world.”     

The Annual Report showcases CALD’s activities last year which hoped to build political communities along these lines.  In a communication workshop in Taiwan, CALD emphasized the importance of political branding in order to strengthen liberal and democratic political parties against attacks of populists, illiberals and authoritarians.  In South Africa, the network members learned about latest campaign strategies and techniques which proved to be effective for the country’s main opposition party.  The workshop in Indonesia brought together young leaders across Asia for an issue-based campaign to address climate change.      

Moreover, the Report features highlights from CALD’s 25^th anniversary celebrations in Thailand.  With the theme “Reclaiming Democracy, Rebuilding Society”, the series of events was keynoted by no less than the Philippine Vice President Leni Robredo.

The full text of Vice President Robredo’s keynote address is included in the Annual Report, together with the speeches of other key CALD leaders: “A Toast to an Enabler of Freedom” (Abhisit Vejjajiva), “Less Talk, More Action Needed on Climate Change” (Kiat Sittheeamorn), “Geopolitics, Human Rights, and Fundamental Freedoms” (Rosario Manalo), “Demystifying Technology and Collaborative Governance” (Audrey Tang), “New Tools and Thinking for the Next 25 Years” (Abhisit Vejjajiva), “Getting Political Parties Restarted” (Florencio Abad), “IT for the Win” (Hans-Seok Ko), and “Towards a Stronger, Better INLW” (Jayanthi Balaguru).

To read the CALD 2018 Annual Report, click here.