NLD Plans to Win 2015

Last 10-13 March 2015, the Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats (CALD) assembled in Rangoon, Burma (Yangon, Myanmar) for phase II of the 5th CALD Political Party Management Workshop, “Project 2015: Winning Elections Towards Continuing Reforms”. The event was hosted by the National League for Democracy (NLD) at the NLD Meeting Hall in Kyaikkasan Road, Yangon District, and was participated in by around 60-65 NLD party members and campaign officials and by representatives from the United Nationalities Alliance (UNA). This workshop, similar to phase I held in August 2014, aimed to capacitate NLD candidates and their campaign managers with the knowledge and skills in winning elections, drawing from electoral theory and practice in the Asian context.

More specifically, phase II was organized in order to: analyze and correlate election data from surveys, focus-group discussions, and the like; come up with a concrete election plan for each of the campaign components; identify the interferences and hurdles of the plan; come up with working solutions to these problems; agree on a monitoring and consultation scheme mechanics; and ensure a machinery for the collaboration of campaign plans.
At the opening of the event, NLD Patron U Tin Oo delivered his welcome remarks saying, “We do not seek violence to solve the problem … Allow us to campaign for our freedom and see the flicker of light for democracy… Our people are very eager to take part in the democratization of our land, so let them be part of the process. They deserve nothing less.”

Ms. Concepcion “Chit” Asis, former Director General of the Liberal Party of the Philippines (LP), again served as workshop facilitator, as she promised in phase I, with the able support of Mr. Lambert Ramirez, former Executive Director of the National Institute for Policy Studies (NIPS) Philippines. Despite the relatively short span of the workshop, the facilitators were able to cover the expanse of campaign and party management, while still leaving room for fun and camaradenie.

Asis said, “As peoples of Asia, we have a shared history and a shared political struggle. We feel it is our responsibility as Asians to be part of your struggle for freedom and democracy. The program of CALD is a very special program to fit your specific needs … What we hope is that you become multipliers. What you learn here, you should share with your communities.”