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| Latest News
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Thailand
Thai PM To Reshuffle Cabinet; Reiterates Amending Constitution
Thailand's Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej said Sunday that he planned to conduct a major cabinet reshuffle and reiterated that his coalition government would move to amend the constitution--especially relating to the article concerning the dissolution of a political party--when parliament reopens.
Speaking during his weekly TV and radio address, Mr. Samak, also defence minister, said that several ministerial portfolios would be reshuffled in order to strengthen the coalition government and that the planned cabinet reshuffle would become clearer after this Friday [18 July].
Acknowledging that several competent and good-intentioned people are reluctant to join his government due to concerns that it would be unable to complete its four-year term, Mr. Samak said he would proceed to amend the present charter, prepared by experienced legal and constitution experts appointed by the senior armed forces officers who carried out the September 19 coup in 2006.
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Thailand
Protestors Petition Graft-Busters To Punish Preah Vihear-Implicated Officials
Five core leaders of a protest coalition dedicated to bringing down the Samak government petitioned the National Counter Corruption Commission (NCCC) to take criminal action against 42 people, including the entire cabinet as well as ousted Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra over the ancient Preah Vihear temple case.
The People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD), has been demonstrating against the government continuously since 25 May demanding the ouster of Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej.
Five core leaders who are the public 'faces' of the PAD signed the letter petitioning the NCCC to take action against the 42 persons they charge had violated Criminal Law article 157 and also were negligent in their duties, which had caused Thailand to lose sovereignty at Preah Vihear.
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Regional & International
China Asked To Free Prisoners of Conscience and Give Journalists Full Access and Freedom of Reporting
photo courtesy of Amnesty International
Amnesty International (AI) has issued an open letter, asking Chinese President Hu Jintao to free prisoners of conscience and to give local and foreign journalists full access and freedom of reporting.
On the occasion that Bejing is hosting the Olympics Games 2008, set to begin on 8 August, China should take “this historic opportunity” to implement five steps towards “development of human rights”, the international human rights organisation says in the letter dated 9 July 2008.
The UK-based NGO says while it welcomes the news that 1,157 people held in connection with the protests in Tibetan-populated areas of China last March have been released, there’s so much more that Beijing can do to fullfill a pledge on human rights that the Beijing Olympics Bid Committee made in 2001.
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| Feature Article
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Communicating Freedom
By Sopheap Pan, project coordinator for FNF–EU projects in Cambodia
 With fellow participants (me in the red shirt) in front of a cathedral in Cologne |
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To those who are thinking about joining a seminar at the Academy for Leadership (IAF), I’d like to share with you my personal experience of attending an international seminar on Communicating Freedom.
The seminar was held at the IAF in Germany from 2 to 14 March 2008, and was attended by Friedrich Naumann Foundation (FNF) staff members from Germany, South Africa, Pakistan, India, Indonesia, Thailand, Tanzania, Bosnia Herzegovina, Serbia, Jordan, Senegal, Burma, Honduras, Costa Rica, Mexico, Bulgaria, Algeria, Morocco and Cambodia.
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| Latest Commentaries
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What if Thailand Wants ‘Migrant Problems’?
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Sai Soe Win Latt |
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In a labor-intensive economy such as Thailand, migrant labor plays a significant role. Migrant workers’ contribution to the Thai economy is not given enough credit.
The media and NGOs usually focus more on "problem” migrant issues, such as work permits, medical care, education of children and human rights. |
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The 2010 Election Challenges
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Min Zin |
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Burma's conflict is moving into a new phase of intractability. In other words, the conflict will become institutionalized in 2010.
The military has unilaterally set the rules of the new game with the ratification of its constitution and is preparing to hold elections in 2010 as part of its seven-step “roadmap.” |
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Temple Backlash
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Thongbai Thongpao |
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The Preah Vihear temple has emerged as a hot issue once again against all odds.
Cambodia applied to register the holy place as a World Heritage site. Put plainly, our neighbour wants to make it a legacy of humanity, rather than of only Cambodia or Thailand.
According to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco), what makes the concept of World Heritage exceptional is its universal application. World Heritage sites belong to all the peoples of the world, irrespective of the territory on which they are located. |
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| Latest Publication
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Friedrich Naumann Foundation Alumni Network (FAN) Malaysia
DIRECTORY 2008
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FAF Malaysia project has recently published its latest International Academy for Leadership’s alumni directory 2008. This directory is the third since the alumni network was formed in March 2006.
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