Asia moving to democracy, but needs to do more - UN<\/p>\n
Yoko Kobayashi
\nReuters
\nManila<\/p>\n
Asia has made tremendous progress in promoting political freedom
\nin the last few decades but more can be done, such as giving
\nwomen key roles in government, the United Nations said.<\/p>\n
The U.N. Development Program (UNDP) launched its annual report
\nin the Philippine capital Manila on Wednesday, arguing that
\ndemocracy or freedom of choice was neither a luxury nor a panacea
\nfor poor countries, but intrinsic to human development.<\/p>\n
While the Human Development Report 2002 warned the global wave
\nof democracy in the 1980s and 1990s had stalled, with many
\ncountries relapsing into authoritarianism or facing rising
\neconomic and social tensions, Asia had done better than most.<\/p>\n
\"I think that Asia has made tremendous progress in
\ndemocratization in the last couple of decades,\" Sakiko Fukuda-
\nParr, chief author of the report, told a news conference.<\/p>\n
\"Even though in Asia you have huge, very big regimes that are
\nnot considered democratic, they too have also been democratizing.
\nCompared with other regions, there has been more gradual and more
\nprogressive progress in expanding human freedom.<\/p>\n
\"I don't think there have been as many reversals as one has
\nseen in many other regions in the world.\"<\/p>\n
Out of three groupings, most Asian countries rank in the
\n\"medium human development\" group of the UNDP's Human Development
\nIndex, which measures each country's achievements in terms of
\nlife expectancy, educational attainment and adjusted real income.<\/p>\n
The report said despite the Asian financial crisis in the late
\n1990s, East Asia had made striking progress over the decade, with
\nChina rising the furthest, up 14 places to rank 96 in 2002.<\/p>\n
Singapore and South Korea have both moved up eight places, to
\n25 and 27 respectively. Thailand has risen 10 to rank 70 and
\nMalaysia has gained 12 places to 59. The Philippines ranked 77.<\/p>\n
Fukuda-Parr added that religion and culture should not be used
\nas an excuse to deny political freedom.<\/p>\n
\"Democracy movements of China, of Burma, of Indonesia and the
\nPhilippines and elsewhere show that democracy is not something
\nthat is an imported concept in Asia,\" she said.<\/p>\n
Fukuda-Parr said the global launch of the report in the
\nPhilippines was \"very symbolic\" as UNDP chose locations where the
\nmain theme of the report had \"some real meaning.\"<\/p>\n
\"We really felt that the Philippines was one of the foremost
\ncountries where the people of the country are really committed to
\ndemocracy. I don't think you find any other country in the world
\nwhere the ordinary people are so committed to democracy and
\nordinary people are mobilized,\" she said.<\/p>\n
A popular revolt known as \"People Power\" which ousted the
\ncountry's late dictator Ferdinand Marcos put the Philippines on
\nthe map in 1986.<\/p>\n
The world was reminded of the power of the masses again in
\nJanuary 2001 when former leader Joseph Estrada was ousted from
\noffice by a bloodless coup, to be replaced by current President
\nGloria Macapagal Arroyo.<\/p>\n
But Fukuda-Parr warned too much dependence on the masses could
\nbe dangerous. \"Over-reliance on people power can be dangerous and
\nundermine democratic institutions. You need strong institutions.
\nThey are not substitutes, they are complements. The debates in
\nthe Philippines obviously touch on those tensions,\" she said.<\/p>\n
UNDP administrator Mark Malloch Brown, who spoke at a seminar
\nfor mainly Asian parliamentarians, stressed the role of women in
\ngovernment to promote democracy.<\/p>\n
He said less than 15 percent of the parliamentarians of the
\nworld were women, with Asia scoring about average.<\/p>\n
\"The representation of women in parliament or women in
\ngovernment, however, is not just an end in itself,\" Brown said,
\nadding that involving women in policy making process ensured that
\nthe half of the society most normally neglected had a voice.<\/p>\n
Fukuda-Parr also said it was \"really pathetic\" that only 11
\ncountries had 30 percent parliamentary seats held by women.<\/p>\n
\"One of the pervasive democratic deficits is the chronic
\nunder-representation of women...This is one of the central
\nproblems that I think democracy still has to face.\"<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/asia-moving-to-democracy-but-needs-to-do-more-un-1447899208",
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