Asia-Pacific

Photo: President Trump addressing the South Korean National Assembly. Source: The White House Video.

No Sign Yet of a Sustained Direct U.S.-North Korean Dialogue

By Daryl G. Kimball

Daryl G. Kimball is Executive Director of the Arms Control Association. This article first appeared with the caption 'Trump Repeats Failing Formula on North Korean Threat'.

WASHINGTON, D.C. (IDN-INPS) - In his high profile address to the South Korean National Assembly November 8, President Donald Trump missed a crucial opportunity to clarify and adjust his administration’s disjointed and, at times, reckless policy toward North Korea.

Although Trump indicated earlier [...] in a press conference in Seoul that he is "open" to talks with North Korea, he has also said in recent days that now is not the time for such talks but instead it is time to apply "more pressure" on North Korea to bring North Korea to bargaining table and to agree to eliminate its nuclear program. While in Asia, Trump has also repeated, albeit in less bombastic terms than before, that he will resort to the use of military force if North Korea does not back down.

: Daryl G. Kimball; OPINION; 08 November 2017

Photo: The number of older people in the Asia-Pacific region is rising at an unprecedented rate and it is at the forefront of the global phenomenon of population ageing. By 2050, one in four people in Asia and the Pacific will be over 60 years old. Credit: asiapacific.unfpa.org

Older Persons Key Players in Global Development Agenda

By Shamshad Akhtar

Dr. Shamshad Akhtar is Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and the Executive Secretary of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP). – The Editor

BANGKOK (IDN) - As the proportion of the older persons across the Asia-Pacific region increases exponentially, we must seek out new and innovative approaches to turn this demographic trend into an opportunity to be harnessed to help achieve the ambitious targets of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

The number of older persons in the region is expected to more than double, from 535 million in 2015 to about 1.3 billion by 2050, we need to consider the myriad impact of this phenomenon on our economies, societies, and livelihoods.

: IDN-INPS Asia Editor; OPINION; 30 October 2017

Photo: A panel of experts discussing mental health challenges faced by adolescents at the 11th World Congress on Adolescent Health in New Delhi. Credit: Stella Paul - IDN | INPS

Data, Evidence Take Centre Stage at Adolescent Health Congress

By Stella Paul

NEW DELHI (IDN) – For three years, 13-year-old migrant Manasa spent nine hours a day picking chilli on a neighbour’s farm in southern India’s Guntur district.

But when a team of local health activists conducting a door-to-door survey in her village in the summer of 2015 found that students had stopped attending school, the finding was shared with a senior official in the provincial government who ordered the village heads to crack down on those employing children on their farms.

Along with 20 others, Manasa was rescued and sent back to school where she is now in her fifth year and dreams of becoming a teacher some day.

: Stella Paul; THE WORLD; Asia-Pacific; 30 October 2017

Photo (left to right): Japan's Defence Minister Itsunori Onodera. Foreign Minister Taro Kono, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, and Secretary of Defense James Mattis. Credit: Japan MOFA

Japan Determined to Play a Bridging Role for a World Free of Nuclear Weapons

Viewpoint by Tarō Kōno, Japan's Foreign Minister

The UN General Assembly's First Committee adopted on October 28 Japan's draft resolution 'United action with renewed determination towards the total elimination of nuclear weapons', which is scheduled to be put on a vote in a plenary meeting of the UN General Assembly in early December. 144 countries including nuclear weapon states supported it. Following are extensive excerpts from the transcript of the video message by Japan's Foreign Minister Tarō Kōno, posted on October 20, 2017 on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' channel (mofachannel) on YouTube.

TOKYO | UNITED NATIONS (IDN-INPS) – Unfortunately the difference of approaches towards a world free of nuclear weapon has become clear between nuclear and non-nuclear weapon States as well as among non-nuclear weapon States. Besides as the international security environment deteriorates, the discussion towards such ultimate goal has become further complicated.

: IDN-INPS UN Bureau; ARMAMENTS; Nuclear Weapons; 29 October 2017

Cambodian Economy on the Rise, Democracy on the Wane

Viewpoint by Jonathan Power*

LUND, Sweden (IDN-INPS) - Cambodia is no longer going forward, it is slipping backwards, as it has many times before. Earlier this month the government asked the Supreme Court to dissolve the main opposition coalition. One opposition leader, Kem Sokha, was sent to prison in September and the other, Sam Rainsy, is in exile. The English-language newspaper, The Cambodia Daily, has been closed and the relatively free radio stations leant on and a number closed. The decades-long Prime Minister, Hun Sen, talks about rebels in the capital, Phnom Penh, plotting to overthrow the government.

: Jonathan Power; OPINION; 17 October 2017

Photo: Since the Nobel Committee painstakingly scrutinizes the words and deeds of all nominees, it was cognizant of President Sirisena's failure to sign the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. UN Photo/Cia Pak.

The Nobel Peace Prize 2017 Finally for a Legitimate Cause

Viewpoint by Somar Wijayadasa*

NEW YORK (IDN) - “Commiserations, Mr. President” in the Sunday Times of October 8 noted that President Maithripala Sirisena was “nominated and short listed” but missed the coveted Nobel peace prize.

The article provided an impressive historical perspective of our democracy – a must read by all who love our country. Bravo! to the writer. It is unfortunate that we, Sri Lankans, lost a jubilant moment.

Though no small feat to hit the short list, we are unable to know the details and opinions related to the award as the statutes of the Nobel Foundation restrict disclosure of information about the nominees for 50 years.

: Somar Wijayadasa; THE WORLD; Asia-Pacific; 15 October 2017

Photo: A painting of British soldiers shooting civilians in Amritsar on April 13, 1919. Credit: sabrangindia.in

Asians Urged to Demand Reparations for Colonial Crimes

By Janaka Perera

This report first appeared on LankaWeb on October 3, 2017, and is being re-published because it addresses an important issue which has been persistently highlighted by Shashi Tharoor, an eminent Indian politician, prolific writer and a former senior UN official. – The Editor

COLOMBO (IDN-INPS) - At a seminar on Foreign Policy and International Law held at the Organisation of Professional Associations (OPA) auditorium, Colombo on October 2, 2017, a member of the audience, Attorney Senaka Weeraratna, called for unity among Asian countries in claiming compensation from Western colonial powers which ravaged Third World nations including Sri Lanka (then Ceylon), during question time.

Weeraratna said: "The biggest proponents of Human Rights today are the very same countries that had decimated ancient civilizations in the two Americas (Aztec, Inca, Mayan and other Native American – the so-called Red Indian), Australia ( 40,000 year old Aboriginal civilization), Africa, Middle East, and Asia, within the last 500 years. There is mounting evidence of these crimes."

: IDN-INPS Asia Editor; THE WORLD; Asia-Pacific; 04 October 2017

Photo: In last six quarters, the economy under Prime Minister Modi sank from 9.2 per cent to 5.7 per cent, according to the Congress Party. Courtesy: PTI.

Things Are Suddenly Not Looking Good For India's PM Modi

Viewpoint by Jonathan Power*

LUND, Sweden (IDN-INPS) - Recent reports estimate that India’s annual economic growth rate is now down to 5.5%. The government of Narendra Modi which until recently seemed to be on a public opinion roll could fall off its log – but that depends on the Indian electorate ending its self-deceit.

Three years ago Modi at the helm of his Hindu nationalist party, the BJP, gave Congress a thumping defeat. Suave and persuasive on the podium, Modi rammed home a simple message that in the state of Gujarat where he was the chief minister more had been achieved in a short space of time than anywhere else in India. It was industrializing fast, building more roads, modernizing its ports and communications and helping the poor.

: Jonathan Power; OPINION; 03 October 2017

Photo: The UN Human Rights Council meeting room in Geneva. Credit: ohchr.org

The UNHRC Resolution and Implications for Sri Lanka

By Dr Palitha Kohona

The writer is a former Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the United Nations. The following are extracts from his presentation to the Organisation of Professional Associations, Colombo.

COLOMBO (IDN) - The UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) adopted the resolution entitled "Promoting reconciliation, accountability and human rights in Sri Lanka" on October 1, 2015, Resolution 30/1. This has been described by some critics as a constitution amendment project for Sri Lanka. Interestingly, it was cosponsored by Sri Lanka. In 2017, Sri Lanka obtained a two-year grace period to implement the resolution, further confirming the country’s acquiescence with Resolution 30/1.

Ominously, this year, the High Commissioner commented that in the absence of progress on the implementation of Res. 30/1, other countries could invoke the "universal jurisdiction" principle to start judicial proceedings against persons accused of having committed war crimes.

: Dr. Palitha Kohona; THE WORLD; Asia-Pacific; 02 October 2017

Photo: UNGA adopted the Treaty Prohibiting Nuclear Weapons, on 7 July 2017. Credit. UNODA

Sri Lanka Criticised for Not Signing the UN Nuke Ban Treaty

By J Nastranis

NEW YORK | COLOMBO (IDN) – Sri Lanka has refrained from signing the landmark UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons that was adopted by 122 countries on July 7, 2017 and opened for signature on September 20 at the UN headquarters in New York.

The decision not to sign the Treaty has triggered questions and concern at home and abroad. "Sri Lanka voted for the resolution adopting this very same Treaty [. . .], when we had a different Foreign Minister and Foreign Secretary. Has there now been a change of policy after a new minister assumed office?," wonders the Friday Forum, a think tank based in Colombo, the capital city of Sri Lanka.