TOWARDS A NEW ALLIANCE OF DEMOCRATS
Rome, Italy / April 21, 2007
by: Hon. Rene Villa
Former Secretary (Minister) of Agrarian Reform of the Philippines
Delivered in behalf of CALD

I am here as the official representative of Senator Franklin Drilon, Chairman of the Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats (CALD) and President of the Liberal Party of the Philippines.

Many of the Asian participants right now are members of CALD. They include the leader of the Cambodian opposition Sam Rainsy, who was CALD chairman from 2001 to 2002;  Maung Maung of the National Council of the Union of Burma; Abhisit Vejjajiva and Sopha Sirichoke of the Democrat Party of Thailand—the founding party of CALD. And we have also the head of the secretariat, John Coronel, CALD Executive Director, who helped in drafting this paper.

The other members of CALD are the ruling Democratic Progressive Party  of Taiwan which broke Taiwan’s  half century of one-party rule, the Malaysian People’s Movement Party, the opposition Singapore Democratic Party, and the Liberal Party of Sri Lanka.

When the CALD Executive Committee visited Jakarta last February, former Indonesian President Abdurahman Wahid, Chairman of the Nation Awakening Party or PKB, has told us that PKB will joining CALD and become our 9^th member.

This is a milestone for CALD. Indonesia is the biggest country in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations or ASEAN. It is also the biggest predominantly Muslin country in the world. Thus, Indonesia’s democratization can become a model for the rest of the Muslim world.

Aside from full members, we have observer parties including the ruling Uri Party of Korea, the Democratic Party of Japan and the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle. Martin Lee and another legislator from the Democratic Party of Hong Kong are individual members.  

Founded in Bangkok in 1993 as an umbrella of liberal and democratic political parties in Asia, CALD has come a long way.  As former Korean President, Nobel Laureate and CALD Co-founder, Kim Dae Jung put it “Compared to a decade ago, democracy has flourished in Asia…CALD  has greatly contributed to pursuing democracy as a common value of Asia beyond the differences in language, religion and culture. As a result, CALD has developed as one of the epicenters in promoting democracy in Asia.”

Although less than 13 years old, CALD is the first regional grouping of political parties in Asia. This says a lot about democratic development in the region and also the nature and characteristics of political parties in Asia.

Put in general terms, Asia is the biggest continent with half the world’s population that could simply be described as staggering in terms of ethnic diversity, hundreds of languages and thousands of dialects, and other cultural variables. Democracy is relatively new in the region. Often, many Asian countries have more cultural, historical and economic ties with their former colonizers than their neighbors.

After struggling with centuries of colonization, many Asian countries came under the grip of authoritarian regimes. Chiang Kai-Shek of Taiwan, Ferdinand Marcos of the Philippines, Park Chung Hee of Korea, Suharto of Indonesia… just to name a few. 

The phrase “Asian values” was used as a justification for authoritarianism. For its proponents, democracy can wait in favor of economic development.  But of course, democrats firmly believe that democracy and development are inseparable twins and the two must go hand in hand.

Democrats in my region also have to contend with weak political parties. In most cases especially in developing and underdeveloped countries in Asia, parties build support through a network of patronage rather than ideology. In the Philippines, it is the height of the national elections and once again, the so-called 3-G’s of Guns, Goons and Gold are rearing their ugly heads.

In this context, the impetus for an organization like CALD to exist and flourish becomes greater. And in a similar light, the need for CALD to establish, maintain and strengthen networks such as this one in Rome becomes more apparent. CALD has always affirmed its ties with equally-minded organizations and individuals to build a more democratic and equitable common future. As CALD Secretary General Congressman Neric Acosta put it, “the primacy of dialogue and the search for convergence enable us to bring our ideas, frustrations, and hopes into sharper deliberation and meaningful discussions.”

As we Asian democrats remain steadfast in our principles and ideals, we are constantly faced with various challenges, the foremost of which are the alarming poverty and increasing wedges between the haves and the have-nots. These have become breeding grounds for extremism and religious fanaticism. Oppression, disenfranchisement, alienation—whether real or imagined— are biggest recruiters of terrorist groups.

Abject poverty and inequality are also fertile grounds for populism and patronage that give birth to what may sound like an oxymoron—“democratically elected autocrats”.

Thaksin of Thailand and Gloria Arroyo of the Philippines have manipulated and subverted institutions for their own political and economic gains. Asian politicos often take advantage of an impoverished population, a misinformed electorate and a weak political party culture. With a majority deprived of informed choices and with the absence of transparency, political opportunists can freely operate and manipulate institutions of the state.

I was one of the ten cabinet secretaries of President Arroyo who resigned in (DATE)   at the height of the political scandals that seriously cast doubts on the legitimacy of her presidency. The other one was Education Secretary Florencio Abad who served both as CALD Chairman and Liberal Party President in the past. We resigned out of principle but admittedly, this has produced a negative effect. As the more progressive elements left the cabinet during this time and subsequently after, the power vacuum was filled by the military and traditional politicians whose primary qualifications were an unquestioning loyalty to the appointing powers and a keen determination to remain in power no matter what the political and economic cost. As the doves flew out of the presidential nest, the hawks took over.

As can be seen from the Philippines and Thailand, keeping democracy can be harder than achieving it. And as Cambodia and Burma struggle for their freedom, it is also wise to learn from our mistakes. CALD and this very important Roman Forum today can provide such venues for learning.

Only last week, a parliamentary mission was jointly organized by CALD and the Alliance of Liberals & Democrats for Europe in Jakarta and Singapore. Unfortunately, the government of Singapore has gagged the Asian and European parliamentarians from speaking in a forum organized by the Singapore Democratic Party. It was indeed ironic that a constructive and well-meaning dialogue was regarded as an interference in the internal affairs.

Singapore has reached a level of economic prosperity that is the envy of the rest of the ASEAN.  Its government should be secure enough to allow and even encourage political dissent. One does not live on bread alone, economic prosperity without political freedom builds nothing but a facade of contentment.

This Rome meeting is a vindication of what CALD has been doing all along. That is, the dynamic, critical and sustained dialogue amongst democrats worldwide is essential in protecting democratic gains and even in helping open closed societies. For indeed, in the words of Daw Aung Saan Suu Kyi… “please use your liberty to promote ours.”

Though the military junta is still firmly in control of Burma, there have been some successes. Through the lobbying efforts of parliamentarians from Southeast Asia,  the Myanmar military government was pressured not to accept the chairmanship of the ASEAN. This is particularly significant since unlike the European Union, ASEAN member states do not interfere in the internal affairs of other members.   

Another case where cooperation of parliamentarians and political parties from across regions have proved successful was when Sam Rainy and two of his colleagues were stripped on their parliamentary immunity, ALDE, CALD and the Inter-Parliamentary Union became relentless in pressuring the Hun Sen regime in restoring this basic right of legislators. While Sam Rainsy was in exile, CALD and the Liberal Party hosted the biggest meeting of the SRP outside Cambodia in Manila. This is just one case where international solidarity has proven crucial in the promotion of human rights and democracy.

Those who are enjoying the fruits of freedom and democracy are obliged to promote freedom and democracy in places where there are none or where these are wanting. For in the final analysis, democracy and progress cannot be sustained if they remain as the exclusive domain of the privileged few.