Southeast & East Asia, Oceania
Recent Legal Reforms in Burma Give Hope for Lasting Democratic Change
Since President Thein Sein assumed power in March 2011, Burma’s nominally civilian government has instituted a number of legal reforms drawing the attention of the United Nations (UN) and many Western democracies. Observing members of the international community are considering…
Papua New Guinea’s Judiciary Makes Incremental Progress to Uphold Human Rights in the Extractive Industries
Papua New Guinea (PNG) has long struggled to protect human rights in the natural resource extractive industries. PNG is one of the most resource rich countries in the Pacific. In 2010 its natural resources made up 76% of the country’s…
UN Organs Flout Panel’s Recommendations on Sri Lanka
The UN Human Rights Council (HRC), mandated with addressing “gross and systematic” violations of human rights, concluded its eighteenth session in September, once again failing to address the allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed during the…
Cambodia Targets Civil Society Activity with Revised Penal Code and Pending NGO Law
Cambodia’s increasing exercise of authority to restrict civil society activity in recent months has drawn much criticism from the international community. In July, a Cambodian Appeals Court upheld what some observers consider a groundless conviction on incitement charges against a…
Illegal Intercountry Adoptions: Vietnam’s Progress and Remaining Challenges
Intercountry adoption (ICA) began as a humanitarian effort after World War II to place orphaned children, for whom a state could not find a family domestically, into families of willing foreigners. In recent decades, ICA has grown into…
Rohingyas Seeking Protection and Refuge
The Rohingyas are a Muslim ethnic group located in the Rakhine (Arakan) State of southwestern Burma. According to Human Rights Watch, the Rohingyas are subjected to systematic persecution and human rights abuses at the hand of the Burmese…
The Right to Conscientious Objection and How South Korea Falls Short
On February 10, 2011, Baek Jong-geon conscientiously objected to mandatory service in South Korea’s military. The 26 year old Jehovah’s Witness faces eighteen months in jail for violating the country’s Military Service Act (MSA), which requires…
South Korea’s National Security Law: Legitimate Measure or Threat to Freedom of Speech?
On January 10, 2011, South Korean officials accused a 54-year old man known only as “Cho” of using various websites, including Twitter, to praise the North Korean government and distribute information from its official website. The South Korean…
China’s IUD Policy: Grounds for Refugee Status?
On February 1, 2011, the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals heard the case of Mei Fun Wong, a Chinese national seeking asylum in the United States. Wong seeks asylum on the basis that she allegedly faces persecution…
Ensuring Religious Freedom in Indonesia: How the Government is Failing to Meet its International and Constitutional Obligations
The freedom to practice one’s religion without unlawful interference or coercion is increasingly under threat for religious minorities in Indonesia. Christian denominations, specifically, seem to be the target of extremist hostilities. Recently, a crowd set fire to a Catholic church…
