2020 Asia Young Leaders for Democracy Webinar

The Taiwan Foundation for Democracy (TFD) on August 19^th held the 2020 Asia Young Leaders for Democracy (AYLD) webinar, inviting AYLD alumni to share their observations on how COVID-19 has undermined democracy and human rights in the region. The alumni also spoke about efforts the civil society has made to sustain democracy and help those who are more vulnerable to weather impacts of the pandemic.

AYLD alumni highlighted emergency laws for curbing COVID-19 have become legal tools for some governments in Asia to suppress civic space and stop following international human rights standards. Freedom of speech and the press have been repressed by authoritarian forces in the region. Journalists not only face surveillance from the government, but also lack protective equipment which puts them at a higher risk of COVID-19 infection when interviewing or reporting on the scene. Women, the LGBTQ+ community, migrant workers, and young people are also relatively vulnerable to the impact of COVID-19. Due to city lockdowns, cases of gender-based violence and migrant worker rights violations have been increasing.

In response to these challenges, the AYLD alumni also shared how the civil society has been persistently serving as a strength for safeguarding democracy and human rights under COVID-19. NGOs in Asia have been providing rapid response funds to support journalists across the world. They are also working with local partners to establish social media outlets that fight against disinformation. Advocates of women’s rights have continued their projects curbing domestic violence while continuously urging the government to take more measures to protect women’s rights. Migrant rights groups have also been monitoring whether governments in Asia have fulfilled their commitment to protect migrant workers. In addition, the AYLD alumni gave examples of how the civil society and government cooperated to effectively control the pandemic. Through the experience-sharing of the AYLD alumni, the 2020 AYLD webinar concluded that sustaining a free and vibrant civil society is vital not only in defending democracy and human rights, but also in times of crisis, such as the COVID-19 epidemic.