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WPS 223 A Walk in the Park: Singapore’s Green Corridor as a Homegrown Import
Singapore’s new Green or Rail Corridor created on the site of the former Keretapi Tanah Meleyu (KTM) rail line resembles influential global models like Manhattan’s repurposed elevated rail line park, High Line. In fact, the roots of the Green Corridor are more properly located in Singapore’s planning and nature conservancy traditions going back decades. The straight-line dimensions and, by Singaporean standards, less manicured appearance of the Green Corridor enables this green space to capture the human and natural diversity and complexity of an urban setting better known for its uniform standards and “master plans.” In the process opportunities have opened up for partnerships between state and civil society in the planning process.
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WPS 222 Ethical Trading and Sri Lankan Labour Practices in the Apparel Sector
Economic geographers tout social upgrading via economic upgrading as a way of improving labour conditions, while labour geographers underscore the inherent contradictions of corporate governance initiatives. They point to the conceptual flaws of firm level analysis, given the limited attentiveness to worker actions and labour voice. Others point to the inherent tensions in global governance initiatives as they traverse along global supply chains, and the absence of labour voice within corporate codes. This neglect underpins my paper, which uses Sri Lanka as a litmus case to critically engage with labour voice around ethical codes and analyse its efficacy as a form of social upgrading.
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WPS 221 A Snapshot of Muhammadiyah: Social Change and Shifting Markers of Identity and Values
Historically Muhammadiyah has played a crucial role as vanguard of modernist Islam within Indonesia; more contemporarily Muhammadiyah members have dominated segments of the state bureaucracy, wielding considerable policy influence in key sectors. Given its importance, relatively little solid data is available on this influential organization – and even less is known about how its own social identity may be changing over time. Recognizing this, The Asia Foundation and LSI (Lembaga Survey Indonesia) partnered to conduct a nation-wide quantitative survey, followed by in-depth Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) aimed at gathering both quantitative and qualitative data on a range of issues related to how Muhammadiyah members perceive their own group’s identity, and how it may be changing. I propose to present the results of this survey, in particular focusing on four key areas: a) consumption of social services- particularly health and education, b) the role of religious leaders within Muhammadiyah, c) relationship between NU and Muhammadiyah, and d) views on democracy, gender, and pluralism. The survey results indicate both continuity and change, and present a portrait of an organization that is adapting in different ways to its rapidly changing political and social environment.
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Democracy, Elections and Reform in Cambodia
The year 2013 marked twenty years of political transition in Cambodia. The twenty years anniversary over the end of a protracted civil war and first democratic parliamentary elections in 1993 led however to no public celebrations, but disillusionment over Cambodia’s political future. The constitution 1993 had proclaimed to establish a liberal democratic political system based on the principles of a multiparty system and pluralism. The aim as proclaimed in the constitution and the preceding Paris Peace Treaties 1991 was to end the protracted civil war of the 1980s and to transform the formerly socialist government system to a liberal democratic system. Peace had returned to Cambodia, but the public expectation to consolidate a liberal democratic political system had not been met in the past two decades.
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A Week that Shook Cambodia
The garment industry has been the chief engine of the Cambodian economy for the past two decades since its establishment in 1994. However, garment workers still account for a large part of the country’s working poor. Workers are universally unhappy about the quality of life in general and the minimum wage in particular.
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Draft Working Group Report on Cambodia’s UPR
The Working Group on the Universal Periodic Review (UPR), established in accordance with Human Rights Council resolution 5/1 of 18 June 2007, held its eighteenth session from 27 January to 7 February 2014. The review of Cambodia was held at the 4th meeting on 28 January 2014. The delegation of Cambodia was headed by H.E. Mr Mak Sambath, Vice Chair of the National Human Rights Committee of Cambodia. At its 10th meeting held on 31 January 2014, the Working Group adopted the report on Cambodia.
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Human Rights Watch World Report 2014
Cambodia became engulfed in a human rights crisis after national assembly elections on July 28, 2013. Final results announced by the National Election Committee (NEC), a body controlled by the ruling Cambodian People’s Party (CPP), returned the CPP,
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Human Rights Watch World Report 2014 Event of 2013
Human Rights Watch defends the rights of people worldwide. We scrupulously investigate abuses, expose the facts widely, and pressure those with power to respect rights and secure justice. Human Rights Watch is an independent, international organization that works as part of a vibrant movement to uphold human dignity and advance the cause of human rights for all.
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Policy Brief: Land Issues after the 2013 National Assembly - Election and Recommendations
The policy brief is based on the Discussion Platform on “Land Issues after the 2013 National Assembly Election and Recommendations” held in Phnom Penh on 12 December 2013. The Discussion Platform was jointly organized by the Community Legal Education Center (CLEC), Equitable Cambodia (EC), and the Cambodian Center for Human Rights (CCHR) and was attended by more than 200 participants from 13 provinces including communities affected by land disputes, civil society representatives, and political parties.
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Cambodia Universal Periodic Review Submission 2013
The human rights situation has steadily worsened since the last review of Cambodia, with a surge in violent incidents in 2012 as the ruling Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) prepared for national elections scheduled for July 2013. A social crisis has developed as the result of systematic land expropriations by the government, the ruling party and private actors with official support and protection.
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Excessive Use of Force against Demonstrators in 2013 in Cambodia
2013 saw an upsurge in the number of demonstrations in the Kingdom of Cambodia (“Cambodia”),with hundreds of thousands of people taking their complaints to the public forum. From protests by garment workers and victims of forced evictions, to rallies by the political opposition, the end of the year was marked by daily news of demonstrations.
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2013 National Assembly Elections Final Assessment and Report
This report on the 2013 National Assembly elections includes findings, analysis, overall assessment and recommendations, as a compilation of COMFREL‟s reports and the situation room‟s statements published prior to election campaign, polling and immediately post-election periods, as well as an analysis of the election results. As with previous reports, analysis and recommendations seek to advance the debate on the reform and promotion of free and fair elections in Cambodia.
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