REGIONAL
CONFERENCE ON DEMOCRACY IN
|
The Centre for
Home Confernece
material
cONTACT mEDIA COVERAGE KEYNote
speakers
UPDATE: Audio Podcast of the conference is now available. Click here to access the podcasts. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
rEGIONAL Conference on ‘Deepening and Sustaining Democracy in Asia’
12-14 October 2009
Organized by the Centre for
The
Centre for Bhutan Studies and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Bhutan
organized the three-day regional conference on democracy entitled ‘Deepening
and Sustaining Democracy in Asia’ from 12-14 October 2009 in Zhiwa Ling,
Paro.
The
idea of this Conference emerged from consultations between the Honourable Prime
Minister Lyonchhen Jigmi Y. Thinley and Mr. Ajay Chhibber, UNDP Assistant
Administrator and Regional Director for Asia
and the Pacific.
The
Conference was to mark the smooth and peaceful democratic transition in Bhutan
and the completion of democratic election processes in the whole of South Asia.
It was a platform to share lessons and experiences among countries in the
region as well as with other Asian neighbours to help strengthen, deepen and
sustain the democratic culture and values in Asia. The Conference focused on:
1
Democratic values: means and ends;
2
Strengthening electoral governance and
electoral processes;
3
Role of civil society, social capital, voice
in democratic strengthening (including gender dimensions);
4
Rule of law and role of the judiciary in
strengthening democracy; and
5 Bringing government closer to people: decentralization and local governance.
Cabinet Ministers and MPs from 14 countries representing SAARC and
BIMSTEC groups as well as others, participated in the Conference.
Representatives of NGOs and CSOs from a number of Asian countries, UN and
international organizations representatives attended the conference alongside
Bhutanese participants. Fifteen
internationally acclaimed scholars and experts on Democracy presented papers on
the above themes at the Conference.
You can
download the papers presented for the conference from here.