The Asia Foundation

The Asia Foundation in partnership with the Merdeka Center for Opinion Research released findings from their third opinion poll, the 2008 National Youth Survey, which gauges Malaysia’s youth perceptions on lifestyle, current issues, values, politics, and their own levels of civic and social involvement. Read the press release: “Merdeka Center poll: Youth well informed but politically disconnected,” and download the full survey.

In a Sky TV interview with Australia’s Foreign Minister Stephen Smith, during which he announces Australia’s pledge to provide $1 million for Asian observers to monitor upcoming Afghan elections, he cites The Asia Foundation for its role in also working with a range of Asian nations to have observers at the presidential and local council elections. A separate Sky News article about the announcement also cites The Asia Foundation’s assistance in election monitoring. Read the full article: “$1m allocated for Afghan vote observers.”

In a New Straits Times article about findings from a national youth survey that suggest young Malaysians consider corruption to be a significant concern, The Asia Foundation’s  support for the survey is cited. Read the full article: “Graft fight is top concern of young.”

In an op-ed in The Korea Herald, Scott Snyder, Center for U.S.-Korea Policy Director, Jack Pritchard, former special envoy for North Korea negotiations, and John Tilelli, former commander-in-chief of the UN Command and U.S. Forces in Korea, discuss the outcome of the recent summit meeting between Presidents Lee and Obama in Washington and implications for the U.S.-South Korea alliance. Read the full article, “New Chapter for U.S.-Korea Alliance.”

On Sunday May 24th, 2009 more than a million Mongolians, approximately 73% of eligible voters nationwide, went to the polls to elect a new President; the fifth presidential election since the nation established democracy in 1990. The elections proceeded peacefully and confirmed Mongolia’s commitment to democracy.

To support transparency of the election process, The Asia Foundation organized and deployed 27 volunteer teams to observe polling at stations across Ulaanbaatar. According to Mongolia’s election laws, only foreigners are allowed to observe elections. Therefore, observation teams were composed of an international and Mongolian counterpart. The teams were made up of volunteers from: Asia Foundation locally-based expatriate staff; concerned international citizens living in Mongolia; two representatives from the Dutch Embassy; and 11 teams from the U.S. Embassy.

In an effort to cover all of Ulaanbaatar’s 161 polling stations, the teams were assigned six polling stations to observe. In addition to observation, teams conducted a voter surveys. After a long day of observing, from 7:00am when polls opened until 10:00pm when polls closed, observation teams visited over 95% (154/161) of the polling stations in Ulaanbaatar and conducted interviews with 248 voters. In addition, some observers stayed up until the early hours of the morning to observe the entire counting process.

Based on the limited scope of the observation initiative, The Asia Foundation is unable to make a definitive assessment of the overall fairness of the election process. Nevertheless, because the 27 observation teams were deployed across the entire city, their findings provide valuable insight into the process. The Asia Foundation gathered the following initial findings by conducting post-election debriefs with the observer teams.

In general, the teams deemed the overall environment on Election Day to be conducive to fair elections. Observers noted that for the most part, polling stations were set up properly, accessible, well-staffed, well-run, and able to accommodate a high level of voter turnout for a close election. While the efficiency and accuracy of some processes could be improved, observers noted that they did not observe any widespread or systemic malfeasance or malpractices. In fact, a number of observers noted seeing polling station workers actively referring to a manual on procedures that the Foundation, with support from the Canada Fund, issued prior to the election to advance efficiency and accuracy of the registration and election process.

While the overall findings were positive, there were a few issues that observers noted that should be improved:

• There were some reports of polling stations not being properly set up to protect voter privacy in ballot marking. However, this may be attributable to a lack of guidance rather than an intention to subvert the confidentiality of the ballot.
• Access to polling stations for the elderly and handicapped is problematic; with long distances between polling stations and polling stations set up on the upper floors of buildings likely deterring some potential voters from casting a ballot.
• Crowding and long queues at the polling stations, particularly near closing time, made it difficult for observers to see all aspects of the process and strained the efficiency of the polling process.
• Although the counting process was found to be generally transparent, there is a concern over accuracy related to fatigue as the process, on average, started at about 11:00 pm and in many cases, extended through the morning hours. Poll workers, who had been working since 7:00 am, were visibly tired and prone to make errors.
• Some procedures were unclear and inconsistently administered by polling stations.

Following up to this statement, the Foundation has published a detailed report with the quantified findings of the observers, results of the voter survey, and recommendations for specific reforms that could improve the process in future elections. Download the full report.

In conclusion, The Asia Foundation would like to thank the international and Mongolian volunteers, whose commitment to fair and democratic elections, made this observation initiative possible. The Foundation would also like to commend the General Elections Commission on administering an efficient election process. Finally, the Foundation congratulates the citizens of Mongolia on a peaceful election with a high voter turnout that demonstrated the deepening roots of democracy in the country.

On Thursday, June 25, The Asia Foundation’s private fundraising teams, spearheaded by Corporate and Foundation Relations Director Nayna Agrawal, hosted an informational conference call with Vietnam Country Representative Kim Ninh. The call covered modern development challenges and opportunities in rapidly changing Vietnam, focusing on education, women’s rights, and the environment. A representative from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s Global Libraries program also spoke on the state of education in Vietnam, as well as our partnership with the Global Libraries program to expand internet capacity in public libraries in the country.

The full call (1 hour total) was recorded and is included here for you to listen in. We hope you will find it as engaging and informative as we did! For questions or further information, please contact Nayna Agrawal at nagrawal@asiafound.org.

Sandra Hamid, The Asia Foundation’s Senior Director for Programs in Indonesia, is quoted in a Time.com article about the influence the current presidential debates have on voters in Indonesia. Read full article: “In Indonesia Vote, Change Not on Ticket.”

Asia Foundation’s Justice Sector Reform Program Director Robert La Mont is quoted in a Reuters wire story about an Indonesian mother who was jailed and put on trial after sending an e-mail to friends complaining about her treatment in a private hospital, an event that has become a rallying point for reform of the country’s legal system. Read the full story: “Indonesia Legal System Under Fire Over E – Mail Case.”

GlobalSecurity.org features an op-ed by Scott Snyder on negotiations with Korea, “Is North Korea Playing A New Game?” This article was first published in Korean in the June 18 edition of Chosun Ilbo, “Bukhanee Beorigo Inneun Serowoon Geim.”

PBS’ Worldfocus features excerpts from the June 17 In Asia post “In Pakistan: Homeless in their Homeland” by The Asia Foundation’s Senior Program Officer in Pakistan Nadia Tariq Ali. Read the blog post: “Pakistan offensive nears end; refugee crisis just beginning.”

In an interview with CFR.org Scott Snyder discusses prospects for U.S.-South Korea relations following the presidential summit in Washington and a new UN Security Council Resolution imposing stricter sanctions on North Korea. Read the full interview, “Strengthening South Korean Ties.”

A Christian Science Monitor article about South Korean and U.S. responses to President Obama and President Lee Myung-bak’s meeting  quotes The Asia Foundation’s Center for U.S.-Korea Policy Director Scott Snyder. Read the full article: “N. Korea threatens strike after US-S. Korea summit.”

In an op-ed in The Baltimore Sun, co-written with Jack Pritchard, former special envoy for negotiations with North Korea, and John Tilelli, former commander-in-chief of the UN Command, Scott Snyder assesses the role of the U.S.-ROK alliance in addressing North Korea’s nuclear threat and issues beyond the peninsula as Presidents Barack Obama and Lee Myung-bak meet for their first summit meeting. Read the full article, “Viewpoint: A New Chapter for U.S.-South Korea Alliance.”