An Intellectual Dialogue on Building Asia's Tomorrow

The Asian Crisis: Meeting the Challenges to Human Security

Summary of Discussions

In response to the call made by Japanese Prime Minister (then Foreign Minster) Keizo Obuchi in Singapore on May 4, 1998, for an "Intellectual Dialogue on Building Asia's Tomorrow," the Japan Center for International Exchange (JCIE) and the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS) jointly sponsored a two day conference of leading intellectuals to discuss the "human security" challenges stemming from the Asian financial crisis.

The need "to mobilize the diverse intellectual assets and resourcefulness of each country for the peace and prosperity of the Asian region" was reiterated by Prime Minster Obuchi in his opening address to the meeting. Noting how the current economic crisis is causing immense social stress and threatening the lives of many people, the Prime Minister further called for "new strategies for economic development which attach importance to human security with a view to enhancing the long term development of our region." With the region growing increasingly interdependent and more vulnerable to a host of human security problems—environmental degradation, organized crime, migration, terrorism and disease—that do not respect national borders and cannot be tackled alone, Mr. Obuchi argued that the coordinated action of the international community is essential. To be truly effective, moreover, the response of governments and international organizations must encourage and engage the participation of all aspects of civil society in a common endeavor.

In recognition that the design of effective strategies and policies to respond to the human security challenges of the crisis requires a comprehensive and accurate picture of its current and likely impact, the first session of the conference was dedicated to providing such a baseline assessment. For this purpose, a background paper summarizing publicly available materials on the social consequences of the crisis for the region as a whole—perhaps the first such undertaking—was commissioned and presented. Though unavoidably a "snapshot" of a complex and still unfolding situation, it is readily apparent from the background paper that the Asian economic crisis has had a profound effect on the living standards of millions in the region aggravating, as a consequence, existing social strains and vulnerabilities.

The human impact of the crisis is evident in many areas: falling real incomes and rising incidence of poverty; increasing levels of unemployment and underemployment; socially destabilizing migration flows; food shortages and malnutrition; declining public health; reduced education coverage; and increasing incidence of crime including domestic violence. These effects are most acute in Indonesia, which is experiencing considerable social and political instability largely as a consequence, while being severe in Thailand, Korea, and Malaysia. The Philippines has been less affected though the situation may be deteriorating. Within these countries, the hardest hit have typically been the most vulnerable groups in society, notably women and children. Few if any social safety nets exist to support them and help relieve their plight.

Left unattended, the socio-economic problems caused by the crisis could have more fundamental consequences in that they may impede the speed and quality of the recovery, cause destabilizing schisms to open within and between countries, and undermine the long term health, educational, and employment prospects of many throughout the region. In short, the stakes are enormous.

In assessing the role that intellectual dialogue can play in meeting the human security challenges generated by the crisis, the second session highlighted many important—indeed critical—contributions. In the abstract, intellectual dialogue helps promote good public policy decision making on complex societal problems (through objective research and rigorous analysis of competing policy options); stimulate new ideas drawing on multinational and multidisciplinary backgrounds; propagate knowledge of "best practices" for dealing with common problems; promote mutual understanding and with it mutual confidence; and, more generally, build communities with shared aspirations and values.

In the current Asian context, intellectual dialogue is seen by many to be especially important. More specifically it can provide analysis of the challenges facing the region and how it should cope with the problems of globalization including early warning of potential future crises; help compensate for the inadequate resources and short-term orientation of many governments; challenge the prevailing dogma and closed nature of public policy making in certain countries and institutions by encouraging alternative information sources and independent analytic capabilities; raise the intellectual standards of the region as a whole and make it less dependent on the advice of outside experts; generate the necessary consensus and legitimacy for key policy initiatives; and foster a compelling, imaginative vision for the future along with a detailed "road map" or program of action.

The principal underlying themes of the first two sessions featured prominently in a second keynote address to the conference by H.E. Dr. Surin Pitsuwan, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Thailand. Arguing that "we in Asia must together pool our knowledge and wisdom" to overcome the formidable challenges presented by the crisis, Foreign Minister Surin called for "an open-hearted as well as an open open-minded dialogue." In the short term this requires the creation of adequate social safety nets to protect the unemployed, the poor, and the marginalized in society. More fundamentally, however, it requires shedding the past fixation with growth rates as the primary standard of progress and the adoption of a more "holistic" conception of human development. Moreover, with its considerable resources, Japan can play a leading role not only in stimulating the recovery of the region but also in promoting a more human centered approach.

Many of these observations were echoed in the third session focusing on the role of governments, international organizations, and civil society. Here there was general agreement that the crisis provides both challenges and opportunities for Asia. Concrete measures were discussed in two general areas. The first entailed regional macro-economic initiatives to spur recovery and reduce the vulnerability of Asia to destabilizing events in the future. This included holding more diverse "baskets" of reserve currencies, establishing a regional monetary fund to stimulate growth similar in effect to the Marshall Plan, promoting better regional consultation and coordination mechanisms, employing exchange rate "bands" and capital flow constraints, the development of regional capital markets and indexed bonds, and fundamental economic restructuring.

The second broad area for initiative entails promoting and harnessing the activities of key elements of civil society—NGOs, the media, academia, religious groups, community groups, and philanthropic organizations. This requires the development of new partnerships with governments and international organizations to provide the overarching framework and underlying infrastructure for civil society to flourish in an independent, responsible and above all, socially productive fashion. While some voiced concern over issues of accountability and responsibility in the actions of civil society groups, the consensus was that they have an increasingly vital role to play and can complement and sometimes even substitute for government action.

In the concluding session, attention turned to the future beyond the current crisis and specifically the goal of building a better Asia. Considerable hope was voiced that the region can regenerate itself and reemerge, if anything, strengthened from its ordeals. This will require a willingness to reflect on and learn from the past, the adoption of new practices and new priorities particularly a commitment to good governance, greater transparency, broader public participation, and concern for human security. Every effort should also be made to enhance the capabilities of people and sustain their confidence in a brighter future. These efforts can build upon the region's inherent strengths and be further nurtured by a compelling vision of its place in the world. Thus, rather than succumbing to pessimism and retrenchment, the region should boldly press ahead in the development of regional cooperation and institution building.

All this represents an ambitious undertaking that will demand intellectual input of the highest caliber. For this reason further dialogue and exchange has an indispensable part to play in Asia's future. In this spirit, participants expressed the hope that a follow-up conference to this meeting would be convened in the near future, preferably in an ASEAN country.