In The News

How to Deal With NGOs – Part I, China

Paul Mooney August 1, 2006
Both China and Russia sat up and took notice of the role played by nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in the political unrest and subsequent color revolutions in Georgia, the Ukraine and Kyrgyzstan. This two-part series examines the two governments’ responses to NGO activity within their borders. China dispatched intelligence officers to research the NGO role in Central Asia and also conduct...

Dare Violate a Copyright in Hong Kong? A Boy Scout May Be Watching Online

Keith Bradsher July 24, 2006
The Hong Kong government has unveiled a plan to use 200,000 young people from organizations like the Boy Scouts and the Girl Guides as watchdogs for internet copyright infringement. Many civil liberties advocates question the use of teenagers in state-sponsored law enforcement. While Hong Kong authorities claim that the program encourages good citizenship among a population with a high rate of...

The Taliban’s Silent Partner

Robert D. Kaplan July 21, 2006
While the Afghan government, led by US-backed President Hamid Karzai, controls the country’s major cities, the countryside remains subject to Taliban infiltration. Over 75 percent of Afghanistan’s population lives in rural villages. Thus, using Pakistan as a rear base, Taliban units provide security and other concrete needs to villagers that the government fails to deliver. Pakistani President...

Russia Looks Both East and West

Andrew Symon July 20, 2006
As the Group of Eight industrial countries meets in St. Petersburg, Russian oil supply to Europe and western countries was a prominent topic of conversation. Russia supplies 25 percent of the EU’s oil. Russia also looks east to China and South Korea to expand its markets for oil and natural gas. Several projects under negotiation between Moscow and Asian governments would increase the Russian...

Dare Violate a Copyright in Hong Kong? A Boy Scout May Be Watching Online

Keith Bradsher July 18, 2006
The Hong Kong government has unveiled a plan to use 200,000 young people from organizations like the Boy Scouts and the Girl Guides as watchdogs for internet copyright infringement. Many civil liberties advocates question the use of teenagers in state-sponsored law enforcement. While Hong Kong authorities claim that the program encourages good citizenship among a population with a high rate of...

Southeast Asia’s New Best Friend

Tyler Marshall June 22, 2006
While the US focuses on its expansive “war on terror,” Chinese trade in Southeast Asia grows rapidly, jumping by 20 percent in 2005, more than twice the US rate. Rather than disdain other Asian cultures, China reaches out to overseas ethnic Chinese to celebrate a mutual heritage. The nation’s influence is revealed by Thailand’s increasing exports to China, Manila museums celebrating Chinese-...

Elections Expand Voting Rights for Foreigners, Younger Citizens

Cho Chung-un June 15, 2006
South Korea seeks to make the most of democracy by granting foreigners and young Koreans the right to vote in larger numbers than ever before in the country’s local elections. Integration of foreigners is a major concern throughout the world, but South Korea is the first Asian country to grant voting rights to foreigners who have lived in the country for three or more years. The move could prove...