The Osaka University Center for Excellence Program and HURIGHTS OSAKA jointly organized a symposium entitled "Conflict between Asian Values and International Human Rights Standards: The Case of Northeast Asia" on 13 March 2010 in Osaka city. Prof. Mab Huang of the Chang Fo-Chuan Center for the Study of Human Rights, Soochow University, Taipei, analyzed the arguments supporting supposed "Asian Values" that were considered by some leaders in Asia to be in conflict with Western- influenced international human rights standards. He criticized the different justifications for "Asian Values" promoted by some Asian leaders in the 1990s. Prof. Kim Eun-Shil of the Department of Women's Studies, Ewha Woman's University in Seoul explained the history of the human rights movement in Korea and the question raised on the treatment of minority issues as human rights issues. She noted that despite the general acceptance of human rights in Korean society, there are still problems particularly in relation to women for various reasons including cultural ones.
URIGHTS OSAKA held a meeting in Bangkok on 25-26 March 2010 among research partners in the international human rights standards and domestic laws and jurisprudence project. This project involves eight countries, namely, India, Nepal, China, Korea, Japan, Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand. It aims to analyze examples of national application of international human rights standards from the perspective of human rights practitioners. The research partners in the eight countries are mostly human rights centers that are involved in both research and community outreach. The following are the research partners: Human Rights Law Network (India), Center for Legal Research and Resource Development (Nepal), Public Interest and Development Law Institute (China), MINBYUN-Lawyers for a Democratic Society (Korea), Human Rights Now (Japan), Association for Community and Ecologically Based Law Reform (Indonesia), Institute of Human Rights (Philippines), and Center for Human Rights Studies and Social Development (Thailand). The representatives of the research partners presented their plans for the research. Their issues range from criminal procedure to right to health. The meeting was also attended by Mr. Homayoun Alizadeh, Regional Representative for Asia-Pacific, and Ms. Nathalie Meyer, United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights - Bangkok Office. Ms. Salbiah Ahmad of Singapore is the project consultant, while Jeff Plantilla of HURIGHTS OSAKA is the project coordinator. The research project has financial support from the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. A regional meeting will be held in August 2010 also in Bangkok to present the results of the research.