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Globalization and democratization are two countervailing processes that run through Asian societies today.
On one hand, globalization connotes increasing external control by international financial institutions such as the World Bank (WB) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) over the economies of the poor nations. Under the New Order influenced by the General Agreements on Tariff and Trade (GATT) and the World Trade Organization (WTO), trade barriers are torn down to allow faster movement of goods and finance capital – but not labor – across national boundaries and into local communities.
Structural adjustment programs (SAPs) adapted by international financial institutions are fed to loan hungry governments have increased poverty among the rural populace, affecting women’s traditional capacities, further eroding the natural resource base, worsening food insecurity, and led to the loss of indigenous cultures and identities.
In contrast, democratization implies empowering grassroots communities towards meaningful change. It means awakening the people’s sense of dignity and self-confidence so that they can stand bold and brave without losing their cultural identity. Ultimately, it demands greater transparency and accountability — as exemplified in the local communities’ opposition against mega-project disasters like the Narmada Dam in India.
This publication “Breaking Their Silence” exposes issues on lack of transparency and accountability international econmonic and financial processes and mechanisms, thus adversely affecting the lives of Asian grassroots communities. The report also examined ways by which communities and groups assert their rights, as well as pressure for changes towards a greater democratization and accountability of international institutions as discussed during the Fourth Asian Development Forum (20-24 February 1995; Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) organized by ANGOC on the banner Transforming Institutions for the Empowerment of Asian Grassroots Communities. In the end, participants vowed to work with communities in enabling them to achieve self-reliance and self-sufficiency in their basic needs, live in peace and harmony, and meet all challenges of the State and market forces at the local, national, regional and global levels which impede their empowerment.
The Asian Development Forum is a five-year annual conference which gathers key development thinkers and practitioners to discuss key issues critical to the Asian Region.
