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HANOI (Dec. 11) – “The Asia Pacific region, in contrast to other parts of the developing world, has made truly great strides … undergoing a rate of development and change that is totally unprecedented in world history,” East-West Center (EWC) President Charles E. Morrison told a large group late last week (Dec. 7) in Hanoi.
Morrison addressed some 550 participants, most of them EWC alumni, at the opening session of the Center’s international conference, themed “Building an Asia Pacific Community for Sustainable Development.”
That Hanoi was selected as the venue for the gathering was, according to Morrison, “symbolic of the changed relationship between Vietnam and the United States” from one-time enemies to partners in a dynamic and changing region. He added, “I’m proud to say that the East-West Center and East-West Center alumni were leading the way,” along what at times was a bumpy road to normalization of relationships between the two countries.
He also cast the new relationship between Washington and Hanoi as “also symbolic of the fast pace of social, economic, political and international relations developments in our region.”
And, according to Morrison, the dramatic developments over the past four decades have been phenomenal. “The people of this region are healthier, more prosperous, better fed, better educated, and enjoy more civil rights and personal freedoms than ever before.” He proudly noted, “The Asia Pacific region now has the world’s largest financial reserves, it turns out the world’s largest number of engineers,” and in keeping with the building theme, “it has the world’s largest number of construction cranes.”
Countries in the region are committed to continuing positive change, in Morrison’s view. He noted the continued development and growth of infrastructure in the legal and educational arenas. “For example,” he pointed out, “China’s leaders are pledged to develop 100 world-class universities,” and there is also a move in the region to tap into “the long under-educated and under-utilized talent of its women for professional and leadership positions.”
One of the major factors in the Asia Pacific success story, according to Morrison, has been cooperation. Something that he reminded the participants the East-West Center has been at the forefront of. He noted the positive contributions through the Center’s collaborative research, educational opportunities, and unique leadership training programs for both the private and public sectors of the region have all been a part of the phenomena. He also reminded the audience that they, as EWC alumni, deserved much of the credit. Using the knowledge, leadership skills, and network of dedicated colleagues developed at the Center they played, and continue to play, major roles in the region’s transformation.
“Do cooperative relations among states make a difference?” he asked his audience. Answering his own question, Morrison noted, “It has now been a quarter century since there has been an international military conflict in the Asia Pacific region.” And, if there were still any nonbelievers in the house, he reminded them to, “Just think about how much more difficult it would have been to tackle an epidemic like the SARS or an avian flu pandemic in a coordinated manner in the 1960s and 1970s.”
There have been many successes over the past forty years or so, Morrison pointed out, but added, “We also know that there are more troubling trends and huge challenges ahead, and that there are many in our region who are disadvantaged rather than empowered by development … Ironically, the new challenges are often a consequence of the successes.”
Morrison remembered that in the early years of the East-West Center the biggest single research focus was the explosive growth of population in the region and its consequences. “Now our research program also concentrates on the aging of our populations … for our region as a whole … The number of age group over 65 is growing 4.5 times as rapidly as the population as a whole.” By mid-century, he said, “One in every four persons will be over 65, and in Japan and Korea the number will be closer to one in three.”
Morrison pointed out the aging boom has obvious implications for health care and pension systems, but “the impact on economic growth, creativity and innovation, political life, and personal security and well-being are less understood.” He warned the audience, “Asia is leading the way toward a demographic future without precedent in human experience.”
Another major challenge facing the region is globalization, seen as a double-edged sword by many. On the positive side, according to Morrison, “In the most rapidly developing Asian economies … the inflow of direct foreign investment and the export of manufactured goods to open markets in higher income nations have been critical ingredients for economic growth.” But, he added, “Globalization also brings enormous adjustments and dislocations, most notably widening income gaps.”
Other tremendous pressures that will have to be dealt with, according to Morrison, include the region’s natural resources and environment – including such things as the availability of fresh water, air pollution, oil and gas scarcities – gender issues, ethnic tensions and conflict, and governance and due process of law issues.
All of these can be faced, Morrison said, if there is one important ingredient: leadership.
“We know that the essence of leadership is not giving orders, but in harnessing and making opportunities from change,” he pointed out. “The faster the change, the greater the demand for leadership … (and) since the Asia Pacific region is the world’s most dynamic, the demand for and the responsibilities of leadership here are greater than anywhere else.”
Morrison pointed out that “Just as the region changes, and as the demand for leadership changes, so too the East-West Center must change to fulfill its mission of building a peaceful, prosperous, and just Asia Pacific region as an essential building block in our global future.”
He pledged that the Center would do so.
Morrison honored and congratulated those who attended the conference, and those who could not, for their dedication. “You are among the scarce leadership resources of the Asia Pacific, individuals who can think and act with the best interest of the region at heart … Your burdens are heavy, your accomplishments are great, and the opportunities greater still.” But he also challenged them: “Let us today, and every day, rededicate ourselves to making a difference for our region and the world by converting challenges into opportunities.”
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Charles E. Morrison can be reached at (808) 944-7103 or via email at morrisoc@EastWestCenter.org.
For daily news on the Pacific Islands, see www.pireport.org. For links to all East-West Center media programs, fellowships and services, see www.eastwestcenter.org/journalists