Steering Committee

Dr.Chee Soon Juan, Chairman
Dr. Chee is a neuropsychologist by training. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Georgia, US in 1990. He lectured in the National University of Singapore until he was sacked three months after joining the opposition Singapore Democratic Party of which he is the secretary-general. He has been repeatedly jailed by the Singapore government for making public speeches without permits and has been embroiled in a defamation suit taken up against him by two former prime ministers of Singapore, Mr. Lee Kuan Yew and Mr. Goh Chok Tong. Dr.Chee is also the director of the Open Singapore Centre. He was fellow at the Monash Asia Institute (1997), the University of Chicago (2001),and the Reagan-Fascell Democracy Program at the National Endowment for Democracy in Washington, D.C (2004) as well as the recipient of the Defender of Democracy Award 2003 given by the Parliamentarians for Global Action. Dr. Chee is also the author of several books including Dare To Change: An Alternative Vision for Singapore; Singapore - My Home Too; To Be Free: Stories from Asia's Struggle Against Oppression;and Your Future, My Faith, Our Freedom: A Democratic Blueprint for Singapore.

Dr. Sanjaasuren Oyun , Vice Chair
She is the first Mongolian to earn a Ph. D. from Cambridge University, UK. As Leader of the Citizens Will – Republican Party, she is the only female party leader in Mongolia, and the only female politician honoured as one of the “top ten most popular politicians”. She has been an opposition Member of the Mongolian Parliament since 1998. She is also a member of the Standing Committee on Security and Foreign Affairs. Dr. Oyun entered Mongolian politics following the assassination of her brother Zorig, the Minister for Infrastructure Development andone of Mongolia’s main pro-democracy leaders. Upon her entry to politics, Dr. Oyun called for cleaner politics, for the necessity of putting public good over personal gain, for more transparent and accountable government and for taking a hard stand against corruption.

Mr. Tian Chua
Tian Chua is a longtime workers’ rights activist. As director of the Labour Resource Centre in Malaysia, Mr. Chua conducted workshops on human rights across the country. Before completing his Masters in Labour Studies at the Institute of Social Studies in Den Hague (Netherlands), he worked with the prominent human rights group Suaram among other regional labour organizations. The Vice President of the Keadilan Party in Malaysia was arrested several times in his fight for democracy and human rights. He was detained for 2 years under the Internal Security Act in 2001 for a planned demonstration to mark the second anniversary of Malaysia’s Former Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s arrest. Mr Chua was released in June 2003 and has continued to be a passionate advocate of good governance, human rights and democracy.

Mr. Sam Rainsy
The Opposition Leader of Cambodia and President of the Sam Rainsy Party was the Minister of Finance of the Royal Government of Cambodia. Mr. Rainsy was also the President of the Khmer Nation Party from 1995 to 1998. Apart from holding a Masters in Business Administration from INSEAD (Fontainebleau, France) in 1980, Mr. Rainsy has obtained degrees in Accounting, Political Science and Economics.

Mr. Pema Chhinjor Khangtetsang
Mr. Khangtetsang was the former Minister of Security of the Tibetan Governement-in-Exile. He taught Tibetan language and History in the Department of Central Asian Studies, Punjab University Chandigarh from 1974 to 1987. He also wrote and published “New Plan Tibetan Grammar & Translation”. Mr. Khangtetsang also served as the Vice Presidentof Indo-Tibetan Friendship Society at Bangalore. He maintains close ties with His Holiness the Dalai Lama and is a committed advocate of democracy for Tibet and the world over.

Ms Tioulong Saumura
Ms Saumura was a member of the FUNCINPEC Movement since its founding in 1981. She was the Deputy Governor of Cambodia’s Central Bank from 1983to 1985 during which she negotiated and supervised the implementation of the first IMF support programmes to Cambodia. She has been a Member of the Steering Committee of the Sam Rainsy Party since 1998 and an elected Member of Parliament for Phnom Penh.Ms Saumura obtained her Masters in Business Administration from INSEAD (Fontainebleau, France) in 1980. She was the Chairperson and the Chief Executive Officer of Mobiliere Conseil, a Paris-based investment company. Married to the opposition leader Mr. Sam Rainsy since 1971, Ms Saumura is a powerful voice for democracy and human rights.

Dr. Ken Coghill
A former Member and Speaker of the Victorian Parliament, Dr. Coghill assisted the Victorian Labor Parliamentary Labor Party’s transition to Executive Office in 1999. He served as a Member for Werribee (Australian LaborParty) Legislative Assembly, Parliament of Victoria 1979 – 1996, Parliamentary Secretary of  the Cabinet 1982 – 1988 and Speaker 1988 –1992. Dr. Coghill currently works at Monash University as Director,Governance and Government Unit and Co-Director, Parliamentary Studies Unit. He leads the Parliamentary Studies Program, Faculty of Arts,Monash University. In addition, Dr. Coghill is the Associate Director, International Centre for Management in Government, Monash Mt. Eliza Business School, where he teaches Governance & Business and Government in the Monash University post-graduate Public Police and Management Program.

Mr. Sarwar Bari
Mr Sarwar Bari is a founding member of ARDA. He is the National Coordinator of Pattan in Pakistan. Pattan works for improved local governance which starts from transparency and democratic norms in community level institutions, and also involves fostering better links and co-operation between communities and line departments and district administration. All Pattan's programs focus on identifying and strengthening people's capacities, rather than just addressing their vulnerabilities. A high degree of community participation assures accountability of Pattan staff to the communities in which they work.

Dr. Paul D Scott
Dr. Paul D.Scott is Professor of Modern Chinese and Japanese Studies in the AsianStudies Program at Kansai Gaidai University, Osaka, Japan. Educated in the United States, Taiwan, and Japan, he has spent over half his life in East Asia. He has served as an election observer and has given numerous workshops in Mongolia, Pakistan, Cambodia, and Afghanistan. Paul is a director of the Sam Rainsy Deed Center (Democratization Education Empowerment Development) in Cambodia as well as a member of Transcend. Paul serves on the editorial board of a variety of journals and magazines.

Ms. Emily Lau
Ms. Emily Lau, a full time Hong Kong legislator, was the first and only woman directly elected in New Territories East, Hong Kong in the Colonial Legislative Council back in 1991. She is one of the founding members of the Frontier Party a pan democratic political party. Trained as journalist, Ms Lau has worked with the South China Morning Post, Hong Kong TVB News, BBCTV UK and Far Eastern Economic Review. Emily Lau has long been an outspoken Hong Kong lawmaker and she brings the same fiery manner to her website. She lauds the Web as a way to fight "authoritarian regimes, monopolistic enterprises and propaganda agents . . . restricting, manipulating and spreading self-serving information." Ms Lau’s office has been attacked several times. In June 2004 her office was arsoned. It is believed that these violent acts were responses to this legislator’s firm pro-democracy stance. Emily Lau was awarded the Bruno Kriesky Human Rights Award in 1998.

Mr. Wang Dan
Mr. Wang Dan’s leadership role in Tiananmen Square in 1989 earned him the top spot on China’s list of “21 Most Wanted Beijing Student Leaders.” The then-20 year old, soft-spoken history major was sent to prison for four years for “counterrevolutionary propaganda and incitement.” Mr. Wang’s activism pre-dated the official start of the pro-democracy movement. He was a key organizer of the campus open-air “democracy salons” during which sensitive political subjects came up for discussion. From the time Mr. Wang was released in February 1993 until his re-arrest in 1995, he was harassed endlessly. After holding Mr. Wang without charges for seventeen months, the Chinese government formally arrested him in October 1996. He was then convicted of attempting to subvert China's government and was sentenced to eleven years in prison. On April 19, 1998, Chinese authorities released Mr. Wang from prison and placed him on a plane to the United States. In 1998, he accepted exile in the U.S.