Asian study term paper

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“Fears of the impending epidemic that would grip the city were not baseless, for the 1890s saw mounting evidence of the rise of venereal disease incidence in Singapore, impacting on the waterfront that had "one of the highest concentrations of dockside brothels in South-East Asia “ the British garrison and naval personnel stationed at Singapore, and the Chinese community, an emerging epidemic reflected in progressively higher numbers of venereal disease cases reported from both military and civil hospitals. With the fear of detection removed, sly prostitution and clandestine brothels also proliferated, spreading disease to all parts of the city and the various Chinese, Malay, and Eurasian communities. Venereal disease admissions into hospitals escalated from 123 per 1,000 in 1884 to 567 per 1,000 in 1896. The official record also seriously underestimated the incidence of venereal diseases as it did not take into account large numbers who resorted to self-treatment or private doctors, including practitioners of traditional Chinese medicine. While venereal contagion was no respecter of ethnicity, class, or gender, the brunt of the epidemic fell on those with the least means to protect themselves or seek treatment, including "coolies, prisoners, the indigent and insane, and prostitutes." Within the short space of several years, Singapore had acquired the reputation of being one of the unhealthiest places in the empire.”
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“In choosing to pursue the regional cooperation theme, Ohira was no doubt heavily influenced by almost two decades of discussion within Japanese policy-making circles. It has also been suggested that he had taken up the issue upon coming to office in 1978 in response to American calls for Japan to play a larger role in world and regional affairs -- a role commensurate with its economic standing. According to this line of argument, Ohira was in search of a foreign policy success -- a desire which became evident when he enlisted Okita, a high-profile and well respected former bureaucrat, as chairperson of the PBCSG and, later, as foreign minister. Conceptualizing within Australian policy-making and academic circles had a similarly long history, and, in reaction to EEC protectionism, Fraser had been favorably predisposed to the idea for many years. It is generally accepted that the Pacific Community or Canberra Seminar, now referred to as PECC I, was organized 'at the request of the Australian and Japanese Prime Ministers' of the day. Nevertheless, the manner in which the concept of an informal seminar series arose out of an intergovernmental initiative highlights the diplomatic utility of a nongovernmental approach to vague concepts or contentious issues. For, during the Ohira visit, Foreign Minister Okita asked Crawford, his long-time friend and the chancellor of the ANU, if he would agree to host a seminar (at the ANU) to examine the Pacific Community idea and the findings of the PBCSG report if asked by the prime ministers of Japan and Australia.”
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“For instance, the efforts of international nongovernmental organizations (or NGOs), U.N. agencies, domestic NGOs, as well as various technical experts led to a collective attempt on the part of SAARC to address the environmental security issue in South Asia at its third meeting in Katmandu in 1987. The government delegates found that they were short on data on which to base constructive decisions at a regional level. Characteristically, the member governments not only lacked the technical expertise to carry out adequate region wide or national surveys; they also, as per the priorities of the old nation-state system, were too driven by bilateral rivalries to collectively formulate a comprehensive plan on the subject. Here is where the role of transnational interaction became evident. After having been persuaded to do so by various NGOs, several intergovernmental agencies stepped in. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) helped formulate environmental legislation for Bhutan. The World Bank, the U. N. Development Program (UNDP), the FAO, and the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) began to provide funding and technical assistance for many regional projects on the environment and development.”
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