Public Symposium “Defending Universal Values in the Indo-Pacific” The Role of Japan and the G7 Summit

On March 28, 2023, Professor Maiko Ichihara, GGR Researcher and Professor at the Graduate School of Law and the School of International and Public Policy, took part in the Public Symposium “Defending Universal Values in the Indo-Pacific: The Role of Japan and the G7 Summit”. Professor Ichihara expressed her opinions from the perspective of academia as follows. The professor gave an extensive observation of the situation of democracy and pointed out that the Ukraine War has led to an increase in the nexus of democracy and security. On the other hand, the professor also indicated that the Global South, which does not favor confrontation between states, has taken a step away from democracy. The Sunnylands Initiative, in which the professor is involved, aims to develop a continuous and dynamic network of refugee assistance in Asia, whose operations are currently fragmented among individual countries and people. The professor argued that the multi-stakeholder network that incorporates governments and civil society not only helps individuals seeking freedom but also mitigates the confrontational aspects of democracy. In addition, the professor analyzed that the outbreak of demonstrations seen on a global scale represents the fact that the longing for freedom is a fundamental human desire. The professor also stressed the importance of paying attention to the discourses of civil society and the need to restore liberty from the promotion of illiberal democracy by authoritarian regimes.