2008 ANNUAL CONFERENCE
Private Property Rights
“…The Economic Freedom Network Asia can look back at many years of successful networking … It was almost exactly ten years ago that the first Conference was held here in Manila. So! The Economic Freedom Network Asia has come back to the Philippines at an auspicious time. The theme of this conference, ‘Private Property Rights: The Economic Foundation of a Free Society’, is very topical. In this context, I am not only referring to the recent stock market turbulences and the crash of Lehman Brothers, which reduced the value of property of private and corporate stock owners by many millions of US dollars. The Foundation’s board of Directors decided in November 2007 that property rights and their protection should again be positioned at the core of the Foundation’s work at home and abroad. And, in fact, ever since we have redirected our programme and attributed more prominence to the topic of property rights and property rights protection. As with many such topics, they are subject to global trends and fashions. In the 1950, land reform, including land collectivisation as well as privatisation, was all very much in vogue. Then the topic faded away…And of course, we all remember… the breathtaking research of Hernando de Soto, which again drew the attention of policy makers and researchers on this topic. And this is where we are…. I hope that our deliberations and discussions will contribute to a better understanding why changes are coming only at a snail pace…” Dr. Rainer Adam Regional Director Southeast and East Asia Friedrich Naumann Foundation
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EFN ASIA
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In an attempt to facilitate debate on issues relating to economic freedom in Asia, EFN Asia has convened successful international conferences since 1998. With members of the network heralding from many Asian countries, the host country of the conference is rotated annually. The 2008 Conference was held at the University of Asia and the Pacific, the Philippines, on 18-19 September 2008
“Freedom is rooted in ownership”
Attended by 346 international and local participants, this year’s conference addressed the complexities of private property rights from the Asian perspective and experience, including legal and economic perspectives on property rights; property rights and individual liberty; land ownership and property rights from the Asian perspective (with special focus on land reform in the Philippines, Thailand, and Pakistan), and property indices. The two-day conference featured keynote addresses from internationally renowned experts in the area of property rights and a series of themed panel discussions on the meaning of property rights from various perspectives and the acquisition of property rights by the state. Keynote speakers included Professor James Riddell, Mr. Ali Salman, Dr. Arturo Corpuz, Dr. Mark Mullins, Dr. Chung-ho Kim, Mr. Gamaliel Pascual, Mr. Krishna Neupane. Panellists included Atty. Erwin Tiamson, Dr. Parth J. Shah, Mr. Barun Mitra, Mr. Renato Herrera, Dr. Rolando Dy, and Dr. Arsenio Balisacan. The five formal presentation and panel discussion sessions were moderated by Mr. Alec van Gelder, Professor Bibek Debroy, Dr. Rolando Dy, Mr. Rainer Heufers and Dr. Parth J. Shah, respectively. The conference kicked off with remarks given by Dr. Rainer Adam, Regional Director of FNF Asia, and Prof. Peter U of CRC. Dr. WolfDieter Zumport, Vice-President of FNF, set the tone of the conference by addressing the relationship between property rights and economic freedom. His presentation bore out the fact that freedom is rooted in ownership and that private property enhances individual freedom by giving ownership and control of property to people.