Big issues up for discussion at major legal gathering in Bangkok

The international event will help shed light on some of the most pressing regional and global issues that laws have yet to catch up to.

Surakiart Sathirathai, chairman of the organising committee for the November 26-27 conference at Bangkok’s Plaza Athenee Hotel, said the event would be graced by HRH Princess Bajrakitiyabha. The Princess, who will deliver a speech on November 26, is the event’s honorary advisory chairwoman.

Owada Hisashi, a judge and former president of the International Court of Justice, Xue Hanqin, a judge of the International Court of Justice, and other legal experts will be among keynote speakers.

The conference is titled “International Law and the Changing Economic and Political landscape in Asia,” with sub-themes including legal aspects on regional economic integration and cooperation, political cooperation, and social dimensions, plus cooperation in the environment and energy.

Cyber laws and cyber security, e-commerce and Internet governance issues are also among topics to be discussed at the event, which will be draw between 500 and 600 international and Thai legal professionals.

More than 300 papers have been submitted to the organising committee, of which about 100 will be presented at the conference.

There will be a parallel event, the AsianSIL Youth Forum, in which 80 law students from 14 Asian countries will take part and present selected papers.

In terms of regional economic integration, Surakiart, a former foreign minister and finance minister, said legal aspects of the Asean Economic Community and the emerging Regional Comprehen-sive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) – or China’s One Belt One Road development initiative – would be covered.

He said the regional landscape had changed dramatically in regard to the environment, energy and electronic transactions, so there were many legal issues that needed to be discussed to pave the way for a more comprehensive legal architecture that effectively responds to today’s issues.

For example, there is no legal precedent yet on comprehensive measures that could be taken to resolve the recent haze problems which affected six countries in Asean including Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and the Philippines.

A cross-border environmental issue resulting from “slash and burn” farming in one country badly affected adjacent nations, resulting in a significant health hazard and economic loss, while airports and schools had to be shut down.

The event will also see an opportunity for Thailand to learn from international legal experts on the issue of illegal, unreported, unregulated fishing practices, as well as the handling of illegal migrants such as the Rohingya.

Surangkana Wayuparb, executive director of the Electronic Transactions Development Agency, said cyber governance and Internet neutrality were among the key legal issues concerning Thailand, as the National Legislative Assembly was in the process of enacting a data protection bill.

Surakiart said the so-called “spaghetti blow” effects of various free trade agreements binding Thailand and other countries including Asean nations would also be discussed due to the emergence of more complicated trade and investment deals such as the RCEP and the TPP.

For example, the rules of origin of manufactured goods are “confusing” and need clarification, as some Asean countries such as Malaysia and Vietnam are now members of both the RCEP and the TPP.