The Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats is a regional organization of liberal and democratic political parties

Political party

A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...

 in Asia. The Council was created on October 15, 1993, in a meeting in Taipei. There are nine member parties:

• Democrat Party
  Democrat Party (Thailand)
  The Democrat Party is Thailand's oldest political party and was the main coalition government party of the 23rd House of Representatives of Thailand. The Democrat Party's current leader is Abhisit Vejjajiva, incumbent opposition leader and former Prime Minister. The party upholds a conservative...
  
   of Thailand
  Thailand
  Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
  
  
• Democratic Progressive Party
  Democratic Progressive Party
  The Democratic Progressive Party is a political party in Taiwan, and the dominant party in the Pan-Green Coalition. Founded in 1986, DPP is the first meaningful opposition party in Taiwan. It has traditionally been associated with strong advocacy of human rights and a distinct Taiwanese identity,...
  
   of Taiwan
  Taiwan
  Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
  
  
• Indonesian Democratic Party - Struggle
• Liberal Party
  Liberal Party (Philippines)
  The Liberal Party of the Philippines is a liberal party in the Philippines, founded by then senators Senate President Manuel Roxas, Senate President Pro-Tempore Elpidio Quirino, and former 9th Senatorial District Senator Jose Avelino, on November 24, 1945 by a breakaway Liberal group from the...
  
   of the Philippines
  Philippines
  The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
  
  
• Liberal Party of Sri Lanka
  Liberal Party of Sri Lanka
  The Liberal Party of Sri Lanka began as a think-tank called the Council for Liberal Democracy, founded in 1981 by the late Dr. Chanaka Amaratunga, a longstanding member of the United National Party which was then in government....
  
  
• National Council of the Union of Burma
  National Council of the Union of Burma
  The National Council of the Union of Burma is an opposition organisation in Burma , composed of representatives of armed groups and exiled political organizations...
  
  
• Malaysian People's Movement Party
  Parti Gerakan Rakyat Malaysia
  The Malaysian People's Movement Party is a political party in Malaysia. The party was founded on March 24, 1968, and , it is part of the ruling National Front coalition....
  
   of Malaysia
• Sam Rainsy Party
  Sam Rainsy Party
  The Sam Rainsy Party is a personalist and more or less liberal party in Cambodia. The party is a member of the Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats...
  
   of Cambodia
  Cambodia
  Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
  
  
• Singapore Democratic Party
  Singapore Democratic Party
  The Singapore Democratic Party is an opposition political party in Singapore.The party was founded in 1980 by Chiam See Tong, who as Secretary-General became the party's first Member of Parliament in 1984 when he was elected as MP for Potong Pasir...
  
   of Singapore
  Singapore
  Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
  
  

The now defunct Buddhist Liberal Democratic Party

Buddhist Liberal Democratic Party

The Buddhist Liberal Democratic Party was a Cambodian political party founded in 1993 by former Cambodian Prime Minister Son Sann. The BLDP was created as a successor to the Khmer People's National Liberation Front , an anti-communist group also started by Son Sann.-1993 Cambodian election:The...

 of Cambodia was one of the founding members.

Currently, many democrats in Asia have a relationship with CALD. CALD has also opened its membership to like-minded individuals, and regularly engages with non-member political parties from Japan and South Korea with which it shares the same democratic values. The Democratic Party of Japan is one of the examples. On the other hand, for the convenience of particular members, they also accept individual members like the situation in Hong Kong. The Democratic Party

Democratic Party (Hong Kong)

The Democratic Party is a pro-democracy political party in Hong Kong. It was established on 2 October 1994. The party is currently the second largest party in the Legislative Council, headed by Chairman Albert Ho Chun-yan and, following the November 2008 merger with the Frontier, had around 745...

 of Hong Kong is represented in CALD by Martin Lee

Martin Lee

Martin Lee , QC, SC, JP, was the founding chairman of the Democratic Party in Hong Kong. He was a directly-elected Member of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong for the Hong Kong Island geographical constituency...

 and Chung Kai Sin

Sin Chung Kai

Sin Chung-kai, SBS, JP is a member of Kwai Tsing District Council and a former member of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong. He is one of two vice-chairmen of the Democratic Party .In his professional life he is an IT manager at HSBC.-External links:*...

External links

• Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats official site