Lowy Institute

Ben Scott talks to Professor Hilary Charlesworth. Professor Charlesworth is a distinguished international lawyer who has been nominated for election to the International Court of Justice. The election will take place at the United Nations in New York on 5 November. Professor Charlesworth has served as a judge ad hoc on the court twice before. She is a Laureate Professor at the Melbourne University Law School and a Distinguished Professor at the Australian National University. In this conversation with Ben Scott, Professor Charlesworth discusses the role of the court and her candidacy.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of The Director’s Chair, Michael Fullilove speaks with Senator Penny Wong, the Shadow Foreign Minister and Leader of the Opposition in the Senate. Penny was elected to the Senate in 2001 and was appointed to Shadow Cabinet in 2005. She served as Climate Change Minister between 2007 and 2010 and as Finance Minister between 2010 and 2013. Michael and Penny discuss the politics of climate change in Australia, the AUKUS pact, and the findings of the Lowy Institute’s Diplomat Database. Penny reflects on her upbringing, Labor’s priorities for the region, and the current state of the Australia-China relationship.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Fan Yang and Fergus Ryan discuss Chinese-language media in Australia, exploring issues like self-censorship, government monitoring, and media independence. They delve into the role of WeChat in challenging traditional media norms and the challenges of maintaining objectivity in Chinese language media outlets.

The 2021 Lowy Institute Media Lecture was presented by Australian journalist Yalda Hakim.‍Yalda Hakim is an international correspondent, broadcaster, presenter and documentary maker. She grew up in Australia, where her family had sought refuge after fleeing the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. Currently host of BBC World News’ Impact with Yalda Hakim, she started her journalistic career at SBS News in Sydney as a cadet, rising to become a reporter and presenter on its international affairs program Dateline.As well as pursuing a career in international journalism, which has seen her report on events from the United States to South Sudan, she has established a charitable foundation that supports women in Afghanistan to access education and university studies.Follow the 2021 Lowy Institute Media Award at https://mediaaward.lowyinstitute.orgSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Operation Ironside, led by the Australian Federal Police (AFP) between 2018 and 2021, brought together law enforcement agencies from across Australia and around the world to make a significant dent in global organised crime. As a result, more than 224 arrests were made, 3.7 tonnes of drugs and almost $45 million in cash and assets were seized. An ingenious encrypted app called Anom gave law enforcement agencies a remarkable insight into the global and insidious threat posed by organised crime. Warwick Jones, AFP Visiting Fellow at the Lowy Institute, talks with Assistant Commissioner Nigel Ryan, the AFP’s commander of Operation Ironside, about the challenges and threats posed to national security by organised crime and how an operation like this is conducted.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of The Director’s Chair, Michael Fullilove speaks with the former Jordanian diplomat, UN High Commissioner for  Human  Rights and think tank president  Dr  Zeid  Ra’ad  Al Hussein. Zeid served as Jordan’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations and Ambassador to the United States, and served as UN High Commissioner for  Human  Rights between 2014 and 2018. Zeid is the CEO and President of the International Peace Institute in New York and a professor of the practice of law and human rights at the University of Pennsylvania. Zeid and Michael speak about global efforts to address climate change, the situation in Afghanistan, and China’s record on human rights. Zeid reflects on his time as High Commissioner and his lifelong association with the UN, and discusses what the pandemic reveals about the international community.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Covid-19 pandemic has delivered one of the most severe global economic shocks since the Great Depression. In the Pacific, as in the rest of the world, economic activity has collapsed as a result of lockdowns to contain the virus. Without a strong domestic and international response the Pacific faces the prospects of a lost decade of economic development.Alexandre Dayant, Research Fellow and Project Director of Development Economics in Asia and the Pacific, discusses these issues, the response to date, and the economic support still needed, with a panel of Lowy Institute and regional experts. This event will coincide with the release of the fourth edition of the Lowy Institute Pacific Aid Map and will showcase the map’s new features and findings.Recorded on 29 September 2021See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Australia’s decision to cancel its French submarine contract in favour of partnering with the US and the UK on nuclear-powered boats has provoked local and international controversy. The decision has implications for US, Chinese, European and Southeast Asian diplomacy and defence policies. Richard McGregor, the Lowy Institute’s Senior Fellow for East Asia, talks with three experts: Bilahari Kausikan, the former head of the Singapore Foreign Ministry, Yun Sun, of the Stimson Centre in Washington DC, and Nadège Rolland, of the National Bureau of Asia Research in the United States.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of The Director’s Chair, Michael Fullilove speaks with the long-time public official, policymaker, and former President of the World Bank, Robert Zoellick. Bob served in the Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, and George W. Bush administrations. He is the author of America in the World: A History of U.S. Diplomacy and Foreign Policy. Bob and Michael talk about Xi Jinping’s China, the Biden administration, and the AUKUS pact. Bob reflects on his mentor James Baker, why he decided to go into public life, and comments on the current direction of the GOP.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of Lowy Institute Conversations, Senior Fellow Richard McGregor speaks with Desmond Shum, the author of Red Roulette: An Insider’s Story of Wealth, Power, Corruption and Vengeance in Today’s China. Shum’s book has been acclaimed as a rare and revealing tell-all about how business is done at the top of the ruling communist party. Shum recounts his dealings with his business partner and former wife, Whitney Duan, and Zhang Beili, the wife of Wen Jiabao who was Premier – effectively number two in the party – from 2002 to 2012. Shum and Duan were divorced five years ago, and Whitney all but disappeared in 2017 after being detained in China. She had not been heard of until the book’s publication, when she called Shum out of the blue and asked that he withdraw it. The book was published in September. Shum now lives in the UK with his son.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.