Deputy US Assistant Secretary of State Scott Busby is on Thursday to deliver a speech to open a two-day workshop hosted by Taiwan and the US on defending democracy, the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) announced yesterday.
Busby, who is responsible for the Asia-Pacific region at the department’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, is to join AIT Director Brent Christensen, Legislative Speaker Su Jia-chyuan (蘇嘉全) and Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Wu (吳釗燮), who have been invited to attend as special guests, an AIT media advisory said.
Minister Without Portfolio Audrey Tang (唐鳳) is to deliver the keynote address at the event, the AIT added.
The workshop is to be held under the Taiwan-US Global Cooperation and Training Framework (GCTF), said the AIT, which represents US interests in Taiwan in the absence of official diplomatic ties.
Established in June 2015, the GCTF program aims to support bilateral cooperation on international public health, humanitarian assistance and other global issues.
The workshop is to include participants from 12 countries spanning two continents, who are to share lessons and best practices to deepen international cooperation on the promotion of media literacy, the AIT said, adding that it would be the 13th workshop since the framework’s inception in 2015.
Busby has served in his post since December 2013, overseeing the bureau’s work on Africa, East Asia and the Pacific, multilateral and global affairs, including US engagement on human rights at the UN, disability rights, LGBTI rights, Internet freedom, business and human rights, and international labor affairs, the US Department of State Web site says.
Busby served as director for human rights on the White House National Security Council from 2009 to 2011, focusing on human rights and refugee issues, it says.
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