Roundtable Discussion

Youth at the Heart of the 2030 Agenda: The Case for Space
Bangkok, 30 November - 2 December 2016

Youth Statement and Call to Action

December 2016

Opening statement
Civic space is shrinking.1 Young people are all-too-often overlooked and unheard. Yet we
are the largest generation of young people the world has ever seen.2 In Asia & Pacific there
are over 1 billion of us, aged 15 to 29.3

We care about many issues that affect us directly - from inclusive, quality education and
healthy lives, to decent and sustainable livelihoods. We act on many issues that affect all of
us - present and future generations - adults, elders, youth and children. From tackling
climate change, peacebuilding, ensuring access to health services, reducing inequalities and
achieving social justice.

We are young people from Asia-Pacific - in all our celebrated diversity - have ideas,
solutions, perspectives and experiences to help tackle the worlds most pressing problems.
We live in cities and villages, near mountains and oceans, with and without access to the
internet. Across our diverse and beautiful region, civic space looks and feels different for all
of us. Some of us belong to marginalized youth groups, including among others, young
people with disabilities, young key populations, young lesbians, gays, bisexuals,
transgender, queer and intersex people, young women and girls in rural areas, indigenous
youth, incarcerated young people, and migrant youth.

Protecting and enhancing the civic space through which we can achieve our collective aims
is crucial. The strength of civic space will help or hinder how we get our voices heard, take
action, and contribute to building the world we want, for people and planet.

We, representatives of organisations and networks of young people from Asia-Pacific,

gathered here in Bangkok between 30 November and 2 December 2016 at the Case for
Space roundtable discussion, agree upon the below recommendations for action:

Voice and participation

Including inclusive civic spaces for marginalised youth. We should not fear persecution or
discrimination for speaking out and exercising our rights. We:

1
Source: https://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/voices/why-space-civic-engagement-shrinking. For the purposes of this
conference Civic space was defined: Civic space is defined as an area either physical or virtual/online in which all
members of society, both as individuals and groups, are able to freely, effectively and without discrimination exercise their basic
civil rights, such as the right to information, to freedom of expression, to assembly and association. Civic space refers to the
conditions that are necessary to enable members of society to undertake free and voluntary action in order to advance
socially-relevant goals.
2
Source: http://www.un.org/youthenvoy/2015/04/10-things-didnt-know-worlds-population/.
3
Source: as of 2010, International Data Base of the US Census Bureau, available at http://www.census.gov/ipc/www/idb/.

1. Demand the government, law enforcing agencies, media, international organizations

provide online and offline safe spaces and protections for all young people to speak
out and raise our voice, regardless of age, health status, citizenship, level of
education, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation and gender identity.
2. Call for the creation of integrated platforms and resource hubs with decentralized
approach to systematically institutionalise and strengthen partnership among youth
organisations in the Asia-Pacific Region in collaboration with UN Regional Office and
other relevant stakeholders.
3. Call for the government, corporations and other relevant stakeholders to remove
barriers that hinder marginalized youth from participating, and instead create
opportunities for full participation, that include accessibilities for all.
4. Cal for meaningful youth participation that goes beyond traditional civic activities and
embraces genuine spaces for political action and power-sharing.
5. Want to secure help from public and private sectors to ensure and promote genuine
youth volunteerism.

Access to those with power and decision-making spaces

We want to be more than consultants and sources of information, but equal partners at the
table, supported and allowed to take the lead. We:
1. Urge international agencies, national governments and local authorities to establish
policy dialogue processes and ensure youth leadership in the policy planning,
implementation, budget allocation, and monitoring and evaluation.
2. Advocate for the institutionalization of opportunities for young people to take the lead
and to meaningfully engage in all levels of sustainable development planning which
affect our lives, from grassroots to policy making processes.
3. Call for governments and political parties to take affirmative action to ensure
meaningful youth participation in Parliaments and political processes.

Our rights. Including freedom of association, assembly, and right to information

We claim our right to assemble for peaceful dissent and opposition to our governments. We
want our region to take the lead on youth inclusion in the Universal Periodic Review. We:
1. Call the attention of the Government, UN and relevant Human Rights organizations
to increase its work in protecting young human rights defenders and promote
volunteers working on issues that could put them at risk.
2. Urge the UN Human Rights Councils Universal Periodic Review to include a section
on children, adolescents, and youth, with stakeholder reports produced by children
and young people in each country, that will ensure the implementation of our
universal human rights.
3. Explore legislators to lower 16 the voting age and rights to be elected to 16 (when
people gets citizenship).

Legal and and regulatory frameworks

1. Identify and call for the repeal the legal and policy barriers that infringe upon the
rights youth, especially young key affected populations, from participating in civic
spaces due to criminalization and ostracization.

2. Call for the timely revision of any policies that are related to youth,promote
innovation, encourage creative thinking, and stimulate young people to be creative
and innovative.
3. Call upon stakeholders to ensure that young people have access to justice and legal
recourse.

Civic space and youth promoting the SDGs

Achieving the sustainable Development Goals is not only the responsibility of our
governments, we want to take a leading role in implementation and accountability for the
achievement of the Goals. We:
1. Call on governments to support institutionalization of young peoples participation to
collaborate in the implementation and review of the the SDGs
2. Call for more accessible space for youth to play an essential role in sharing
knowledge of SDGs, and evaluating the implementation of SDGs moving towards the
2030 Agenda.
3. Recognize, celebrate and protect youth diversity in creating richer, more dynamic,
resourceful and respectful communities.
4. Encourage government and relevant agencies to provide easy access to SRHR
services and information.

Accountability
1. Uphold the independence of journalism as the fourth pillar in functioning
democracies. Media should be accountable, responsible and inclusive but at the
same time autonomous.
2. Hold governments, corporations and private institutions responsible and accountable
to the principles of climate justice.
3. Urge donors and governments to be transparent and accountable towards the issues
of youth and their programs on youth.

Resources
1. Resourcing and funding frameworks that support human rights and protection and
expansion of civic space.
2. Support and fund youth organizations, particularly marginalized youth populations,
including support to organizational development, social mobilization, and resource
mobilization.
3. Advocate for access to knowledge, opportunities, innovation and technologies.