ULAB Pro Vice Chancellor Prof. Jude William R. Genilo Moderates Panel at Asia Centre Summit 2026
On 20–21 August 2026, Prof. Jude William R. Genilo, Pro Vice Chancellor of the University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB), moderated a fascinating panel at the Asia Centre Summit 2026, the Asia Centre’s 11th Annual International Conference, held in Bangkok, Thailand.
The panel, “FoRB and Ethno-Religious Minorities,” brought together an exceptional group of speakers whose diverse experiences offered important perspectives on religious freedom, identity, representation, and the everyday realities of minority communities across Asia:
- Arinkorn Kittisirachad, Project Coordinator, Institute of Human Rights and Peace Studies, Mahidol University
- Naqibah Azman, Founder, Dapo Rakyat & Borneo Komrad Collective
- Tin Zar Aung, Co-Founder & Board Director, Myanmar Women in Media
- Dr Niranjan Sahoo, Senior Fellow, Observer Research Foundation (ORF)
The discussion explored difficult but important questions: How do ethno-religious minorities preserve their identities when confronted with state regulation and dominant national narratives? When does integration become assimilation? Can institutional recognition genuinely protect minorities, or can it also become a means of regulating their identities? And how can communities exercise agency through everyday forms of resistance, negotiation, and solidarity?
