Albert "Al" Santoli is an American writer and Founder as well as President of the Asia America Initiative. He served in combat as a rifleman for the 25th Infantry Division during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vietnam a ...

. He is currently an adjunct professor of the

Institute of World Politics The Institute of World Politics (IWP) is a private graduate school of national security, intelligence, and international affairs in Washington DC, and Reston, Virginia. Founded in 1990, it offers courses related to intelligence, national sec ...

and teaches a course entitled "Counterterrorism through Cultural Engagement and Development."

National security, human rights and refugee issues

Santoli is an expert on national security, international relations,

human rights Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of hu ...

religious liberty Freedom of religion or religious liberty is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance. It also includes the freedom ...

, and refugee issues, especially regarding East, Central and Southeast Asia. He served as an adviser to members of the U.S. Congress, policymakers in Washington, D.C. and non-governmental organizations (NGO)s.

Philippines humanitarian and anti-poverty assistance

Santoli has been an advocate for humanitarian assistance to the people of the Philippines and has written about their plight, including the effect of poverty, corruption, insurgencies, counterterrorism, and catastrophic typhoon damage. In 2013, Santoli was officially recognized with one of the Philippines' most prestigious awards, the "Order of the Golden Heart," for his humanitarian relief efforts.

Veterans issues

During May 2014, Santoli was invited to provide keynote remarks at the Laos Memorial in

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is one of two national cemeteries run by the United States Army. Nearly 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington, Virginia. There are about 30 funerals conducted on weekdays and 7 held on Sa ...

to honor his fellow veterans of the

as well as Lao and

Hmong Hmong may refer to: * Hmong people, an ethnic group living mainly in Southwest China, Vietnam, Laos, and Thailand * Hmong cuisine * Hmong customs and culture ** Hmong music ** Hmong textile art * Hmong language, a continuum of closely related to ...

veterans of the "U.S. Secret Army" who defended the Kingdom of Laos during the North Vietnamese invasion of Laos.Defense & Aerospace Week, (4 June 2014) "Arlington National Cemetery, U.S. Congress, Officials Honor Lao, Hmong-American Veterans" http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-371064468.html

Bibliography

*''Everything We Had: An Oral History of the Vietnam War''. Random House. (1981) *''To Bear Any Burden: The Vietnam War, its Aftermath in the words of Americans and Southeast Asians'' Dutton. (1985) *''Refuge Denied : Problems in the Protection of Vietnamese and Cambodians in Thailand and the Admission of Indochinese Refugees into the United States.''

Human Rights First Human Rights First (formerly known as the Lawyers Committee for International Human Rights) is a nonpartisan, 501(c)(3), international human rights organization based in New York City and Washington, D.C. In 2004, Human Rights First started its " ...

(1989) *''New Americans: An Oral History''. Viking. (1990) *''Leading the Way:How Vietnam Veterans Rebuilt the U.S. Military''. Ballantine Books. (1993) *''Empires of the steppe. Russia and China, from antiquity to 1912''. American Foreign Policy Council (2002)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Santoli, Al Living people American military writers American military historians American male non-fiction writers Oral historians Historians of the Vietnam War United States Army personnel of the Vietnam War 20th-century American historians United States Army soldiers Year of birth missing (living people) The Institute of World Politics faculty