Recently added articles from Southeast Asian Affairs:
Foreword
Jan 01, 2008; Kesavapany, K ... Except for Myanmar, Southeast Asia showed solid economic performance in 2007. Domestic political uncertainty did not necessarily affect growth rates: for instance, the Philippines did particularly well, though Thailand slowed down a bit. However, the year ended on a note of caution in view of ...
Introduction
Jan 01, 2008; Singh, Daljit; Than, Tin Maung Maung ... Economic growth in Southeast Asia was estimated at 6.1 per cent year on year compared with 6 per cent in 2006. This was due to better performance in Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia while Vietnam sustained its impressive performance of 2006. Further, Singapore exceeded earlier expectations by ...
SOUTHEAST ASIA IN 2007: Domestic Concerns, Delicate Bilateral Relations, and Patchy Regionalism
Jan 01, 2008; Huxley, Tim ... During 2007, issues of domestic stability and internal security continued to preoccupy several Southeast Asian governments, notably in Thailand, the Philippines, TimorLeste and Myanmar. Indonesia, however, seemed considerably more stable: not only did peace consolidate in Aceh, but both the ...
THE REGIONAL ECONOMY: Looking Forward by Looking Back
Jan 01, 2008; Cook, Malcolm ... The year 2007 was a year of anniversaries for Southeast Asia. The two most significant were the fortieth anniversary of the founding of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and, more fretfully, the tenth anniversary of the Asian (not Southeast Asian) financial crisis. What these ...
ASEAN AT FORTY: A Balance Sheet
Jan 01, 2008; Severino, Rodolfo C ... In the year 2007, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) reached its fortieth year of existence. It had been founded on 8 August 1967 by Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand. As ASEAN evolved over those forty years, it was praised as the most ...
INDIA'S GEOPOLITICS AND SOUTHEAST ASIAN SECURITY
Jan 01, 2008; Mohan, C Raja ... Introduction As the weakest of the major powers in Asia, India is understandably the least consequential for the ordering of Southeast Asian security. Nevertheless, India's importance for security politics of Southeast Asia is beginning to grow, if only slowly. The debate on India's rise ...
THE ASEAN CHARTER: An Opportunity Missed or One that Cannot Be Missed?
Jan 01, 2008; Caballero-Anthony, Mely ... Introduction Since the formal adoption of the much-awaited ASEAN Charter in November 2007, opinions have been mixed regarding its impact on the institutional development of the forty-year-old association. From media reports, commentaries and editorials that emerged, the views expressed ...
BRUNEI DARUSSALAM: Making a Concerted Effort
Jan 01, 2008; Thambipillai, Pushpa ... It has been a very busy and auspicious 2007 for Brunei Darussalam. All strata of society appeared united in their combined effort to transform Brunei Darussalam into a more successful and developed model of a Malay Islamic state. Economic and social development occupied centre stage as various ...
CAMBODIA: A Decade after the Coup
Jan 01, 2008; Um, Khatharya ... The year 2007 began with a controversy that threatened the credibility of the already fragile Khmer Rouge tribunal and ended with the high-profile arrests of surviving senior Khmer Rouge leaders - Noun Chea, Ieng Sary, his wife Ieng Thirith, and Khieu Samphan. In many aspects, these ...
INDONESIA'S YEAR OF LIVING NORMALLY: Taking the Long View on Indonesia's Progress
Jan 01, 2008; Barton, Greg ... Indonesia's Year of Living Normally If, as Christopher Koch famously observed, 1964 was Indonesia's year of living dangerously, 2007 might well be described as Indonesia's year of living normally.1 This would scarcely warrant remarking on if Indonesia had previously experienced ...
LAOS: At the Crossroads
Jan 01, 2008; Lintner, Bertil ... Introduction There was no diversion in 2007 from the policy directions set down by the Eighth Congress of the ruling Lao People's Revolutionary Party (LPRP) in March 2006. The Lao People's Democratic Republic will remain a one-party state with old-style, Soviet-era political ...
INDONESIAN STATE-OWNED ENTERPRISES: The Challenge of Reform
Jan 01, 2008; Wicaksono, Agung ... The Indonesian Government has been struggling to find ways to manage its more than one hundred state-owned enterprises (SOEs). Only in his last administration did the New Order long-time leader Soeharto realize that there must be a concerted strategy to bring out the potential of the SOEs, long ...
MALAYSIA IN 2007: Abdullah Administration under Siege
Jan 01, 2008; Guan, Lee Hock ... In the March 2004 general elections, Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi won an overwhelming mandate from Malaysian voters and his soaring popularity was confirmed in an opinion poll conducted among peninsular voters in November 2004 when 91 per cent of those polled approved his performance. Since ...
THE MALAYSIAN ECONOMY: Developments and Challenges
Jan 01, 2008; Hew, Denis ... Introduction Like many economies in Southeast Asia, Malaysia currently faces a number of challenges that could have a significant impact on its economic growth and development.Despite the fact that 2007 was generally seen as a good year economically, events in the second half of the ...
RESPONDING TO STRATEGIES AND PROGRAMMES OF MYANMAR'S MILITARY REGIME: An Economic Viewpoint
Jan 01, 2008; Thawnghmung, Ardeth Maung ... Introduction The Myanmar military regime's harsh crackdown on popular demonstrations in September 2007 has generated intense international condemnation as well as other responses. Most of the criticisms and policy proposals offered in these responses, however, have focused upon political ...
"DEVELOPMENTAL" STATES AND ECONOMIC GROWTH AT THE SUB-NATIONAL LEVEL: The Case of Penang
Jan 01, 2008; Hutchinson, Francis Edward ... Introduction When electronics manufacturers go to Malaysia, they do not stop in the national capital, Kuala Lumpur, but fly directly to production sites in a distant province, Penang. This small state, near Thailand, with a population of some 1.5 million, has established a reputation as ...
MYANMAR IN 2007: Growing Pressure for Change but the Regime Remains Obdurate
Jan 01, 2008; Taylor, Robert H ... As Myanmar entered its twentieth year of direct military rule, the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) once more spurned its critics and opponents at home and abroad. Facing in September the largest organized anti-government demonstrations in nearly two decades, ensconced in their new ...
SINGAPORE: Success at Home, Challenges from Abroad
Jan 01, 2008; Singh, Bilveer ... Introduction The year 2007 came in an upbeat mood in Singapore. The economy was showing a strong momentum of growth following its good performance in 2006. Singapore had seen a record high of more than nine million tourists.1 In his National Day Rally speech, Prime Minister Lee Hsien ...
THE PHILIPPINES: Weak State, Resilient President
Jan 01, 2008; Abinales, Patricio N ... Shortly after government forces tear-gassed their way into one of Manila's finest hotels on 29 November 2007 to flush out thirty-odd "rebels" and their civilian supporters, Philippine-focussed e-groups began debating the significance of what became known as the "Makati stand-off".1 Among the ...
THAILAND: State of Anxiety
Jan 01, 2008; McCargo, Duncan ... "Today, Thai people are without hope ... there is no certainty in their lives".1 This statement came not from one of Thailand's many academics or social critics, but from a popular young entertainer, Patcharasri "Kalamare" Benjamas. She was writing about the national anxiety epitomized ...