Asia Pacific Articles

With a harsh legal system that is hostile to governmental opposition, Malaysia is known as one of Asia’s most politically conservative countries. However, it may soon retire from this position of dubious honor, given Prime Minister Najib Razak’s recently announced plans to revolutionize Malaysia’s political climate. With political reform following so swiftly after Najib’s  succession of economic reforms last year, political activists and leaders of the opposition Pakatan Rakyat alliance have been willing to offer praise, though their appreciation is tempered by wariness. Najib has built a reputation for grand gestures while in office, and one cannot assume the purity of his intentions.

Siam, the former Thailand, abolished its centuries-old absolute monarchy and adopted a constitutional democracy through a bloodless revolution in 1932. As the only country that had never been officially colonized by Western powers, Siam was proud of its independence. Much of this pride was attributed to, as most conservative Thai historians would argue, the farsightedness and the wisdom of the Siamese kings. In particular, King Chulalongkorn (1868-1910), who ruled the kingdom during the high tide of colonialism in Southeast Asia, was extolled for his shrewd strategy in managing his relationships with external powers. But Chulalongkorn’s unsurpassed ability to safeguard his kingdom from the threats of colonialism was not translated into a guarantee of a long-lasting royal institution.

On July 24, the Indian and Bangladeshi media reported that after four decades both countries would re-establish their first border haat or market. Located between Kalaichar and Baliamari along the shared 4,096 kilometer border, it is intended to stimulate cross-border rural trade and interaction. The event has been touted as a symbolic milestone in actively improving bilateral relations, which since 2008 have showed increasing signs of progress.

As the result of China’s participation in world trade and its consequent growing demand for overseas energy and raw materials, the South China Sea has become an increasingly important resource for Beijing. China’s demand for imported energy resources is predicted to rise to 500 million tons of oil imports and over 100 billion cubic meters of natural gas by 2020. For comparison, in 2009 China imported 204 million tons of oil and just about 5 billion cubic meters of natural gas.  Because of its rapidly increasing energy consumption, China will be more actively involved in oil and gas exploration in its adjacent sea areas and in securing the oil supply routes at sea.