Questions for Southeast Asia

Abstract

Southeast Asia defies simple categorisation. Among its countries there are obvious contrasts: big and small, vibrant and stagnant, attractive and troubling, peaceful and unsettled, quaint and websavvy, confronting and embracing. The contributors to this issue of the EAFQ grapple with parts of the Southeast Asian mosaic, punctuated, as ever, by domestic intrigues, national ambitions, and international engagements. What ties the articles in this issue together, but never in a neat or seamless way, is the position of these countries, hemmed in by the much larger societies of China and India, and now forced to confront a world where ferocious technological and cultural change tests even the most effective governments. On the one hand—as a crossroads, a hub and a melting-pot—Southeast Asia is well-positioned to take advantage of its special geographical and social inheritance. On the other hand, the more than 500 million people of the region confront major challenges in the years ahead. There are many questions for Southeast Asia, and few easy answers. Recent history shows just how unpredictable the prospects of particular countries are. At independence in 1948 Burma was considered to have a strong chance of succeeding. Instead, its post-independence history has seen great tragedy, and a continuing stalemate between pro-democracy forces and their military opponents. Indonesia has weathered its own torments and is now beginning to take advantage of new electoral vitality and increasing prosperity. Will that last? Thailand offers a cautious lesson; after a promising flirtation with democratic institutions, it now faces the challenge of establishing a new political and economic consensus in the waning years of King Bhumibol Adulyadej’s reign. In the other most populous countries of the region—Vietnam, the Philippines and Malaysia—political, economic and social debates are not settled. All are struggling to find answers to their own challenges. Swirling above these country-specific preoccupations is the vexed matter of Southeast Asian regionalism itself. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations has become one of the world’s premier regional bodies. Can it continue to lead the region? Will it be properly resourced to tackle pressing issues of democratisation, terrorism, human-rights abuses, economic growth, social harmony and corruption? These remain tantalising questions for Southeast Asia as a whole. Show more