Commentaries

On 3 January, the Karen National Union (KNU) declared that it would be withdrawing from the formal peace process, marking a definitive declaration of its dissatisfaction with the peace negotiations. This comes on the back of the KNU’s hiatus in attending formal meetings at the end of October last year which ended in mid-November. The reason given for the withdrawal in October was that the KNU needed time for further internal discussions because of differences in opinion with the government.

2019/2, 8 January 2019

Joko Widodo (Jokowi)’s administration has been hailed for its success in several aspects, particularly in building infrastructure throughout the country. One salient blemish during his tenure, however, is perhaps related to the issue of minorities.

The displaced Ahmadis, often perceived as a heretical group in Islam, who have been living in Transito shelter, Mataram, West Nusa Tenggara since 2006, are still there until now. Efforts by government, at both national and local levels, to settle this problem through various methods, have failed to find a solution that is acceptable to both the Ahmadis and other Muslim communities.

2019/1, 3 January 2019

On 31 December 2018, Reuters reported that Vietnam is pushing for certain provisions in the negotiating draft of the ASEAN-China Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea which will likely “prove unpalatable to Beijing”. The report indicates that Hanoi is seeking to outlaw many actions that China has undertaken in the South China Sea over the years, including artificial island building, blockades and offensive weaponry deployments. It also insists that states should clarify their maritime claims in accordance with international law. More interestingly, Hanoi calls for a ban on any new Air Defence Identification Zone (ADIZ) over the South China Sea.

2018/109, 21 December 2018

Japan has announced new defence guidelines under which the country’s defence budget over the next five years will be increased, new weapons platforms purchased from the US, and more funds allotted to new domains of warfare. China and the two Koreas have criticised this increase in defence spending. Among the arguments used are that it goes against Japan’s pacifist constitution and it will concern Asian neighbours and the international community.

2018/108, 21 December 2018

Indonesia will be holding its presidential election on 17 April 2019, less than four months from now. One of the topics widely discussed recently by the public is Ma’ruf Amin’s inability to increase Joko Widodo (Jokowi)’s re-election chances. Recent surveys by Lembaga Survey Indonesia (LSI) show that Joko Widodo’s electability, tends to be stagnant at around 53 percent, whereas Prabowo’s is around 31 percent. Ma’ruf Amin is often negatively compared with his opponent Sandiaga Uno, the running mate of Prabowo, who has become a magnet for female and millennial voters.

2018/107, 21 December 2018

Post-election party hopping and allegiance switching are not new to Malaysia. However, unlike previous episodes, the country now ponders the spectre of mass exodus from UMNO into the Pakatan Harapan coalition already holding a comfortable majority. Beleaguered UMNO President Zahid Hamidi’s decision to step aside and hand over duties to his deputy Mohamad Hassan may help stem the outflow, but some irreversible moves and continual uncertainties raise questions about the integrity of Malaysia’s electoral system and parliamentary democracy.

2018/106, 20 December 2018

More than a year after Myanmar military operations forced over 720,000 Rohingya people to Bangladesh, the prospects of the group returning remain dim. Various reports and analyses have unpacked the immense barriers to their repatriation. These include the Myanmar military’s insistence on a rigid ideology of indigeneity that excludes Rohingya along with the questionable implementation of plans for their genuine social and political integration by the civilian government, led by Aung San Suu Kyi.

2018/105, 19 December 2018

On 17 December, Nurul Izzah Anwar made the surprise announcement that she was stepping down from her position as PKR (People’s Justice Party) Vice President. The daughter of prime minister in-waiting Anwar Ibrahim is the Member of Parliament for Permatang Pauh in Penang. Nurul Izzah was ushered into politics after her father’s sacking in 1998 from his position of deputy prime minister and subsequent jailing. Anwar’s removal triggered the reformasi movement and led to the formation of Parti Keadilan Nasional (National Justice Party), a pre-cursor to the existing PKR.

2018/104, 11 December 2018

The third annual Action to Defend Islam (Aksi Bela Islam) rally was held on December 2, in celebration of the popular Islamist mobilization that occurred two years’ ago on December 2, 2016. The original rally was sparked by an allegation of blasphemy against then Jakarta governor Basuki Purnama (Ahok) and culminated in Ahok’s imprisonment. Like the first rally, hundreds of thousands of Muslims from Jakarta and nearby provinces were mobilized to the streets of the capital.