2017/43, 26 July 2017
During the recent launch of the Tekek Makmur affordable homes on Pulau Tioman, Pahang, it was announced that cancelled airport development plans would be revived. Initially announced in 2003 by then-PM Mahathir Mohamed, the project would entail the reclamation of a 2km long, 45m wide airport runway stretching out over coral reefs and seagrass meadows off Kampung Paya. The complete infrastructure plan costing RM120 million at the time also required the destruction of half a hillside adjacent to the village. That project was scrapped in 2009 by the then-Minister of Transportation, Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat, after multiple protests by the community and NGOs. Scientific presentations also showed that the value of the habitat in its current state as contributors to tourism and other ecosystem services was far higher than potential earnings from airport development – especially when coupled with the economic costs of environmental destruction.
2017/42, 17 July 2017
On 11 July 2017, the Thai cabinet finally approved construction of the country’s first high-speed railway (HSR) after nineteen rounds of negotiation with China, going back to 2014. Under pressure from Beijing, Prime Minister Prayut Chanocha bypassed the legal bottlenecks that had stymied progress on the project by invoking his decree powers under the controversial Section 44 of the junta’s interim constitution.
2017/41, 7 July 2017
Indonesian anti-graft agency, the Corruption Eradication Commission – or KPK, is under pressure by the House of Representatives which has mounted an inquiry (hak angket) against it. Under Law No. 17/2014, the House can investigate how a law or government policy which has important and strategic significance is implemented. It has requested an audit of the agency’s budget and threatened to reduce KPK’s allocation in the 2018 state-budget. This prolonged tug-of-war between the two institutions has now come into the open.
2017/40, 5 July 2017
Three recent developments further clarify the likely length and scope of the imposition of martial law and the lifting of the writ of habeas corpus across all of Mindanao:
2017/39, 28 June 2017
Published on 26 June, the Pew Research Center’s survey of public opinions of President Donald Trump and America in 37 countries shows that Trump, his policies and character are widely unpopular across the world and that America’s image has suffered accordingly. Only 22% have confidence in Trump’s ability to handle international affairs, down from 64% under President Barack Obama.
2017/38, 20 June 2017
Vice Chairman of China’s Central Military Commission Fan Changlong paid an official visit to Vietnam from 18 to 19 June 2017. He also planned to join Vietnamese Defence Minister Ngo Xuan Lich to preside over border exchange activities between the two militaries to be held in the provinces of Lai Chau and Yunnan from 20 to 22 June. However, General Fan cut short his visit and abruptly left Vietnam on the evening of 18 June without announcing the reasons.
2017/37, 9 June 2017
Recently, there were a lot of questions as to why the Singapore Prime Minister was not present at the recent Belt and Road (BRI) Summit held in Beijing during 14-15 May 2017. This is especially when Singapore is located in the maritime silk road. Similar questions also direct to another two heads of Southeast Asian governments who were also left out: Brunei Darussalam and Thailand. While the case of Brunei is straightforward regarding its small impacts on the BRI, Thailand is unmistakably an important node especially in mainland Southeast Asia.
2017/36, 5 June 2017
As an effort to clamp down on fundamentalism and intolerance, the Indonesian government has introduced new measures to re-inculcate Pancasila, which upholds pluralism and inclusiveness, as the sole national ideology. In his speech during Pancasila Day on June 1, President Joko Widodo established UKP-PIP, a special task-force to reinforce Pancasila principles in citizens’ daily lives, including in religious lectures, education curricula, and social media.
2017/35, 1 June 2017
APEC’s Framework on Human Resource Development in the Digital Age, conceived at a High-Level Policy Dialogue in Hanoi on 15 May, is timely and important (click here). The proliferation of the digital economy, popularly known as Industrial Revolution 4.0, presents immense opportunities and challenges for the companies, workforces and governments in the Asia Pacific.
“A Futile Call: Making Bahasa Melayu ASEAN’s Official Language” by Tang Siew Mun
The proposal to adopt the Malay language (Bahasa Melayu) as ASEAN’s “main and official language” is a non-starter, and even futile. This call, made by Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak in Kuala Lumpur on 26 July 2017, comes after a similar suggestion by his Communications and Multimedia Minister Salleh Said Keruak in 2015 when Malaysia held the rotating ASEAN chairmanship. He made the case that Malaysia “need to show that the Malay language is a relevant and dynamic language that can act as the ASEAN language.”