ASEAN Beat | Politics | Southeast Asia With just a year until the end of his second and final term in office, Joko Widodo is more popular than ever. Advertisement Indonesian President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo is steaming toward the end of his term in office next year, with his approval rating hitting an all-time …
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ASEAN Beat | Economy | Southeast Asia Indonesian authorities are hoping that the return of Chinese visitors will mark the beginning of the end for the island’s long COVID-19 slump. A lion dancer welcomes Chinese tourists on their arrival at Ngurah Rai international airport in Bali, Indonesia on Sunday, Jan. 22, 2023. Credit: AP …
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ASEAN Beat | Diplomacy | Southeast Asia Indonesia’s experience of democratization could offer a path forward for Myanmar – but only if the country’s generals have the political will. Luhut Pandjaitan, Indonesia’s coordinating minister for maritime affairs and investment, speaks during a panel discussion at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, January 19, …
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ASEAN Beat | Society | Southeast Asia More than 3,500 people attempted to flee Myanmar and Bangladesh by sea last year, nearly five times more than in 2021. Rohingya refugee children walking through the Unchiprang camp in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh. Credit: European Union Advertisement Earlier this week, the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) released …
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ASEAN Beat | Politics | Southeast Asia The four charges were filed against Ressa and her news site Rappler by President Rodrigo Duterte’s administration in 2018. Filipino journalist Maria Ressa, center, one of the winners of the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize and Rappler CEO, speaks to the media after a court decision at the …
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The Vietnamese National Assembly building on Ba Dinh Square in Hanoi, Vietnam. Credit: Depositphotos Advertisement These are tumultuous – perhaps unprecedented – times in Vietnamese politics. Yesterday, Reuters reported that the country’s National Assembly will hold a rare extraordinary meeting tomorrow, to consider more high-ranking personnel changes. Citing three sources …
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ASEAN Beat | Society | Southeast Asia Five individuals are accused of “criminal negligence” for their alleged roles in the crowd crush, which took the lives of 135 spectators. Police carry riot shields in front of a court building in Surabaya, East Java, Indonesia, Monday, Jan, 16, 2023. Credit: AP Photo/Trisnadi Advertisement An Indonesian …
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Advertisement Companies from at least 13 countries have been enabling the Myanmar military to “produce many of the weapons it uses to commit daily atrocities,” an advocacy group claimed today, calling on foreign governments to take action to undermine its weapons production capacity. The report from the Special Advisory Council …
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ASEAN Beat | Politics | Southeast Asia Critics accuse President Joko Widodo of using emergency powers to circumvent a Constitutional Court’s ruling on a controversial jobs creation law. Advertisement Thousands of people took to the streets in the Indonesian capital Jakarta this weekend, urging parliament to reject a presidential decree that critics say would …
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ASEAN Beat | Economy | Southeast Asia The move followed Brussels’ passage of a law that could severely restrict palm oil imports to the European bloc. A truck transporting harvested oil palms, Sabah, Malaysia. Credit: Greg Girard/CIFOR Advertisement A senior Malaysian official has announced that the country could stop exporting palm oil to the …
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ASEAN Beat | Politics | Southeast Asia The discoveries, which include assets belonging to the Myanmar junta chief’s adult son and daughter, suggest that military figures are using Thailand as a financial safe haven. Myanmar’s Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, head of the military council, inspects officers during a ceremony marking the 75th anniversary …
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ASEAN Beat | Diplomacy | Southeast Asia Among the challenges facing Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi and her team will be how to respond to the junta’s planned sham elections. Advertisement The Indonesian government will set up a special envoy’s office to coordinate the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)’s handling of the conflict in …
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