By Will Colson & Kate Rustici Japan’s new prime minister Shinzo Abe traveled to Southeast Asia from January 16-18 for his first overseas trip with stops in Vietnam, Thailand, and Indonesia. Abe initially hoped to make the United States his…
Burma/Myanmar
By the Numbers: Human Security in Southeast Asia
by cogitASIA Staff • • 1 Comment
Human security conditions continue to be a major concern across Southeast Asia, and this week we take a look at migrant workers, refugees, and other transnational flows of people across the region. The International Labor Organization (ILO) on January 9…
The Ripple Effects of Mounting Violence in Kachin
by Gregory Poling • • 4 Comments
By Greg Poling & Kate Rustici Myanmar president Thein Sein January 2 confirmed reports that the military employed air strikes and gunship helicopters in its fight against the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) near Laiza, the rebels’ capital in northeastern Myanmar.…
Friday Five: January 4, 2013
by cogitASIA Staff • • 0 Comments
In Myanmar, the government has admitted that significant military force has been utilized against the Kachin rebels in the northern part of the country. This week China understandably filed a diplomatic complaint about three bombs that were dropped into its…
The Leaderboard: U Soe Thane
by cogitASIA Staff • • 1 Comment
Who is he? His Excellency U Soe Thane is a minister in the President’s Office and head of the Myanmar Investment Commission. In his role in the President’s Office, Soe Thane serves on the so-called super-cabinet that advises President Thein…
By the Numbers: Surveying Southeast Asia
by cogitASIA Staff • • 0 Comments
Several surveys were released in recent weeks assessing aspects of governance, security, and quality of life worldwide, including Transparency International’s Corruptions Perception index, the Clean Air Asia Report, and the World Justice Project’s Rule of Law index. We have summarized…
The Leaderboard: Aye Maung
by cogitASIA Staff • • 0 Comments
Who is he? Dr. Aye Maung is chairman of the Rakhine Nationalities Development Party (RNDP) and a member of parliament of the Union of Myanmar representing Rakhine state in western Myanmar. Although the RNDP was only formed in 2010, Aye…
Copper Mine Crackdown Shows Governance Gaps in Myanmar
by Phuong Nguyen • • 6 Comments
By Phuong Nguyen The attack by government forces November 29 against demonstrators protesting the Chinese-backed Letpadaung copper mine near Monywa in northwestern Myanmar quickly emerged as a national – and global –concern. The raid against protest camps around company headquarters…
Revitalizing the Bali Democracy Forum
by cogitASIA Staff • • 3 Comments
By Jeremiah Magpile The Indonesian Foreign Ministry in 2008 established the Bali Democracy Forum (BDF) as an intergovernmental platform to strengthen democratic institutions in the Asia-Pacific. The international community at the time, including the United States, lauded the BDF’s dialogue-based…
Myanmar’s International Recognition and the Needs of the Poor
by cogitASIA Staff • • 0 Comments
By Anthony Ware U.S. president Barack Obama’s November 19 visit to Myanmar was the first ever by a U.S. president. There is much that could be said about this visit, including the growing geostrategic importance of the country and the…