In this week’s episode we discuss the jailing of Malaysian opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim on sodomy charges and the international response with CSIS Sumitro Chair Senior Fellow Murray Hiebert. Then CSIS Freeman Chair Deputy Director Scott Kennedy joins to analyze…
By Joshua Simonidis The U.S. State Department’s 2014 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) report dropped Thailand to Tier 3 status—the lowest level—for its failure to comply with minimum standards for the elimination of human trafficking. Thailand had received waivers in both…
What should we expect from the U.S. strategic rebalance to Asia in 2015? What are the prospects for economic reform in China and Japan? How should we interpret leadership changes in India and Indonesia? Are new strategic alignments emerging in…
By Samir Nair During India’s historic election campaign last year, then candidate Narendra Modi pledged to build 100 smart cities across India. Since taking office, Modi’s government has allocated $1.2 billion to this initiative. Last June, Modi said that, “cities…
The CSIS Asia Program is launching a new podcast this week that will review and analyze developments and trends in the Indo-Pacific. This week our host Colm Quinn reviews key news stories in Asia, discusses Southeast Asia’s air travel infrastructure…
By Daniel Rosen & Beibei Bao Beijing is entering a critical one month period of announcements about its gross domestic product (GDP) – the broadest measure of its economic size – and GDP growth that will partly re-frame our understanding…
By Daniel Mitchell The garment industry is critical to Cambodia’s economy. It employs over 400,000 people – most of whom are female workers – and represents roughly 70 percent of the country’s exports. Yet, the minimum wage in Cambodia’s garment…
By Ernie Bower Asia generally, and Southeast Asia particularly, is undergoing a fundamental shift in governance as incumbent regimes struggle to respond to a newly empowered, massive group of voters (in some cases) or constituents who have access to information via…
By Hiromi Murakami As its aging population continues to grow and the birthrate continues to fall, Japan is facing a demographic crisis and rapidly shrinking workforce. Despite this reality, Japanese women, a highly-qualified resource, continue to be underutilized. The Abe…
Competition over resources is one of the primary drivers of tension between China and its neighbors in the South China Sea. This infographic, prepared by the Sumitro Chair at CSIS, provides data on one key flashpoint between China and Vietnam:…
