Showing 1 - 10 of 18
Philippines' crucial Asean test
Oped, Simon Hutagalung, Published on 21/01/2026
» The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) has its own administration. Member states take turns leading the organisation through an annual chairmanship, a system designed to give all members equal opportunities to shape regional priorities.
Philippines sidelines local languages
Oped, Analiza Liezl Perez-Amurao and Michael Thomas Nelmida, Published on 09/07/2025
» In October 2024, the Philippine government, in its management of a linguistically rich and culturally diverse population, decided to make the then-existing Mother Tongue-Based Multilingual Education (MTB-MLE) expire by not signing it.
Unpunished crimes, except Duterte's maybe
Oped, Gwynne Dyer, Published on 18/03/2025
» Everybody has heard the saying: "The mills of justice grind slowly, but they grind exceeding fine". The saying is a promise that all crimes will eventually be punished -- but it is a lie.
A small Slovak assassination bid; few hurt
Oped, Gwynne Dyer, Published on 21/05/2024
» Madeleine Albright, the former US Secretary of State, once called Slovakia "the black hole at the heart of Europe", which seems a harsh judgement on five million Slovaks. The assassination attempt on Prime Minister Robert Fico was alarming, but we can narrow the problem down to a more specific group of people.
International challenges demand action
Oped, John J. Metzler, Published on 18/04/2024
» It's not often an American ally addresses the US Congress, but when they do, it's time to listen. That was the case on April 12 when Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida spoke before a joint session of Congress in Washington to both thank America for its post-war friendship and to reaffirm the continuing political and strategic partnership between Japan and the US.
Asean juggles triangular power game
Oped, Kavi Chongkittavorn, Published on 09/04/2024
» A rising China, a trusted Japan, and a declining America are three cogs dictating the global geopolitical landscape in Southeast Asia in the months, if not years, to come. Amidst intensifying geopolitics, Asean is in a position where this could either be a blessing or a curse.
Media laws need work
Oped, Editorial, Published on 25/01/2024
» A lucid ruling by the Constitutional Court on Pita Limjaroenrat's iTV media share case has brought down the temperature of Thai politics.
Tyranny's propagandists triumph
Oped, Maria Ressa & Nishant Lalwani, Published on 05/04/2023
» If democracy had its own doomsday clock, it would be at two minutes to midnight. According to the most recent analysis by Varieties of Democracy (known as V-Dem), 72% of the world's population lived in autocracies last year, compared to 50% a decade ago. For the first time in more than two decades, there are more authoritarian regimes than liberal democracies -- and we are not doing enough to address this threat.
How Beijing's tactics failed in democratic Asia
Oped, Yoon Young-kwan, Published on 22/03/2023
» Since the dawn of international politics, smaller states have faced the formidable challenge of navigating great-power rivalries. Today, it is the geopolitical contest between the US and China that has compelled countries to balance their competing national interests. Toward which side they gravitate depends on domestic and external circumstances.
US strategy won't deter China's rise
Oped, Nian Peng, Published on 22/02/2023
» After President Joe Biden took office, the United States' "Indo-Pacific Strategy" (IPS) --which was officially proposed by former president Donald Trump in November 2017 -- showed a new trend. This recent trajectory includes expanding overseas military bases to deter China's rise at sea, competing against its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) infrastructure construction, and decoupling China's supply chain in the Indo-Pacific region.