Showing 1 - 10 of 19
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.
Extreme heat hits women hardest
Oped, Jess Ayers & Helen Mountford, Published on 24/09/2024
» Climate shocks -- from heat waves to droughts, floods to wildfires -- often hit women the hardest. New research published this May in The Lancet found that even in wealthy European countries, women died at nearly twice the rate as men from extreme heat over the last two decades. Marcos Quijal, one of the report's authors, said the findings "reflect a global trend".
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.
Asian elections, democracy in 2024
Oped, Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Published on 29/12/2023
» Billed as the biggest election year ever as more than half of the global population goes to the polls, 2024 will be critical to the debate about democratisation and autocratisation. Asia will lead the way with elections in India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Indonesia, while the most recent polls in Myanmar and Thailand offer long-term lessons about democracy and dictatorship. The salient themes next year will be about the self-perpetuating tendencies of incumbent regimes and the resilience of democratic rule when authoritarianism seemed to have the upper hand.
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.