Foreign Policy Blogs

Southeast Asia

Who is Hun Sen?

Who is Hun Sen?

Perhaps Goethe put it best when he wrote that “the romance of politics is best used to numb and to quell the fears of the uninformed.” Maybe Mr. Hun Sen, Prime Minister of Cambodia, is a romanticist in light of his recent comments warning of the “instability of war” if his ruling Cambodian People’s Party […]

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Change is Not a Game

Change is Not a Game

At the sound of a whistle, a Cambodian policeman clad in a sweat stained, light blue uniform and gripping a flashing baton in his hand races out into an intersection to abruptly stop traffic in all directions. The identity of the entourage coming down the perpendicular boulevard — with a police escort of at least […]

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As Election Approaches, Cambodia’s Parties Offer Little Hope

As Election Approaches, Cambodia’s Parties Offer Little Hope

PHNOM PENH — As one approaches the intersection of Norodom and Sihanouk Boulevards in Phnom Penh’s Boeung Keng Kang 1 District, a mansion of impressive size and grandeur can be observed. Located adjacent to, of all things, the North Korean embassy to Cambodia, this awesome house belongs to Hun Sen, Prime Minister of Cambodia. That title […]

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The Rise of Thaksinomics

The Rise of Thaksinomics

Two weeks ago, I used this space to lament the austerity measures currently being implemented in Europe. With the European Common Currency Zone stuck in six consecutive quarters of recession, it’s easy to understand just how sick the continent’s economy is on a macro scale. One country which is certainly not sick these days is Thailand. […]

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They Call It Myanmar: Lifting the Curtain (2012)

They Call It Myanmar: Lifting the Curtain (2012)

“Asia’s rice bowl.” That was the name of Burma (now called Myanmar) some time ago. Now isolated and under stern military rule, Burma has lagged behind other Asian nations. What this documentary shows is the rich history of Burma, its strong Buddhist traditions, and its struggle against occupiers. When it comes to revealing the many […]

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Why Austerity Always Fails: Lessons from Thailand

Why Austerity Always Fails: Lessons from Thailand

Watching the news these days and hearing about yet another austerity plan being implemented in some European country usually requires a shake of the head and a rueful look directed at the television for most people. I’m not sure what else can possibly be cut, but it seems there is always more to take away […]

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Holy War: A One-Sided Affair

Holy War: A One-Sided Affair

No sooner had my previous post — warning of an imminent massacre of Muslims in Burma — been published two weeks ago, deadly sectarian riots swept through the town of Meiktila in central Myanmar leaving an estimated 32 people dead, according to a government official. Alternative estimates claim that the death toll is quite a […]

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None Dare Call it a Genocide

None Dare Call it a Genocide

Never again. Remember that? The world was very determined to never allow another attempt at genocide after the Holocaust. We know now that those words were as empty and hollow as a whiskey barrel on the George Bush ranch. Genocides have happened again and will continue to happen if it is not in the “international […]

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Laos Joins WTO

Laos Joins WTO

Last week saw Laos formally become the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) 158th member.  Before the ink had time to dry on the agreement, Asia-based pundits were already weighing in about the potential benefits of such a move, which took fifteen years in the making. Gretchen A. Kunze, the Laos-based representative for The Asia Foundation writes […]

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Wretched Refuse of Cambodia’s Teeming Shore

Wretched Refuse of Cambodia’s Teeming Shore

After three months of national mourning, Cambodia’s late King Father Norodom Sihanouk’s body will be cremated this upcoming Monday in a ceremony that could only be fit for a king.  As is the case whenever Cambodia draws international attention, the capital city of Phnom Penh is spit shined and polished in an attempt to live […]

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Thailand Losing Face

Thailand Losing Face

If you thought last week’s story about Thailand’s decision to forcibly deport Rohingya refugees escaping ethnic violence in Myanmar was horrifying enough, you should probably stop reading now. An investigation conducted by the BBC has uncovered evidence that Thai military and police officials have been complicit in intercepting refugees and then selling them to human […]

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When People Vanish

When People Vanish

Do you remember the term “disappeared” from the Cold War days? It was a common phenomenon in countries with a less than stellar record on human rights and democracy in the second half of the 20th century. Many people — sometimes outspoken critics of the government, sometimes not — would simply vanish. One day they’d […]

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Philippine government alarmed over Chinese patrol ship

Philippine government alarmed over Chinese patrol ship

Last Wednesday, Philippine Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario asked China to explain its deployment of a patrol ship to guard disputed territorial claims in the South China Sea. The Chinese patrol ship left Hainan island for the South China Sea on Dec. 27, according to China’s official Xinhua News Agency. The move by China comes […]

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Thailand’s Dirty Little Secret

Thailand’s Dirty Little Secret

The deplorable decision by the government of Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra to forcibly repatriate around 70 ethnic Rohingya fleeing ethnic violence in neighboring Myanmar this past week should certainly not come as a surprise. Successive governments have routinely prevented asylum seekers from remaining in Thailand from various trouble spots surrounding the country. This is […]

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Aquino Trumps Clergy and Big Tobacco

Aquino Trumps Clergy and Big Tobacco

Throughout the years, I have been critic of the Aquino’s, a powerful family which has had significant influence in Filipino politics dating all the way back to the Malolos Congress at the turn of the century. They are a family which is not short on drama, but always seems to look indefatigable and benevolent when […]

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