Asean, once considered essential for diplomacy in the Asia-Pacific, has struggled to remain effective in an increasingly polarised world. It has fashioned itself as a zone of peace and neutrality, where its 10 member states seek consensus, avoid criticising each other and feel free to engage different powers. Its small and weak secretariat, and lack of any process for enforcing decisions on members, reflects this mindset. BBC
Cambodian asylum-seekers in Thailand fear they could be forcibly repatriated as Thai authorities tighten security ahead of next week’s APEC summit in Bangkok, they told Radio Free Asia. “If the Thai government supports the cause of democracy…, they should help protect us, which means that they are also protecting their own country,” said Sao Pulleak, who once led the former main opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party’s operations in Banteay Meanchey province. Sao Pulleak has been seeking refuge in Thailand the past four years after Cambodia’s Supreme Court dissolved the party…
An agreement with China to include mandatory Mandarin language classes in Cambodia’s public secondary schools has Cambodian educators worried about growing Chinese influence that will undermine the kingdom’s culture and sovereignty. On Wednesday, the two governments signed a memorandum of understanding in Phnom Penh to introduce the new subject to students from 7th to 12th grade, one of 18 agreements signed during a ceremony between Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and visiting Chinese Premier Li Keqiang. In response to the move, teachers and political observers say the Cambodian government should…
For run-of-the-mill autocrats, it is enough to control the words and deeds of their subjects. Truly ambitious leaders want to guide their people’s dreams. Listen to this story.Enjoy more audio and podcasts on iOS or Android. Your browser does not support the <audio> element. Listen to this story Save time by listening to our audio articles as you multitask OK China’s supreme leader, Xi Jinping, has displayed vast ambition since taking charge of the Communist Party a decade ago. He has, among other things, sought to inspire patriotic reveries. Days…
“When a nation’s fortunes rise or fall, so too do its fortunes in Go.” So said Marshal Chen Yi, a soldier in China’s civil war. He was a keen player of the ancient board game, where opponents capture territory by placing black and white stones on a 19-by-19 square grid. His observation rings true. In the second half of the 20th century, an economically vibrant Japan dominated international Go competitions. Over the past two decades, as China boomed, its Go players took home many of the most important trophies. Listen…
In 1963 Mao Zedong launched a campaign known as the “Four Clean-ups”, an attempt to rid China’s politics, economy, organisations and ideology of reactionary elements. Ordinary people were encouraged to name and shame anyone they deemed ideologically suspicious. Mao seemed particularly pleased with the small town of Fengqiao in the east. Around 900 of its 65,000 residents were called out by their neighbours in public “denunciation rallies”. The “Fengqiao model” demonstrated how the party could enlist people to solve problems at the local level, Mao said. The larger campaign resulted…
Editor’s note: It has been confirmed that a meeting between Joe Biden and Xi Jinping will take place on November 14th. Prospects for a cold-war detente looked dim ahead of an impromptu meeting between Lyndon Johnson, America’s president, and Alexei Kosygin, the Soviet premier, in 1967. The superpowers’ leaders had not met since 1961, when a Kennedy-Khrushchev summit in Vienna ended in acrimony. Five days after Kosygin landed in New York to address the United Nations, Soviet and American officials were still wrangling over when and where he could meet…
Days before he died, Bao celebrated his 90th birthday. His son shared what he believed were his father’s last words to the world: “It doesn’t matter whether I reach 90, what’s important is the future we all should fight for… we should do what we are supposed to do, then we’ll realise our value, the value of our life.” BBC