Pub Date : 2024-05-10DOI: 10.1163/2667078x-bja10035
Paul Chambers
Since 1980, Thailand’s monarchy and military have enjoyed a partnership of power with the latter as a junior affiliate — a highly “monarchized military.” However, after 1992, direct military influence across the country diminished, and after the 2006 and 2014 coups, the military regained enormous clout. The country’s post-2019 facade democracy represents the continuation of a tutelary regime involving palace-endorsed military intervention in politics and apparent electoral governance. However, the armed forces-influenced government faces growing domestic challenges. This study examines Thailand’s military in late 2023. 2023 was profoundly significant because a new civilian government entered office that year, which might challenge monarchy-military primacy. The study chiefly asks: To what extent has the monarchy-military partnership clothed itself under the appearance of democracy (while indirectly interfering in it) to sustain its power, and what are the principal challenges this partnership faces? The study finds that in late 2023, Thailand remained a façade democracy, characterized by electoral authoritarianism and lorded over by monarchy and military — a situation the two institutions preferred to maintain.
{"title":"Assessing the Political Clout of Thailand’s “Monarchized” Military in 2023","authors":"Paul Chambers","doi":"10.1163/2667078x-bja10035","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/2667078x-bja10035","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000Since 1980, Thailand’s monarchy and military have enjoyed a partnership of power with the latter as a junior affiliate — a highly “monarchized military.” However, after 1992, direct military influence across the country diminished, and after the 2006 and 2014 coups, the military regained enormous clout. The country’s post-2019 facade democracy represents the continuation of a tutelary regime involving palace-endorsed military intervention in politics and apparent electoral governance. However, the armed forces-influenced government faces growing domestic challenges. This study examines Thailand’s military in late 2023. 2023 was profoundly significant because a new civilian government entered office that year, which might challenge monarchy-military primacy. The study chiefly asks: To what extent has the monarchy-military partnership clothed itself under the appearance of democracy (while indirectly interfering in it) to sustain its power, and what are the principal challenges this partnership faces? The study finds that in late 2023, Thailand remained a façade democracy, characterized by electoral authoritarianism and lorded over by monarchy and military — a situation the two institutions preferred to maintain.","PeriodicalId":37023,"journal":{"name":"Asian International Studies Review","volume":" 10","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-05-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140990572","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-05-10DOI: 10.1163/2667078x-bja10031
Jaehyun Jung, Taejong Kim, Booyuel Kim
This study evaluates the effects of the Cambodia Rural Development Program, specifically focusing on income generation and social capital. By employing a difference- in-differences framework and propensity score matching, the study finds a statistically significant positive impact on income, primarily driven by increased engagement in regular income-generating activities. However, the study also finds that the program has a limited effect on village-level collective actions, social cohesion, and perceived safety while inadvertently discouraging financial contributions to community projects. Additionally, trust between villagers and government officials remains unchanged. Heterogeneous analyses reveal the ineffective participation of trauma-experienced subgroups, highlighting the need for tailored approaches in conflict-affected regions.
{"title":"The Impacts of Community-Driven Development Program in Conflict-Affected Regions: Evidence from Cambodia","authors":"Jaehyun Jung, Taejong Kim, Booyuel Kim","doi":"10.1163/2667078x-bja10031","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/2667078x-bja10031","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000This study evaluates the effects of the Cambodia Rural Development Program, specifically focusing on income generation and social capital. By employing a difference- in-differences framework and propensity score matching, the study finds a statistically significant positive impact on income, primarily driven by increased engagement in regular income-generating activities. However, the study also finds that the program has a limited effect on village-level collective actions, social cohesion, and perceived safety while inadvertently discouraging financial contributions to community projects. Additionally, trust between villagers and government officials remains unchanged. Heterogeneous analyses reveal the ineffective participation of trauma-experienced subgroups, highlighting the need for tailored approaches in conflict-affected regions.","PeriodicalId":37023,"journal":{"name":"Asian International Studies Review","volume":" 24","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-05-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140990312","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-05-10DOI: 10.1163/2667078x-bja10034
Felicia Istad, Sardar Ahmed Shah
The rapid industrialization of countries in East Asia and the resulting labor shortage are challenging established theories in research on migration policy. Studies argue that the persistence of temporary labor migration programs in this region contests the liberal convergence thesis, which suggests that democratization inevitably leads to more open migration policies. This article revisits the theoretical debate, focusing on conceptual equivalence across time and space. In a comparative policy study of Japan and Korea, we examine the development of two temporary labor migration programs (the Specified Skilled Worker program and the Employment Permit System). Our findings demonstrate how migration policies alternately intersect and diverge throughout time and across policy dimensions. The article contributes to comparative research in migration policy by highlighting the significance of historically informed and empirically equivalent analysis of migration policies.
{"title":"Liberal Convergence or Differential Exclusion? Temporary Labor Migration Policy in Japan and Korea","authors":"Felicia Istad, Sardar Ahmed Shah","doi":"10.1163/2667078x-bja10034","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/2667078x-bja10034","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000The rapid industrialization of countries in East Asia and the resulting labor shortage are challenging established theories in research on migration policy. Studies argue that the persistence of temporary labor migration programs in this region contests the liberal convergence thesis, which suggests that democratization inevitably leads to more open migration policies. This article revisits the theoretical debate, focusing on conceptual equivalence across time and space. In a comparative policy study of Japan and Korea, we examine the development of two temporary labor migration programs (the Specified Skilled Worker program and the Employment Permit System). Our findings demonstrate how migration policies alternately intersect and diverge throughout time and across policy dimensions. The article contributes to comparative research in migration policy by highlighting the significance of historically informed and empirically equivalent analysis of migration policies.","PeriodicalId":37023,"journal":{"name":"Asian International Studies Review","volume":" 40","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-05-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140990185","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2024-05-10DOI: 10.1163/2667078x-bja10033
Sylvia Yazid, Mireille Marcia Karman
The COVID-19 pandemic affected border management policies by introducing health protocol norms for foreigners entering the country. Although public rhetoric often emphasized the importance of preventing an increase in imported cases, the implementation of health protocols in Indonesian border management policy varied from long quarantine periods during the advent of the pandemic to the easing of border control during the Omicron spike. This paper is focused on the international and domestic dynamics that affected the meaning and implementation of health protocols in Indonesia’s border management policies. It was found that, although international health norms served as initial guidance for health protocols at the start of the pandemic, their influence faded over time as they did not align with the national agenda, which prioritized economic growth. Therefore, after successfully adapting to the pandemic, the president and his elite circle redefined health protocols to favor the economic recovery process.
{"title":"Whose Ideas Matter? The Changing Meaning of Health Protocols in Indonesia’s Border Management Policies in the Pandemic Era","authors":"Sylvia Yazid, Mireille Marcia Karman","doi":"10.1163/2667078x-bja10033","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/2667078x-bja10033","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000The COVID-19 pandemic affected border management policies by introducing health protocol norms for foreigners entering the country. Although public rhetoric often emphasized the importance of preventing an increase in imported cases, the implementation of health protocols in Indonesian border management policy varied from long quarantine periods during the advent of the pandemic to the easing of border control during the Omicron spike. This paper is focused on the international and domestic dynamics that affected the meaning and implementation of health protocols in Indonesia’s border management policies. It was found that, although international health norms served as initial guidance for health protocols at the start of the pandemic, their influence faded over time as they did not align with the national agenda, which prioritized economic growth. Therefore, after successfully adapting to the pandemic, the president and his elite circle redefined health protocols to favor the economic recovery process.","PeriodicalId":37023,"journal":{"name":"Asian International Studies Review","volume":" 13","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-05-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"140992262","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-11-15DOI: 10.1163/2667078x-bja10027
Aletheia Kerygma B. Valenciano
As China continues to strengthen its geopolitical status in Southeast Asia, it has expanded its foreign policy strategies to include track 2 diplomacy, which focuses on multilateral security dialogues and aims to support and strengthen official diplomacy. The existing literature on China’s track 2 diplomacy focuses on its effectiveness as a mechanism for conflict resolution, often overlooking the important question of how and why it became a foreign policy option for China. Using data drawn from key informant interviews, document analysis, and participant observation, this study examines specifically the role of non-traditional security (NTS) in the expansion of China’s track 2 diplomacy in Southeast Asia. From the lens of the securitization framework, this study argues that China’s track 2 diplomacy in Southeast Asia is, to a certain extent, a result of securitizing the NTS dimension of these issues. Moreover, while track 2 diplomacy functions as a mechanism to manage NTS threats, China has not completely abandoned its traditional security considerations. In fact, it views track 2 as instrumental in pursuing its wider political, security, and strategic goals. This study further explores the prospects and challenges for China’s track 2 diplomacy.
{"title":"Securitizing Non-Traditional Security (NTS) Threats: China’s Track 2 Diplomacy in Southeast Asia","authors":"Aletheia Kerygma B. Valenciano","doi":"10.1163/2667078x-bja10027","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/2667078x-bja10027","url":null,"abstract":"As China continues to strengthen its geopolitical status in Southeast Asia, it has expanded its foreign policy strategies to include track 2 diplomacy, which focuses on multilateral security dialogues and aims to support and strengthen official diplomacy. The existing literature on China’s track 2 diplomacy focuses on its effectiveness as a mechanism for conflict resolution, often overlooking the important question of how and why it became a foreign policy option for China. Using data drawn from key informant interviews, document analysis, and participant observation, this study examines specifically the role of non-traditional security (NTS) in the expansion of China’s track 2 diplomacy in Southeast Asia. From the lens of the securitization framework, this study argues that China’s track 2 diplomacy in Southeast Asia is, to a certain extent, a result of securitizing the NTS dimension of these issues. Moreover, while track 2 diplomacy functions as a mechanism to manage NTS threats, China has not completely abandoned its traditional security considerations. In fact, it views track 2 as instrumental in pursuing its wider political, security, and strategic goals. This study further explores the prospects and challenges for China’s track 2 diplomacy.","PeriodicalId":37023,"journal":{"name":"Asian International Studies Review","volume":"21 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-11-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139273729","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-11-14DOI: 10.1163/2667078x-bja10026
Taekyoon Kim, Bo Kyung Kim
This study explores the significance of mainstreaming an integrated approach to development in enhancing development cooperation. It underscores the Asianization of this integrated approach by scrutinizing a unique path that harmonizes global guidelines for integrated approaches within Asia’s regional context. Serving as the focal case study, the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA)’s Peace Village Development Projects in Cambodia and Lao PDR illuminate how projects can evolve into integrated programs. This evolution draws on universalist lessons within the contextualist epistemological framework for scaling up. The research establishes that comprehensive needs and capacity assessments, in conjunction with the active participation of various stakeholders, are crucial for the effective design and implementation of these projects, which engage mixed scaling-up processes. KOICA’s integrated strategy serves as a dynamic catalyst for social inclusion and the optimization of sectoral outcomes, offering a mechanism for scaling up that contributes to the formation of ‘an organically societized Asia.’
{"title":"Asianizing the Integrated Approach for Development Cooperation: Scaling-Up Dynamics of KOICA’s Peace-Development Nexus Projects in Lao PDR and Cambodia","authors":"Taekyoon Kim, Bo Kyung Kim","doi":"10.1163/2667078x-bja10026","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/2667078x-bja10026","url":null,"abstract":"This study explores the significance of mainstreaming an integrated approach to development in enhancing development cooperation. It underscores the Asianization of this integrated approach by scrutinizing a unique path that harmonizes global guidelines for integrated approaches within Asia’s regional context. Serving as the focal case study, the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA)’s Peace Village Development Projects in Cambodia and Lao PDR illuminate how projects can evolve into integrated programs. This evolution draws on universalist lessons within the contextualist epistemological framework for scaling up. The research establishes that comprehensive needs and capacity assessments, in conjunction with the active participation of various stakeholders, are crucial for the effective design and implementation of these projects, which engage mixed scaling-up processes. KOICA’s integrated strategy serves as a dynamic catalyst for social inclusion and the optimization of sectoral outcomes, offering a mechanism for scaling up that contributes to the formation of ‘an organically societized Asia.’","PeriodicalId":37023,"journal":{"name":"Asian International Studies Review","volume":"55 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-11-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139277312","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-11-14DOI: 10.1163/2667078x-bja10028
Joel Atkinson
Characterizations of foreign aid donors neglect the overarching importance of ideas in determining policy. This article explores Japan’s ideological criteria for foreign aid decision-making, differentiated both between goals and the instruments to achieve them, as well as between ideas in the specific foreground and the general background. Japan continues to operate with a recognizable postwar ideology, which synthesized aspects of an earlier militarist and economic nationalism paradigm with liberal internationalism. In recent years, the perception of a growing threat from China and other changes have catalyzed a shift in Japan’s ODA toward greater securitization and liberal value-orientation; however, aid policy still remains situated within this “Rich Nation, Liberal International” paradigm.
{"title":"Rich Nation, Liberal International: Ideology and Action in Japanese Foreign Aid Policy","authors":"Joel Atkinson","doi":"10.1163/2667078x-bja10028","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/2667078x-bja10028","url":null,"abstract":"Characterizations of foreign aid donors neglect the overarching importance of ideas in determining policy. This article explores Japan’s ideological criteria for foreign aid decision-making, differentiated both between goals and the instruments to achieve them, as well as between ideas in the specific foreground and the general background. Japan continues to operate with a recognizable postwar ideology, which synthesized aspects of an earlier militarist and economic nationalism paradigm with liberal internationalism. In recent years, the perception of a growing threat from China and other changes have catalyzed a shift in Japan’s ODA toward greater securitization and liberal value-orientation; however, aid policy still remains situated within this “Rich Nation, Liberal International” paradigm.","PeriodicalId":37023,"journal":{"name":"Asian International Studies Review","volume":"25 4","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-11-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139276554","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-11-06DOI: 10.1163/2667078x-bja10030
Ben Katoka
Abstract Is the establishment of Korea’s Country Partnership Strategy ( CPS ) since 2011 associated with increases in Korea’s exports to and imports from its Sub-Saharan African ( SSA ) partners? Two cases of Korea’s CPS for SSA countries — Ethiopia and Mozambique — indicate that an association can be established between the CPS inception and increases in Korea’s exports of manufactured products to and imports of primary commodities from its priority partners. At the same time, the study revealed that improvement in the trade balance in favor of the priority partners depended on the type of primary commodities in which those countries specialize. Specifically, priority partners specializing in minerals exports experienced a dramatic improvement in their trade balance with Korea relative to their counterparts specializing in agricultural exports.
{"title":"Korea’s Country Partnership Strategy and Bilateral Trade: Establishing a Nexus in Sub-Saharan Africa","authors":"Ben Katoka","doi":"10.1163/2667078x-bja10030","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/2667078x-bja10030","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Is the establishment of Korea’s Country Partnership Strategy ( CPS ) since 2011 associated with increases in Korea’s exports to and imports from its Sub-Saharan African ( SSA ) partners? Two cases of Korea’s CPS for SSA countries — Ethiopia and Mozambique — indicate that an association can be established between the CPS inception and increases in Korea’s exports of manufactured products to and imports of primary commodities from its priority partners. At the same time, the study revealed that improvement in the trade balance in favor of the priority partners depended on the type of primary commodities in which those countries specialize. Specifically, priority partners specializing in minerals exports experienced a dramatic improvement in their trade balance with Korea relative to their counterparts specializing in agricultural exports.","PeriodicalId":37023,"journal":{"name":"Asian International Studies Review","volume":"33 9","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-11-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"135682734","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2023-05-03DOI: 10.1163/2667078x-bja10022
Aurora S. Llige
This study analyzes how the Philippine government shapes gender norms through the awardees of an institutionalized award system called the “Presidential Awards for Filipino Individuals and Organizations Overseas” (PAFIOO). Publicly available biennial books of awardees that span 30 years (1991–2021) were obtained from the Commission on Filipinos Overseas archives, and the narrative data of the 342 awardees were thematically analyzed. This study argues that the state reinforces gender norms within migration and development through two identity frames bestowed on the winners of PAFIOO. First, the hero/heroine identity emphasizes the traditional views of gender roles, where women awardees, regardless of their civil status, are framed as sacrificing mother figures. Second, the commodity identity highlights men awardees and their masculine-related fields. Consequently, their contribution to development reflected this. Further, the PAFIOO selection is imbalanced, consistently awarding more men than women in the past three decades.
{"title":"Analyzing How the Philippine Government Shapes Gender Norms through Migration: The Case of an Institutionalized Award System","authors":"Aurora S. Llige","doi":"10.1163/2667078x-bja10022","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/2667078x-bja10022","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000This study analyzes how the Philippine government shapes gender norms through the awardees of an institutionalized award system called the “Presidential Awards for Filipino Individuals and Organizations Overseas” (PAFIOO). Publicly available biennial books of awardees that span 30 years (1991–2021) were obtained from the Commission on Filipinos Overseas archives, and the narrative data of the 342 awardees were thematically analyzed. This study argues that the state reinforces gender norms within migration and development through two identity frames bestowed on the winners of PAFIOO. First, the hero/heroine identity emphasizes the traditional views of gender roles, where women awardees, regardless of their civil status, are framed as sacrificing mother figures. Second, the commodity identity highlights men awardees and their masculine-related fields. Consequently, their contribution to development reflected this. Further, the PAFIOO selection is imbalanced, consistently awarding more men than women in the past three decades.","PeriodicalId":37023,"journal":{"name":"Asian International Studies Review","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2023-05-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48084773","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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