AsiaWatch - 14 Sep 2020
Calm prevails along the China-India border, South China Sea, and Thailand; TikTok signals greater Chinese aspirations in SEA's digital economy; Japan's leadership race
Photo credit: CNA
Good morning.
Last week closed with a general call for calm following days of escalating tensions across the region. ASEAN member nations reaffirmed a commitment to peace in the South China Sea, and Chinese and Indian meetings in Moscow ended on a conciliatory note. Thailand’s government entered into fresh talks with the country’s student leaders, hoping to dissuade calls for monarchy reform. Eschewing its troubles in the US, TikTok set its sights on Southeast Asia, announcing a multi-billion dollar investment into Singapore, which the company said was a sign of closer economic relations between the region and China. In North Asia, Japan’s neighbours were looking at the country’s leadership race with quiet anxiety, as a controversial selection process looks set to confirm candidate Yoshihide Suga as Abe’s successor.
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ASEAN calls for self-restraint in South China Sea dispute
ASEAN ministers addressed the South China Sea dispute by reaffirming the importance of maintaining peace security, stability, safety and freedom of navigation, at a time of high tensions arising from the United States-China
COVID-19: Rigorous testing could help revive travel but challenges remains
Associate Professor Hsu Li Yang, who is an infectious disease expert from the National University of Singapore's Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, noted the question would have to be asked if travellers were willing to fork out money to pay for tests.
TikTok sees big potential in Southeast Asia as digital economy grows
Experts said that as the premium social app provider in the region, TikTok is seeing rising popularity among local users and authorities, given the need for closer economic ties between China and Southeast Asian countries.
Clashes of candidates a 'new political norm' to ensure victory in Sabah polls, says Bung Moktar
Datuk Seri Bung Moktar Radin has described the clashes of candidates from Perikatan Nasional and its allies - Barisan Nasional and Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) - in 17 seats in the Sabah state election as a "new political norm" to ensure victory to form a new state government.
Thailand tells universities to stop students' calls for monarchy reform
Thai authorities have summoned the heads of universities to tell them to stop students demanding reform of the monarchy, warning that such calls could lead to violence, a member of the military-appointed Senate said on Sunday (Sep 13).
Thai Airways faces court ruling on landmark debt rescue plan
Thai Airways International, the nation’s flagship carrier, faces one of its biggest challenges in its 60-year history, with the Central Bankruptcy Court set to rule on its debt restructuring on Monday.
Ailing Trong’s power felt not seen in Vietnam
The absence of Vietnam’s communist chief and head of state from a major national event last week yet again sparked rumors about how the purported ill-health of the country’s most powerful figure affects an all-important political reshuffle set for early next year.
In Myanmar, a Leading Conglomerate is Funding Military Abuses
The new Amnesty report drills down into the operations of the Myanmar Economic Holdings Public Company Ltd (MEHL), a secretive military-linked conglomerate that a U.S. diplomat once described as “one of the most powerful and corrupt organizations” in the country.
Philippine and Chinese defense chiefs try to ease South China Sea tensions
The defense ministers of China and the Philippines met in Manila on Friday, vowing "to avoid misunderstanding" amid tensions in the disputed South China Sea. After low-key visits to Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei this week, Chinese Defense Minister Gen. Wei Fenghe arrived in the Philippine capital without much fanfare and with limited public statements, in contrast to the recent East Asia Summit, where Beijing struck a more confrontational tone.
Philippines' Duterte signs US$3.4 billion COVID-19 pandemic stimulus package into law
Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte signed into law a 165.5 billion pesos (US$3.4 billion) emergency relief measure on Friday (Sep 11) to expand healthcare and help businesses after the coronavirus pandemic plunged the economy into recession.
3 million students in the Philippines still unenrolled: ‘Lost generation’ must catch up
The start of classes has been twice delayed, and officials are now readying a distance learning program for the 24.35 million children who did enroll for basic education this year.
EU and China to talk trade as tensions mount
EU leaders are due to hold video talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday hoping to make progress on trade and investment, even as tensions mount between Beijing and the West over Hong Kong and the treatment of minority Uighurs.
Beijing to impose restrictions on all US diplomats in China
Beijing will impose "reciprocal restrictions" on all United States diplomats on Chinese soil in response to curbs on its embassy personnel in the United States, China's foreign ministry said Friday (Sep 11).
China's Xinhua condemns raids on Chinese journalists in Australia
Raids on Chinese journalists living in Australia are "utterly appalling" and damage relations between the two countries, state news agency Xinhua said. China's state-backed tabloid Global Times reported earlier this week that Australian authorities raided the homes of four Chinese journalists residing in the country in June.
China, India join in conciliatory message on border tensions
The much-anticipated talks between China’s and India’s foreign ministers in Moscow on Thursday managed to clinch a detailed joint statement heralding five consensus points that could potentially become a second Panchsheel Treaty of much transformed China-India relations.
With a poker face, Kim Jong Un waits for Japan's next PM
The conspicuous silence seems to suggest that Pyongyang is waiting to see who will succeed Abe before deciding how to engage with the new leader.
Opinion
What leaders and thinkers are saying about Asia
From insisting that Sino-European ties ought not buckle under Trump’s administration’s pressures – thereby construing the two parties as seeming allies united in opposition to American hegemony – to highlighting the economic prospects of the battered Belt and Road Initiative in Italy to the somewhat iconic elbow bump between Wang and his Norwegian counterpart Ine Eriksen Soreide, it’s apparent that China is seeking to rehabilitate its European image and rekindle many dampened flames.
China-US Media Relations Are Cratering. That’s a Serious Problem.
“China and the United States are two countries with different political systems, as well as different media systems. But being different does not mean we are enemies. Both sides, especially in the media are sure to find the possibility of cooperation. Of course, cooperation is always affected by politics.”
How Suga will and won’t change Japan
The broad question is whether Suga will act on his own convictions and make a mark on the premiership, or will simply act as a “caretaker” leader who continues Abe’s policies until the next national election in October 2021.
Commentary: Malaysian politics is going through a midlife crisis
The crux of the issue is this: Should the country return to the old model, the BN model which is essentially a multiracial coalition that upholds Malay supremacy, or a new modified model that is more progressive and inclusive?
Commentary: Worst time ever to be an overseas Filipino worker
Looming prospects for repatriation compounded with the possibility of contracting the virus is also a source of depression for OFWs. Undocumented and irregular migrants – and those who work in informal sectors – are more vulnerable to the risks of COVID-19 due to inadequate access to healthcare and already crowded living conditions.
India needs to show sincerity to implement 5-point consensus: Global Times editorial
Chinese and Indian leaders met many times and reached consensus after the Doklam standoff, but then border conflicts happened again. This has only happened at China-India border areas, which is enough to show the two countries do not want a war.
No new normal for Asia’s virally unwanted migrants
“Migrant workers are already facing discrimination in their destination countries and when they return home as suspected virus carriers,” says Guna Subramaniam, who leads Institute for Human Rights and Business’ Migrant Workers programme in Southeast Asia.
Warring Sides: Is There an End to Violence in South Asia?
Nearly two decades of conflict nears an end with the beginning of the first formal intra-Afghan talks in Doha. But regional peace remains at risk as warring factions of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) reunited on Afghan soil with an agenda to intensify violence back home.
Tea Time
The humble tea leaf is one of Asia’s best known exports, best shared in the company of those who love it. With Tea Time, we take a break from politics to share the stories that give a glimpse into the lives of peoples of Asia.
Disney’s big cinematic bet fizzled when it opened in Chinese theatres on 11 Sep. Headlined by popular Chinese actors, the film was set for a billion-dollar run at the box office, but raked in a paltry US$7 million on opening day instead. Various streaming sites were hosting the movie for free days before the release, which could have hurt sales. Yet, the reaction to 2020’s Mulan was reminiscent of the cold shoulder its 1998 animated predecessor received in the Chinese mainland. What went so wrong?
Ridden with historical inaccuracies as seen from the trailers, the movie was already set up ridicule among the culturally astute. While Chinese audiences weren’t as perturbed by the production’s filming in Xinjiang or leading lady Liu Yifei's support for Hong Kong police, audiences were more sensitive to the idea of force-fitting a Chinese heroine into a Disney Princess role.
Disney’s hopes to ride China’s recovery looks all but dashed. That opportunity might be seized by another movie, Leap, that tells the tale of China’s celebrated female volleyball team, ironically starring Mulan’s female villain in the leading role.