The Political Economy of Southeast Asia

IRGN 463

Edmund J. Malesky, Ph.D.IR/PS, UCSD

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Organization Today’s Lecture

Map Quiz• Geography of the Region

What is Southeast Asia? Structure of the Class

• Assignments; Introductions; Teams

Pre-Colonial History

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C1

C2

C3C4

C5

C6

C8

C7

C9

C10

C11

Countries

3

Capitals

CA1

CA2

CA3

CA4

CA5

CA6

CA7

CA8CA9

CA10

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Land Bodies

L1

L2

L3

L4

L5

L7

L8

L9

L10

Sometimes called West

Irian

Don’t confuse with Paracel Islands

L11

L12L13

Malaya Sarawak

Sabah

L6

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Rivers / Water Bodies

R1

R2

R3

R4R5

W1

W2

W3

W4

W5W6W7

W8

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So we can locate it on a map, but…

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The Recalcitrant Region

“Southeast Asia is the most recalcitrant region for students, because it contiguous states are so diverse, despite their proximity, as to make it difficult to generalize across them.”

Donald Emmerson, 1995

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Regional diversity in pictures

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Makati night skyline, Philipiines

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Xanana Gusmao of East Timor

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Al fresco food in Malaysia

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Protest in Burma 2007

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Sultan of Brunei & wife

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Sultan of Brunei’s palace

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Images of the 2nd Indochina war

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Borobudur temple, Indonesia

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Angkor Wat, Cambodia

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Ulun Danu temple, Bali, Indonesia

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Ho Chi Minh mausoleum, Hanoi, Vetnam

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Thai broom peddler

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Shwedagon temple, Yangon, Burma

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Female Vietnamese peasant

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Manila urban poor houses

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People power, Jan 2001, Philippines

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We know it is very big…• 11 Countries• Surface area = 4.5 million km² (1.6 million

miles²). • Population = 593 million people

• Over 114 million live on the Indonesian island of Java, the most densely populated island in the world.

• Indonesia alone has 236 million people, making it the fourth largest country in the world.

• The second and third largest countries in the region (Philippines and Vietnam with 84 million) have populations larger than Germany, Egypt, and Poland.

• Two additional countries have over 40 million people (Burma & Thailand).

• 40 million people is also roughly the size of the overseas Chinese population, who live throughout the region, but predominantly in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand.

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U.S.A. Superimposed on the SEA

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And Economically Powerful– Combined GDP in purchasing power parity of $3 trillion (nominal $681 billion).– Singapore with a per capita GDP of $30,000 is one of the richest countries in the

world.– Economic Size : Indonesia (25th Largest Economy in the World, $287 billion),

Thailand (35th, $176), Malaysia (37th $130), Singapore (42nd, $116), Philippines (48th, $99), Vietnam (57th, $52).

– U.S. overall export and import numbers with ASEAN in 2006 were $57.3 billion/$111.2 billion, while China’s were $71.2 billion/$89.5 billion.

– U.S. has Trade and Investment Framework Agreements (TIFA) with Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, and ASEAN

– As a region, SEA is 4th largest U.S. trade partners, with annual two-way trade in excess of $150 billion, but with many tariff and non-tariff export and investment barriers. (China moved to 3rd place and has or likely soon will pass, Japan—EU countries together largest).

– SEA has become increasingly important to China in a strategic sense, since 80% of its oil imports (and more than half of world’s annual merchant fleet tonnage) flows through the Malacca straits and South China Sea, and also largely undeveloped offshore oil and gas resources of the region can help provide China’s current and future energy needs.

Recovery from Financial Crisis

• The East Asian Economies have recovered and are growing again at rapid rates.

But also very diverse….

i.e. 583 different languages are spoken in the Indonesian archipelago alone; hundreds more are spoken throughout the region.

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Can Southeast Asia Be Defined By Culture (i.e. Language)?

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By Religion?

Theravada Buddhism Mahayana Buddhism

Islam Christianity

Hinduism

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By Colonial History?

France

Spain

Portugal England

Netherlands

Never Colonized

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By Regime Type?

• Multi-Party Democracies (sort of):• Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand

• Single-Party Dominant Regimes• Malaysia , Singapore, Cambodia

• One Party States• Vietnam, Laos

• Sultanate (Monarchy)• Brunei

• Military States (at least temporarily)• Burma

• Multiparty Chaos• East Timor

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Difference in Cold-War Behavior

•Attempts at non-alignment (Sihanouk & Sukarno)•Active alignment (Thailand, Philippines, Malaysia, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia)•‘Hot’ warfare (VLC)•Apparent disinterest (Brunei & Burma)

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By membership in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)?

• Perhaps now, but not originally

Founding members (August 8, 1967) • Indonesia • Malaysia • Philippines • Singapore • Thailand

States that joined later • Brunei (January 7, 1984) • Vietnam (July 28, 1995) • Laos (July 23, 1997) • Myanmar (July 23, 1997) • Cambodia (April 30, 1999)

Moreover, Papua New Guinea has observer status in ASEAN while East Timor has applied for observer status in ASEAN.

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The Term Southeast Asia

• Region commonly referred to as “Further India” or “Asia of the Monsoons.”

• Geographical scope: lands and waters east of India and south of China and north of Australia

• Nanyang (South seas) to the Chinese and Nampo to the Japanese in pre-colonial times

• Region was first referred to ‘Southeast Asia’ during WWII as military theater of operations against Japanese (British Admiral, Lord Louis

• Now, commonly used by anthropologists and historians to describe a region distinct in culture and history from South Asia and China.

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A Dynamic Region: Burning Questions of 2008

•Will Indonesia’s grand experiment of dual democratization and decentralization succeed? •Will Golkar’s entrenched organization or Megwati Sukarnoputri’s resurgence in popularity unseat Susilo Bambang Yudyono?•Will the United Malays National Organization (UMNO) continue its 62-year stranglehold on power or are its days numbered?•Thailand???!!!•How will Vietnam whether its current macro-economic difficulties and return to its rapid growth and unprecedented poverty alleviation of the past decade?•Will Vietnam’s current leadership survive the next Party Congress?•What will the legacy of Myanmar’s Saffron Revolution be?•Will the popularity of Islamic and Islamist parties grow in the region? Is there a connection between indigenous Islamic movements and international terrorism?•Will Chinese popularity and influence in the region continue to grow?

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Our Goals

• In this class, our mandate is to simply dive into mix that is Southeast Asia and come out with answers.

• We will attempt to explain modern political and economic developments, by comparing, contrasting, classifying, and categorizing the different historical patterns, cultures, religions, and political institutions of the region.

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The CourseSection 1 (October 1-15): Historical Developments

• Pre-Colonial• Colonial• WWI to WWII• Nationalism, Communism, and the Struggle for Independence.

Section 2 (October 22 - November 15): Modern Southeast Asia

• Great Men in Southeast Asia: Authority, Legitimacy, Power• Single Party Dominant/Single Party Regimes• Political Institutions• The Asian Miracle and The Asian Financial Crisis

Section 3 (November 19 - December 3): Transnational Influences

• Political Islam• Great Powers in SEA

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Your Responsibilities

• Active participation in class discussions: 15% (I will send weekly discussion questions to stimulate your thinking.)

• Weekly Team White Papers: 50%• Final Exam (June 12): 20%

• Map Quiz 2• IDs• Short Answers• Long Answer involving comparison between your specialty country

and others.

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Pre-Modern Southeast Asian History

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Elements of presentation

• Periodization of pre-modern SEA history

• Economic and political systems

• Cultural/religious influences

• State formation in pre-modern SEA

Periodization of SEA pre-modern history

• Prehistory• Emergence of ancient civilizations• ‘Indianized’ classical kingdoms• Early European colonialism• ‘High’ Western imperialism

SEA pre-history

• Human habitation in SEA is very ancient• Java man (homo

erectus)• Homo sapiens

resided in central Java & Borneo for at least 40,000 years

Hoabinhian stone age technocomplex

Bronze/iron age and settled agriculture

• Rice was domesticated probably 5000-6000 years ago

• SEAsians pioneered in cultivation of bananas, taro and yams/domesticated animals

• Iron works as early as 500 BCE• Sophisticated sailing vessels

Ban Chiang, 3600 BCE

Emergence of ancient SEA civilizations

• Emergence of small states in mainland lowlands (Cambodia & Vietnam) based on irrigated rice culture (as of 500 BCE)

• Sophisticated civilizations on the littorals undertaking maritime trade and practicing animism

China and early SEA

• Han China colonized Vietnam since 2nd century BCE for a millennium

• Chinese socio-cultural influence limited to Vietnam and small groups who migrated much later from China (e.g. Hmongs in the 18th and 19th centuries) despite trade activity

• Politically, China received tribute from pre-colonial SEA states; concerned with security of southern borders; profitable trade led to desire for stability in Nanyang

‘Indianization’ and classical societies• Itinerant Indian traders and priests married

into/became advisers to influential families in mainland and island kingdoms

• Fusion of Mahayana Buddhism and Hinduism influenced Indianization process; synthesized Indian with indigenous ideas

• Gupta era (320-550 CE): golden age of India; probably most advanced civilization in the world (science, technology and political organization

Indianized SEA societies

• Mandala states (fluctuating zones of power emanating in concentric circles from a central court

• SEA elites embraced Hindu concepts of god-kings (devaraja) and unequal social systems where their positions are buttressed by religious sanction

• Seven known Mandalas: Lower Mekong Delta, Middle Mekong (Angkor), Chao Praya Plains in Thailand, Thai Mun and Chu Valleys (Panang), Coastal Vietnam (the Cham), Burma, and Sumatra or Malaya (or Shivi Jaya).

• Much debate about the Red River Delta in Northern Vietnam. Political activity, but borders fixed and relations between political units hierarchical.

Indianized SEA societies II

• Indian sculpture and architecture manifested in grand temple complexes

• Indian scripts (esp. Sanskrit) became basis for many written SEA languages (Khmer, Thai and Khmer)

• Hindu epics (e.g. Ramayana) embedded in folk and elite culture despite continued animistic beliefs amongst peasantry

Political economy of Indianized societies

• Inland kingdoms based on wet rice agriculture (e.g. Khmer civilization)

• Those based on maritime trade (e.g. polities alongside the Straits of Melaka)

• Hybrids incorporating agriculture and maritime trade (e.g. Madjapahit)

Early Indianized mandala states

• Funan (3rd to 6th centuries CE) in Southern Vietnam

• Chen-la (5th to 7th centuries CE) inland Mekong river basin

Images of Funan

Images of Chen-la

Great classical states

• Khmer kingdom of Angkor• Pagan (Bagan) civilization in Burma• Srivijaya in Sumatra• Madjapahit in Java• Dai Viet in north Vietnam• Champa in south Vietnam

The Khmer kingdom

• Extensive hydraulic works to support rice production (3-4 crops a year)

• Theocratic state with priestly families• Magnificent temple cities (Angkor Wat)• Substantial public services: hospitals, schools

and libraries• Active trade with China and many resident

Chinese traders• Most of what we know about Angkor is either

from the artwork or from Chou-Ta-kuan, a Chinese emissary who lived in Cambodia in 1296.

• “Discovered” by Frenchman Henry Mouhot in 1860.

Khmer images

Pagan kingdom

• Agriculture-based civilization along Irrawaddy river in Burma

• Extensive irrigation networks

• Capital city of temples and shrines (Pagan or Bagan)

Images of Bagan

Srivijaya (500-1300 CE)

• Importance of Strait of Melaka (Malacca) to maritime trade within SEA and with India, Middle East, Africa and eastern Mediterranean

• Maritime empire based in Sumatra w/c exercised considerable control over international commerce and maintained close trade relations w/ China

Extent of Srivijaya

Madjapahit (1292-1527)

• Reached its peak in the 14th century under PM Gajah Mada when it controlled an empire embracing most of modern Indonesia

• Hybrid economy based on agriculture and maritime trade

• Unique Hindi-Javanese syncretic culture (people must avoid disharmony at all cost); eventually displaced by Islam; survives in Bali

Majapahit Images

The Dai Viet state• Overthrow of Chinese rule after a

millennium in early 10th century• While assimilating Chinese values,

customs and institutions, Vietnamese maintained intense hatred of Chinese and resisted cultural genocide

• Chinese re-conquest and Vietnamese responses (resistance, tributary and diplomatic relations).

• Finally, a powerful state emerges under the Ly Dynasty, founded by Ly Thai To after moving the capital to Hanoi.

Dai Viet images

Champa (7th-15th centuries CE)

• Indianized maritime trading state in south and central Vietnam

• Continuous warfare with Dai Viet and Khmers• Finally conquered by Dai Viet in 1471• Parts of Champa existed as Dai Viet

protectorate up to the 19th c. CE

Images of Champa

Decline of classical states, 13th-15th centuries CE

• Conquest and civil wars• Pagan conquered by the

Mongols in 1288• Emerging Thai state

conquers and takes over Khmer territory

• Dai Viet conquering Champa

• Madjapahit weakened by internal wars of succession

Decline of classical states II• Impact of Theravada Buddhism and

Islam• Both religions challenged the hierarchical

sociopolitical order of classical regimes• Theravada tolerably incorporated peasant

animism• Sunni Islam also appealed to peasants and

merchants with its egalitarianism• Rulers of maritime states in Malay

peninsula and Indonesian archipelago adopted the new faith and installed themselves as sultans who combined political and religious leadership

Outline of Western activity in SEA

I. Early presence• Portuguese control of Melaka and Spice islands

(1511-1641)• Dutch commercial activities in Java and outer islands• Spanish conquest and occupation of northern and

central Philippines