Southeast Asia Archive

DENPASAR, Indonesia — The U.S. ambassador to the Philippines has broken her silence and called on Manila to end extrajudicial killings. On Feb. 27, U.S. ambassador Kristie Kenney said that human rights are critical to every democratic country and asked President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo to do all she can to stop the murderous spree. “Let’s beef up the human rights in the Armed Forces of the Philippines and make every effort to investigate, prosecute those responsible, [and] exonerate the innocent,” she said when pressed by reporters. Ambassador Kenney did not say whether the United States will be involved in the […]

BANGKOK, Thailand — China’s warming relationship with the Southeast Asian military regime the West loves to hate is emerging as a vital element in solving one of Beijing’s biggest problems — energy security. The jungles of Burma now seem certain to provide a shortcut for oil from the Middle East and Africa to the Chinese border. With China scouring the world for oil and gas supplies to replace its own rapidly decreasing reserves, strategists have pondered the potential security problem posed for Beijing by the Malacca Strait, wedged between Indonesia and Malaysia and through which between 70 and 80 percent […]

DENPASAR, Indonesia — Soon after marking the first year since 2002 without suffering a large-scale bomb attack, a small town in the middle of the religiously divided province of Central Sulawesi has become the main battlefield in Indonesia’s latest offensive in the war on terror. Seventeen Islamic radicals, believed to be members of the al-Qaida linked Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) — Southeast Asia’s largest terror group — were killed during two January police raids in the small town of Poso. Many more were arrested and large caches of weapons were seized in what is the toughest-ever police crackdown in the area. […]

HONG KONG — As the ousted dictator Saddam Hussein swung miserably from the gallows there were no shortage of political leaders — past and present, East and West — who were willing to express their dismay or a touch of glee. The political point scoring has abated since the December hanging. However, among the least noted to comment on the execution was a former Khmer Rouge leader, Nuon Chea, who defended the former Iraqi president and claimed “Saddam Hussein had a spirit of national love.” His comments were not surprising. Like Saddam Hussein, Nuon Chea expects to face trial on […]

BANGKOK, Thailand — At precisely 7:09 a.m. on Feb. 24 Thailand will collectively hope for good luck. The army generals now running the country think the country needs uplifting and have decreed this date an apparently auspicious time for a bout of national “merit-making” to be led by senior Buddhist monks. The Land of Smiles, as the Tourist Authority of Thailand labels the country, has not had much to smile at recently. Since the military coup last September, the economy has slumped, bombs have killed people in Bangkok, cracks have appeared in the runways of the capital’s brand new $4 […]

JAKARTA, Indonesia — Former rebel turned governor, Irwandi Yusuf, stunned many with his victory in the first direct provincial election held in Indonesia’s once pro-secessionist province of Aceh on Dec.11, 2006. Yet, with post-election pleasantries now over, the former academic has a tough job ahead, as hefty expectations weigh on his three-year term, due to start on Feb. 8. Irwandi’s election is the direct result of the peace deal signed between the Indonesian government and the Gerakan Aceh Merdeka (GAM) in Helsinki, Finland, on Aug. 15, 2005. The peace ended a separatist war that had killed nearly 30,000 since 1976. […]

On Jan. 17, 2007, Philippines military chief Gen. Hermogenes Esperon confirmed that Abu Sulaiman, a senior leader of the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG), died the previous day during a fierce gun battle with government troops on Jolo Island. His death represents a major blow to one of the world’s most notorious terror organizations. Abu Sayyaf (“Father of the Sword”) is primarily an indigenous movement based in the Muslim-dominated regions of the southern Philippines. Its stated goal is to promote an independent Islamic state encompassing western Mindanao and the Sulu Archipelago, areas of the southern Philippines heavily populated by Moro Muslims, […]