This book examines the emerging maritime security scene in Southeast Asia. It considers highly topical implications for the region of possible strategic competition between China and India - the rising naval powers of Asia - with a possible naval "arms race" emerging between these countries both with naval force development and operations. As part of its "Look East" policy, India has deployed naval units to the Pacific Ocean for port visits and exercises both with East Asian navies and the US Navy, but India is also concerned about the possibility of the Chinese Navy operating in the Indian Ocean. Even as the US-India defence relationship continues to deepen, the US and China are struggling to build a closer links. China’s and India’s strategic interests overlap in this region both in maritime strategic competition or conflict – which might be played out in the Bay of Bengal, the Malacca and Singapore Straits and the South China Sea. The sea lines of communication (SLOCs) through Southeast Asian waters constitute vital "choke points" between the Indian and Pacific Oceans carrying essential energy supplies for China and other Northeast Asian countries. Any strategic competition between China and India has implications for other major maritime players in the Pacific and Indian Oceans, especially Australia, the Republic of Korea and Japan, as well as the US. This book identifies possible cooperative and confidence-building measures that may contribute to enhanced relations between these two major powers and dampen down the risks associated with their strategic competition.

This volume studies the outcomes of the two-way flow of investments and people between China and India, and Southeast Asia. These cross-border flows have led to new settlements in Southeast Asia from which new outlooks have emerged among locally born generations that have given rise to new forms of solidarity and identification.The advent of new generations of ethnic Chinese and Indians in Southeast Asia, with no ties to China or India, has spawned important debates about identity shifts which have not been registered by government leaders in Southeast Asia, China and India, as reflected in policy statements and investment patterns. Identity changes are assessed in forms where they best manifest themselves: in social life and in business ventures forged, or unsuccessfully nurtured, through tie-ups involving foreign and domestic capital. A state-society distinction is employed to determine how the governments of these rapidly developing countries envision development, through state intervention as well as with the employment of highly entrepreneurial ethnic groups, and the outcomes of this on their societies and on their economies. The chapters were originally published as a special issue in The Round Table.

Arguing that security relations between China and Southeast Asia are profoundly affected by disputes over maritime space and territory in the South China Sea, the author demonstrates that the primacy of strategic competition over strategic partnerships promotes the emergence of a structure of deterrence, encouraging South East Asia to side with the United States to balance the military power of China. Combining the concepts of international disputes and order, the book establishes a framework designed to focus on periods of transition where international regulatory mechanisms are out of step with developments in the security environments of states. Features include: - Substantial evidence that strategic competition between the United States, China and South East Asia promotes stability. - A comprehensive account of military, diplomatic, economic, historical and legal aspects of security environments of states. Suitable for scholars and graduate students of international relations, international law, security studies, conflict management and regionalism, it will also be invaluable supplementary reading for undergraduate courses.

Equity, Opportunity and Education in Postcolonial Southeast Asia addresses the ways in which colonial histories, nationalist impulses and forces of globalization shape equity and access to education in Southeast Asia. Although increasingly identified as a regional grouping (ASEAN), Malaysia, Indonesia, Burma, Thailand, Singapore and the Philippines are known for their vastly different state structures, political regimes, political economies and ethnocultural and religious demography. The expert contributors to this volume investigate educational access and equity for citizens, ethnic and religious minorities, and indigenous people within these countries. The subject of education is framed within the broader national and local challenges of achieving equity and social justice. This book examines the dimensions of (post)colonialism, nationalism, and globalisation as played out within different international educational contexts. Chapters include: Understanding the Cultural Politics of Southeast Asian Education through Postcolonial Theory Downplaying Difference: Representations of Diversity in Contemporary Burmese Schools and Educational Equity Learner Centered Pedagogy in Post-Conflict Timor-Leste: For the Benefit of the Learner or the Learned Technology of Dominance, Technology of Liberation: Education in Colonial and Postcolonial Cambodia Change and Continuity in the History of Vietnamese Higher Education Colonization by Stealth: The Case of Thailand Education Politics in Postcolonial Malaysia: Ethnicity, Difference and Inequalities The Singapore Education Journey: From Colonialism to Globalism

China, India, and East and Southeast Asia: Assessing Sustainability provides unprecedented analyses by regional experts and scholars elsewhere in the world on China, India, and their neighbors. Despite growing demands internally on their natural resources (China and India alone are home to more than one-third of the world's population), the expanding global economic influence of this region makes these countries vital players in a sustainable future for all citizens of the Earth. Regional coverage includes topics such as business and commerce, environmental and corporate law, and lifestyles and values.

In the context of the geopolitical situation in the Asia-Pacific in the post-September 11 period, the security dimension between India and Southeast Asia cannot be overemphasized. With the continued U.S. preponderance in the region and China's phenomenal rise, the countries of Southeast Asia and India have an opportunity to evolve a co-operative relationship not only with one another, but also with the major powers of the region. This book examines the areas of comprehensive security and the growing understanding between India and Southeast Asia where there is less divergence and greater convergence. The author argues that India-Southeast Asia security convergence is not and should not be aimed at any particular country. On an optimistic note he concludes that such convergence will contribute to creating harmony among the major powers of Asia to make the twenty-first century the "Asian century".

Distinguished experts explain the economic trends and varied political goals at work in Southeast Asia. With China’s emergence as a powerful entity in Southeast Asia, the region has become an unlikely site of conflict between two of the world’s great powers. The United States, historically regarded as the protector of Pacific Southeast Asia—consisting of nations such as Vietnam, the Philippines, Myanmar, and Malaysia—is now called upon to respond to what many would consider bullying on the part of the Chinese. These and other countries have become the economic and political engine of China. While certainly inclined to help the country’s former allies, the United States has grown undeniably closer to China in the recent decades of global interconnected economic growth. China, the United States, and the Future of Southeast Asia uncovers and delves into the complicated dynamics of this situation. Covering topics such as the controversial response to human rights violations, the effects of global economic interconnectedness, and contested sovereignty over resource-rich islands, this volume provides a modern and nuanced perspective on the state of the region. For anyone interested in understanding the evolving global balance of power, China, the United States, and the Future of Southeast Asia illuminates how countries as different as Thailand and Indonesia see the growing competition between Beijing and Washington.

One of the main problems faced by teachers and students who have a scholarly interest in Southeast Asia is the lack of general, user-friendly texts in the social sciences. The absence of an introduction to the sociology of Southeast Asia is especially unfortunate. This volume attempts to meet these needs. This is, then, the first sole-authored introductory sociology text on Southeast Asia that focuses on change and development in the region, provides an overview of the important sociological and political economy writings, and considers the key concepts and themes in the field since 1945. Some multiauthored works do exist but these either are outdated or focus on specialized topics. Aimed primarily at undergraduates up to the final year, it will also be a useful reference work for post-graduates and researchers who lack such a general work.

Tan Ta Sen has modestly suggested that, as a book to illustrate the peaceful impact of culture contact, he is concerned to show how such cultural influences not only led to transmissions, conversions and transferences involving Inner Asian Muslims from China and Yunnan Muslims, Chams, Javanese, Malays, Arabs and Indians, but also enabled many Chinese in the Malay world to retain their non-Muslim cultural traits. In placing Cheng Ho's voyages in this context, the author offers a fresh perspective on a momentous set of events in Chinese maritime history. - Professor Wang Gungwu, National University of Singapore Tan Ta Sen's book on Cheng Ho and Islam in Southeast Asia is not the first one on the subject, but it is the first book that puts Cheng Hos voyages in the larger context of "culture contact" in China and beyond. He has garnered numerous sources, from published documents to architectural sites and buildings, to support his arguments. He has done much more than previous scholars writing on this subject. - Professor Leo Suryadinata, Chinese Heritage Centre (Singapore) This long-awaited book is welcomed by the academic community ... Tan Ta Sen has used historical facts to strengthen the argument on the existence of the "Third Wave", i.e. "the Chinese Wave", in the spread of Islam in the Southeast Asian region. Until now, we only know two major waves, i.e. the India-Gujarat Wave and the Middle East Wave through the development of trade relations. - Professor A. Dahana, University of Indonesia (Jakarta)