Asia Rising

The Chagos Archipelago, a group of small tropical islands in the middle of the Indian ocean, has become a surprising location of strategic importance. Recent international legal rulings have invalidated The United Kingdom’s claimed sovereignty, and international groups are urging the UK to end its ‘unlawful occupation’, presenting interesting dilemmas for the United States and its allies.

A live recording of the Asia Rising podcast.

Guest:

Nilanthi Samaranayake (Director of the Strategy and Policy Analysis Program at the Center of Naval Analysis in Washington D.C).

Host: Bec Strating (Executive Director, La Trobe Asia)

Recorded with a live zoom audience on 9th March 2021.

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted how the spread of fake news and misinformation online – even if shared without malicious intent – can weaken global public health efforts, contribute to social unrest and lead to real-life harms or even death.

In the Asia Pacific, Singapore and Indonesia are among the early adopters of fake news laws to crack down on the pernicious problem of online misinformation and disinformation. These laws aim to address COVID-19 misinformation and the real-world violence and hate speech aimed at minority and religious groups, but internet and human rights experts fear the laws are also open to political misuse.

A landmark report from La Trobe University details the harm caused by online misinformation, how it is being regulated in some countries, and how it might be tackled.

The launch of the report Fighting Fake News: A study of online misinformation regulation in the Asia Pacific.

A La Trobe Asia / Asia Centre event.

Speakers:

Associate Professor Andrea Carson (Journalism, La Trobe University)

Dr James Gomez (Regional Director, Asia Centre)

Kristen Han (Singapore-based journalist and activist)

Associate Professor Dirk Tomsa (Politics, La Trobe University)

Chair: Dr Bec Strating (Executive Director, La Trobe Asia)

Held as live zoom panel on 16th March, 2021.

The COVID pandemic has hit tertiary education in Australia hard, and for most of 2020 it prevented students from studying on campus. For international students they were unable to enter the country, which meant a drop in enrolments and a decrease in university revenue, a situation which will likely continue into 2022.

Australian international students are largely from Asian countries, with large numbers from China and India in particular, and how the pandemic affects enrolment numbers will have flow on effects throughout not just those societies, but Australia as well.

Guests:

In late January 2021 China moved to intensify military activity in the Taiwan Strait, sending bombers capable of carrying nuclear weapons and fighter jets into airspace just southwest of the island. Taiwan responded by scrambling fighters and broadcasting warnings, but there has been no subsequent comment from China.

Beijing has long regarded the island as a renegade province and strongly opposes diplomatic attempts by other countries to engage with it. The action is the latest in an escalation of tension around the independence of Taiwan, and it coinciding with the inauguration of new United States President Joe Biden has led many to interpret it as a clear warning and the first major test of the Biden administration’s foreign policy.

What do these heightened tensions mean for Taiwan’s dreams of independence? What are the Chinese Communist Party’s objectives for Taiwan? Will the Biden Administration stand up to China over Taiwan, and will it look to its allies such as Australia for support?

SPEAKERS:

Professor Brendan Taylor (Strategic Studies, Strategic and Defence Studies Centre, Australian National University)

Natasha Kassam (Research Fellow, Lowy Institute)

Jessica Drun (Non-Resident Fellow, Project 2049 Institute)

Dr Bec Strating, Executive Director, La Trobe Asia (Chair)

Held as live zoom panel on 3rd March, 2021.

Last month, the military upended years of quasi-democratic rule in Myanmar in a carefully orchestrated coup. Military leaders justified the takeover by alleging voter fraud in the 2020 November election, which the National League for Democracy (NLD) had won in a landslide. The civilian leader of Myanmar and the NLD, former Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi, was detained by the military, along with dozens of officials, law-makers and aides.

The military announced that it will remain in power for one year, with ultimate authority resting with Senior General Min Aung Hlaing. Some suspect the military will stay in charge beyond that, returning to the time prior to Myanmar’s first democratic reforms in 2011.

What were the driving factors behind the military coup? Does Myanmar have a long-term future as a democratic country? What response should be expected from the international community, and what are the implications for regional stability in Southeast Asia?

SPEAKERS:

Held as live zoom panel on 24th February, 2021.

In the course of a year Hong Kong has been transformed by a new security law. Drafted by Beijing and aimed at protestors, it has led to mass arrests of activists, lawyers and law makers.

Political participation in Hong Kong is now more dangerous than ever, and with rights and freedoms diminishing under Beijing’s vast national security apparatus, is the democratic dream of Hong Kong over?

Guest: Antony Dapiran (Hong Kong-based writer and lawyer, author of the book City on Fire: The Fight for Hong Kong).

Recorded with a live zoom audience on 17th February 2021.

The political landscape of Indonesia has had a shakeup with the resurrection of the long-defunct Masyumi Party. The once-powerful party invokes a time when Islamists were more united in Indonesia, and signals a desire for greater coordination.

Guest:

Recorded 9 February 2021.

Cultural and environmental conservation can be motivated by a number of factors, such as desire for resources, tourism, or perhaps just an appreciation for the environment. Perhaps there is no greater motivation for conservation in Asia than that of sacred geographies.

Guest:

Recorded 30 November 2020.

The election of Joe Biden to serve as the 46th President of the United States comes at a critical moment of the country’s relationship with Asia. A global pandemic, frayed diplomatic relations and struggling economies make the next four years internationally significant, and Biden is assumed to reset many relationships and to bring an old-school sensibility back to diplomacy His actions will have a major impact on regional prosperity and security.

In this special episode of the Asia Rising podcast Bonnie Glaser, Senior Adviser for Asia at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, will speak about the outcome of the United States election and what Biden Presidency will mean for Asia.

Guest:

Recorded 17 November 2020.