Ear to Asia

By Asia Institute, The University of Melbourne

What's Ear to Asia about?

On Ear to Asia, we talk with Asia experts to unpack the issues behind news headlines in a region that is rapidly changing the world. Ear to Asia is produced by Asia Institute, the Asia research specialists at the University of Melbourne, Australia. Subscribe to us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

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Ear to Asia episodes:

04.11.2024
What China's ambitions in Pakistan mean for Baloch aspirations and identity
Straddling the boundaries of Pakistan, Iran, and Afghanistan, the Baloch people have long endured as a distinct ethnic group whose aspirations have been overshadowed by the ambitions of larger state actors. In Balochistan, in Pakistan's west, Baloch ethno-nationalist assertions of...
03.20.2024
How will Indonesia fare under new president Prabowo Subianto?
Indonesia, the world's third largest democracy, has elected Prabowo Subianto to be its next president in a sweeping victory. Yet, Prabowo, who enjoyed substantial support from Indonesia's young voters, is a controversial figure with a reputation marred by human rights...
03.04.2024
As ethnic tensions rise, is there any real prospect of an inclusive Malaysia?
Malaysian society stands at a crossroads as ethnic tensions simmer, fueled by fiery rhetoric and a rise in Malay nationalism. Recent elections exposed a divided democracy, with populists pushing an agenda that strains the nation's multicultural fabric. Despite the absence...
02.13.2024
China wants to remake global governance – is the world ready for it?
China's Global Civilization Initiative (GCI), proposed by President Xi Jinping in 2023, aims to reshape global governance by emphasising mutual respect between civilizations and common human values. While it ostensibly appears to embrace diversity, some analysts argue that it primarily...
01.23.2024
Taiwan through the eyes of mainland Chinese writers and filmmakers
Despite China's official stance that reunification with Taiwan is non-negotiable, the perspectives of mainland Chinese writers, filmmakers, and television producers who have lived on the island are often far more nuanced. How have these artists reconciled their ties to the...
01.22.2024
Taiwan through the eyes of mainland Chinese writers and filmmakers
Despite China's official stance that reunification with Taiwan is non-negotiable, the perspectives of mainland Chinese writers, filmmakers, and television producers who have lived on the island are often far more nuanced. How have these artists reconciled their ties to the...
12.11.2023
How the future of Indonesia's peatlands will shape climate change
With the return of the El Niño weather pattern after a three-year hiatus, several Southeast Asian nations are preparing for the resurgence of the hazardous haze caused by peatland fires in Indonesia. Indonesia’s 24 million hectares of tropical peatlands –...
11.23.2023
Managing caste discrimination in the workplace
As India’s diaspora continues to expand in Western nations, what are the implications of caste identity, and the discriminatory practices that accompany it, for corporate managers? Despite being prohibited by law in India, cultural norms and social practices have allowed...
11.08.2023
China's Pacific push: Assessing the impact on island nations
China’s ambitious push into the Pacific Islands through infrastructure investments and loans has raised concerns about its grand strategy and geopolitical goals for nearby middle powers such as Australia. Meanwhile, Beijing's recent security deal with Solomon Islands plus its attempt...
10.22.2023
Aid under fire: The dilemmas facing humanitarian actors in strife-torn Myanmar
Myanmar is in the midst of a humanitarian crisis dating back to the military coup of February 2021, which toppled the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi and triggered a massive popular uprising that has been met with a...
10.04.2023
Vietnam's balancing act with powers great and near
With a history of conflict with large powers such as China and the United States, Vietnam now pursues a carefully calibrated foreign policy of multi-alignment and hedging to balance its strategic interests. The Southeast Asian nation has been working towards...
09.17.2023
The legacy of the War on Terror for Muslims in the West
Although the rising popularity of the political far-right in Western liberal democracies has shifted Australia’s security gaze away from Islamic terrorism, two decades of terrorism countermeasures has left scars on Muslim communities down under and elsewhere. So how has living...
08.30.2023
Minding Xi’s business: How commercial enterprises navigate China’s political landscape
With the housing sector on the brink, high youth unemployment and slower than desired GDP growth, 2023 is shaping up to be an annus horribilis for China’s economy. Since many of its current economic woes are due to the lingering...
08.09.2023
How do Cambodia’s ever closer ties with China affect Southeast Asia?
Cambodia has for decades been aligning itself ever closer to China, with substantial economic and political consequences for the Southeast Asian nation – and with geopolitical implications for its neighborhood and beyond. China's economic influence in Cambodia has been huge,...
07.18.2023
India's long and winding road to affordable and accessible healthcare
India faces a daunting task in providing adequate healthcare for its 1.4 billion people. While it can boast world-class hospitals and skilled medical staff, there remain stark disparities in healthcare access and quality, particularly in rural areas. Meanwhile, as India’s...
06.27.2023
What Erdoğan’s staying power means for the future of Türkiye
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's victory in Türkiye’s 2023 presidential election extends his two-decade reign by another 5 years yet raises important questions about the country's domestic politics. Despite his handling of a struggling economy and the aftermath of a catastrophic earthquake,...
06.07.2023
Gauging the health of democracy in the Philippines under Bongbong Marcos
As Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr begins his second year as president of the Philippines, how is his administration impacting the lives of ordinary Filipinos? The controversial term of Marcos’ immediate predecessor Rodrigo Duterte was marked by a brutal war on...
05.22.2023
Why Taiwan leads the rest of Asia in recognising LGBTQ+ rights
In May 2019, Taiwan broke barriers by legalizing same-sex marriage, becoming the first in Asia to do so. While the enormous efforts of activists — coupled with the progressive mindset of Taiwanese youth — were instrumental in achieving this milestone,...
05.08.2023
All at sea: Contending with maritime disputes in the South China Sea and beyond
While China asserts its right to some 90% of the South China Sea, its claims variously overlap and conflict with those of Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, Brunei, and the Philippines -- themselves no strangers to past maritime disputes. In fact, countries...
04.23.2023
How a Taliban-ruled Afghanistan affects security in the region
Since the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan in August 2021, the harboring of extremist or terrorist groups, continued high numbers of displaced Afghans, and ramped up production of opium for export are key concerns for neighboring nations. Iran, Pakistan,...
03.27.2023
Policing political discourse in Malaysia
In Malaysia, the 3 “R”s — race, religion, and royalty — are considered politically sensitive topics, and despite constitutional guarantees of freedom of speech, the state has passed laws that restrict their discussion, both online and off. While these...
03.13.2023
How Australia's future depends on better understanding Asia
There's no question that Australia is tightly bound to Asia. Indonesia is a close neighbor, China is its most important trading partner, and India and Japan are its strategic partners. While prioritizing Asia-focused education would thus seem essential for Australia,...
02.28.2023
Policy reversals and political impact in China
China's government has made significant policy shifts in recent months, including lifting the zero-covid policy, loosening credit regulations for real estate development, and a less strident tone in international relations. These changes suggest a sense of reversal or climbdown, despite...
02.11.2023
The future of Taiwan-China relations: Is the status quo the best option?
In Taiwan, the victory in Taipei's 2022 mayoral election of Chiang Wan-an, the Kuomintang (KMT) candidate and purported great grandson of former strongman Chiang Kai Shek, has sparked debate about the future of the island's relationship with China. While the...
01.29.2023
Singing songs of rebels, rice and romance in China’s lower Yangtze Delta
The Yangtze, Asia's longest river, flows through China's wealthiest region, the lower delta, which includes the metropolis of Shanghai. Sadly, the unique traditional cultures and epic folk songs of this region have all but succumbed to the relentless march of...
01.11.2023
A changed Hong Kong under China’s national security law
In 2020, Beijing imposed a national security law on Hong Kong after months of mass protests, resulting in the prosecution and conviction of many activists and journalists. China introduced the law despite their 1997 agreement with the outgoing British colonial...
12.15.2022
Who wants to be Indonesia’s next president?
Although Indonesia's presidential elections take place in February 2024, it's already game on for the lineup of presidential hopefuls, and the nation's political machine is already in high gear. So who are the big names throwing their hats into the...
11.16.2022
The rise and rise of halal consumerism in Indonesia
Muslims in Indonesia are increasingly seeking to align their consumption with their religious beliefs. The push comes from a growing urban middle class who have greater access to global products and services. At the same time, Indonesia’s halal product assurance...
10.26.2022
What a Taliban theocracy means for Afghanistan
In August 2021, the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan after a 20-year hiatus and promptly replaced the nation’s legal system with their own austere version of Islamic law or Sharia. While the impact of the new government on women...
10.05.2022
How can Sri Lanka continue to hedge between India and China?
Sri Lanka recently found itself caught in a diplomatic tussle between China and India over the planned visit of Chinese naval vessel the Yuan Wang 5, to the port of Hambantota. India opposed the visit because it considers the vessel...
09.14.2022
What will it take to end the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan?
After the Taliban wrested power from Afghanistan’s democratically-elected government in August 2021, almost overnight, life for millions of Afghans changed radically and possibly irrevocably. Notably, the rights of women and girls to be educated and to participate in the workforce...
08.29.2022
The human cost of South Korea’s era of transnational adoption
Since the 1950s but peaking in the 1980s, an estimated 200,000 South Korean babies and children have been adopted into mainly white families in western nations, leaving a trail of fractured identities. Why did the South Korean government allow so...
08.09.2022
Contrasting memories of Japanese colonisation in Korea and Taiwan
Taiwan and Korea were colonised by Imperial Japan for much of the first half of the 20th century, and liberated only after Japan surrendered to allied forces in 1945. While North and South Korea continue to share a deep resentment...
07.24.2022
Mindful of power: Politics and nationalism in Buddhist-majority societies
While non-violence and detachment may be central to Buddhist teachings, there are growing accounts of human rights abuses – often along ethnic lines – in Buddhist-majority countries like Myanmar and Sri Lanka, often carried out in the name of Buddhism....
07.05.2022
How China finds a home for 1.4 billion people
China’s meteoric economic rise over the last 40+ years has been accompanied by hundreds of millions of people leaving the countryside to seek opportunities in the nation's metropolises. Housing this immense influx has been and continues to be a challenge...
06.21.2022
Getting China-Australia relations out of a rut
The recent change of government in Australia and a less strident tone in messaging from the Chinese leadership are being taken by some as a promising turn for fractured bilateral ties. But as Australia remains caught in the great power...
06.05.2022
Thailand's simmering political discontent
Protesters returned to the streets of Bangkok in late 2021 – after a hiatus due to COVID-19 restrictions – with anger over curbs to civil and political rights as well as calls for reform of the Thai monarchy. In response,...
05.19.2022
Ending the cycle of political disarray in Malaysia
Malaysia has witnessed a succession of prime ministers and political alliances over the past four years in what some observers say is the most serious era of political instability since independence in 1957. Meanwhile, Malaysia’s grand old party, UMNO, dealt...
05.05.2022
India's two-way bet on the US-Russia divide
India has now on four occasions abstained from voting in the United Nations to censure Russia over its invasion of Ukraine. New Delhi’s muted response to Moscow’s military offensive may seem mystifying given India’s own experience of armed incursions by...
04.21.2022
Islamic finance in a fintech future
Having built a Shariah-compliant global finance industry now worth US$3 trillion, Islamic legal experts are now grappling with the question of whether cryptocurrencies are permissible for the world’s 1.8 billion Muslims. Just how are religious laws from the 7th century...
04.06.2022
Pachinko: Korean fates and fortunes in Japan
Pachinko, the New York Times best-selling novel and now major TV series, shines a light on the history and plight of the Zainichi – ethnic Koreans long resident in Japan – and their struggle to make lives for themselves despite...
03.23.2022
Anxiety and aspiration in Japan-China relations
For Japan, China is both its largest trading partner and its greatest strategic threat. And while Tokyo has garnered admiration for how it walks the line between its ally Washington and Beijing, it’s now set to draw up a new...
03.03.2022
Beyond Squid Game: Translating Asian film and TV for a hungry global market
The South Korean mega-hit Squid Game is but one example of an ever growing pool of Asian video content riding the boom in streaming services to a global audience. And while translations are key to bridging the language divide, what...
02.16.2022
Decision making and dissent in the Chinese Communist Party
China’s Communist Party is known to prize loyalty and conformity among its more than 90 million members. If good policies are forged through deliberation and debate, how does the CCP handle the weighing of opinions, counter-proposals and objections while ensuring...
02.01.2022
Growing the Australia-India relationship
As Australia’s relationship with China continues to sour, it should come as no surprise that Canberra is bolstering security ties with New Delhi. Additionally, the two governments are working hard to forge a comprehensive trade agreement. But is a mutual...
01.18.2022
Was Donald Trump on the money about China?
As US president, Donald Trump rewrote the rule book for dealing with China, breaking norms enshrined in bilateral relations since the days of Richard Nixon. Yet even Trump’s harshest critics have since warmed to his assertive, unconventional approach to Beijing,...
12.14.2021
Indonesia's evolving post-pandemic political landscape
Despite being well into his final term as Indonesia’s president, Joko Widodo continues his coalition building, and retains the backing of political and business elites. And, while critics point to poor pandemic management and eroding democracy under his watch, Jokowi...
11.21.2021
Weighing up the legacy of Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte
For many, outgoing Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte will be remembered for his call for the extra-judicial killings of alleged drug dealers. He's also gone after his critics in the media, the judiciary, and the legislature. But despite his apparent excesses,...
11.01.2021
Intimate connections and exit strategies in a changing Japan
In Japan, the norms of human connection and physical intimacy are evolving, with arranged marriages on the wane, and defacto relationships and same-sex unions no longer rare. As the nature of unions changes, so is the practice of parting, with...
10.10.2021
The political battle over health policy in Indonesia
What's at stake and who are the stakeholders in steering health policy in Indonesia? While the right to health for all Indonesians has been embraced by progressive, populist and technocratic political forces in recent years, oligarchic elites with ties to...

What's Ear to Asia about?

Download our free app to listen on your phone

Ear to Asia episodes:

What China's ambitions in Pakistan mean for Baloch aspirations and identity

How will Indonesia fare under new president Prabowo Subianto?

As ethnic tensions rise, is there any real prospect of an inclusive Malaysia?

China wants to remake global governance – is the world ready for it?

Taiwan through the eyes of mainland Chinese writers and filmmakers

Taiwan through the eyes of mainland Chinese writers and filmmakers

How the future of Indonesia's peatlands will shape climate change

Managing caste discrimination in the workplace

China's Pacific push: Assessing the impact on island nations

Aid under fire: The dilemmas facing humanitarian actors in strife-torn Myanmar

Vietnam's balancing act with powers great and near

The legacy of the War on Terror for Muslims in the West

Minding Xi’s business: How commercial enterprises navigate China’s political landscape

How do Cambodia’s ever closer ties with China affect Southeast Asia?

India's long and winding road to affordable and accessible healthcare

What Erdoğan’s staying power means for the future of Türkiye

Gauging the health of democracy in the Philippines under Bongbong Marcos

Why Taiwan leads the rest of Asia in recognising LGBTQ+ rights

All at sea: Contending with maritime disputes in the South China Sea and beyond

How a Taliban-ruled Afghanistan affects security in the region

Policing political discourse in Malaysia

How Australia's future depends on better understanding Asia

Policy reversals and political impact in China

The future of Taiwan-China relations: Is the status quo the best option?

Singing songs of rebels, rice and romance in China’s lower Yangtze Delta

A changed Hong Kong under China’s national security law

Who wants to be Indonesia’s next president?

The rise and rise of halal consumerism in Indonesia

What a Taliban theocracy means for Afghanistan

How can Sri Lanka continue to hedge between India and China?

What will it take to end the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan?

The human cost of South Korea’s era of transnational adoption

Contrasting memories of Japanese colonisation in Korea and Taiwan

Mindful of power: Politics and nationalism in Buddhist-majority societies

How China finds a home for 1.4 billion people

Getting China-Australia relations out of a rut

Thailand's simmering political discontent

Ending the cycle of political disarray in Malaysia

India's two-way bet on the US-Russia divide

Islamic finance in a fintech future

Pachinko: Korean fates and fortunes in Japan

Anxiety and aspiration in Japan-China relations

Beyond Squid Game: Translating Asian film and TV for a hungry global market

Decision making and dissent in the Chinese Communist Party

Growing the Australia-India relationship

Was Donald Trump on the money about China?

Indonesia's evolving post-pandemic political landscape

Weighing up the legacy of Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte

Intimate connections and exit strategies in a changing Japan

The political battle over health policy in Indonesia