International and Area Studies Commons^™

Quality Immigration Will Remain Singapore’S Lifeblood, Tan K. B. Eugene

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

Seemingly innocuous individual decisions and life events, such as marriage, starting a family and migrating, have significant public-policy implications. This is reflected in the changing demographics of a country, which can affect the agility with which the country responds to the constantly evolving external environment.

Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono [Indonesia, President], Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono

Digital Narratives of Asia

The sixth President of Indonesia, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, tells DNA about how he handled the three economic crises and two political challenges during his two-term presidency. He stresses the importance of maintaining good personal relationships with international leaders, especially among ASEAN countries, highlighting three success factors and his hope for ASEAN.

George Yeo [Singapore, Minister Of Foreign Affairs], George Yeo

Digital Narratives of Asia

George Yeo, former Minister of Foreign Affairs who became a business leader, speaks to DNA about his philosophical Taoist worldview, the impact of the rise of China, and the challenges facing ASEAN at its 50th year. He talks on how the soft power of ASEAN's policy of non-interference has yield some successes.

Incumbency Advantage And Candidate Characteristics In Open-List Proportional Representation Systems: Evidence From Indonesia, Sebastian Carl Dettman, Thomas B. Pepinsky, Jan H. Pierskalla

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

We use evidence from Indonesia's April 2014 legislative elections to study the relationship between incumbency, list position, candidate characteristics, and electoral success in open-list PR systems. Contrary to a recent literature identifying an incumbency disadvantage in other large developing democracies, we identify a consistent personal incumbency advantage in Indonesia. However, we argue that this advantage is mediated by party choices over how incumbents and newcomers are ranked on party lists, a key heuristic for voters in low-information electoral environments such as Indonesia.

The Case Against Physician-Assisted Suicide And Voluntary Active Euthanasia: A Jurisprudential Consideration, Seow Hon Tan

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

Twenty years after the Advance Medical DirectiveAct came into force in Singapore, the issue of the legalisation ofphysician-assisted suicide and voluntary active euthanasia remains live. Thisarticle examines the case for legalisation, replying to the points raised inthe article by Toh Puay San and Stanley Yeo, “Decriminalisingphysician-assisted suicide in Singapore” (2010) 22 SAcLJ 379–412, which hadincluded draft legislation in its proposal. It critically discusses thetheoretical underpinnings of such legalisation and argues that the contentionof the authors that the benefits of allowing terminally-ill patients the optionof physician-assisted suicide far outweigh the harms is not supported. Afortiori, voluntary active euthanasia should not be …

China’S Evolving Approach To Environmental And Labour Provisions In Regional Trade Agreements, Henry S. Gao

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

In this article, the author reviews China’s experience with environmental and labour provisions by looking at its regional trade agreements, especially in terms of the evolution of the Chinese position. It concludes with a projection of how China’s approaches to such provisions might further develop in the future.

Smu Marks Opening Of New Academic Year With $5 Million Gift From Mr Kuok Khoon Ean, Singapore Management University

SMU Press Releases and News

Consistent with Singapore Management University (SMU)’s penchant for change, the University has re-invented the previous format of holding a Convocation ceremony to welcome its freshmen at the start of each academic year. This year, SMU celebrated the opening of its new Academic Year 2017-18 with multiple events throughout the day on SMU campus for freshmen, senior and graduate students, as well as international exchange students.

Smu's Gift Of A Song To Commemorate 50 Years Of National Service, Singapore Management University

SMU Press Releases and News

The Singapore Management University (SMU) is proud to commission an original song entitled – “I Get You” – as a tribute to commemorate 50 years of National Service (NS50) and to acknowledge the contributions of all in Singapore who have served or continue to serve NS.

Improving Connectivity Between Asean's Legal Systems To Address Commercial Issues, Locknie Hsu, Pearlie M. C. Koh, Man Yip

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

This interim report on legal barriers to doing business in ASEAN coincides with the 50th Anniversary of ASEAN’s founding and the first year of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC). The team is privileged to be supported by, among others, the Canada-ASEAN Business Council (CABC), given that it is also the 40th anniversary of dialogue relations between Canada and ASEAN.

Despite occasional misgivings about the “ASEAN Way”, ASEAN economic integration has come a very long way. The number of member States has grown over the 50 years since ASEAN’s founding, and the joint efforts among these States driving economic growth and …

50 Years On, S’Pore’S National Service Is Now A Shared Legacy, Tan K. B. Eugene

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

SMU Associate Professor of Law Eugene Tan contributed an opinion piece which argued that National Service (NS) provides Singapore with a security umbrella under which economic and commercial ambitions and aspirations can be purposefully pursued. Beyond its primary role as a defence force, NS has immense potential to shape society by nurturing national and civic consciousness, critical for Singapore’s multiracial society. “Given the extensive commitment, efforts continue to be made to strengthen the tripartite relationship between the Ministry of Defence and SAF [Singapore Armed Forces], employers and NSmen [men engaged in National Service]. They include recognising supportive employers and businesses, …

Does Financial Education Enhance Financial Preparedness? Evidence From A Natural Experiment In Singapore, Rashmi Barua, Seng Kee Benedict Koh, Olivia S. Mitchell

Research Collection Lee Kong Chian School Of Business

We evaluate how financial education provided to college students influenced their financial knowledge and planning in a quasi-experimental setting where we control for student motivation to enroll in the course. Using a difference-in-difference strategy, we show that financial education led to an increase in financial knowledge and planning. Specifically, we find that financial education improved students’ financial knowledge score by 11%, and financial planning score by 16%. No statistically significant effects are detected for student levels of financial prudence, discipline, or outcomes related to credit card usage.

Aging In Myanmar, John Knodel, Bussarawan Teerawichitchainan

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

This spotlight provides an overview of thesituation of older persons in Myanmar, an under-studied country ofover-50-million population. Myanmar is of particular interest to researchersand policy makers, given its overall level of poverty and modestly rapidpopulation aging. Research on older persons, while increasing in recent years,remains sparse. Empirical evidence indicates that Myanmar older persons are inrelatively poorer health compared to those in neighboring countries. Many livein abject poverty and depend on their families for material support.Coresidence is very common and facilitates reciprocal exchanges acrossgenerations. Looking ahead, Myanmar confronts important challenges includingdemographic shifts that reduce availability of family support for older personsand …

The History Problem: The Politics Of War Commemoration In East Asia, Hiro Saito

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

This essay summarizes my argumentin The History Problem: The Politics of WarCommemoration in East Asia. The historyproblem is essentially a relational phenomenonthat arises when nations promote self-servingversions of the past by focusing on whathappened to their own citizens with littleregard for foreign others. East Asia, however,has recently also witnessed the emergence of acosmopolitan form of commemoration takinghumanity, rather than nationality, as itsprimary frame of reference. Whencosmopolitan commemoration is practiced as acollective endeavor by both perpetrators andvictims, a resolution of the history problem willfinally become possible.

Myanmar’S Desperate Need To Escape Clutches Of Fear, Tan K. B. Eugene

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

SMU Associate Professor of Law Eugene Tan opined in a commentary that the recent escalation of the ethnic conflict in Myanmar’s Rakhine State drives home the hard truth that much remains unchanged despite the country’s tentative transition to a democracy. The latest surge in ethno-violence seems timed to coincide with the release of a report last week by an advisory commission led by former United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan.Associate Prof Tan noted that the spectre of even more conflict, violence and division will only derail Myanmar’s democratic transition and integration into the international community, to its collective peril. It could …

Editor's Introduction, Marc Roscoe Loustau

Journal of Global Catholicism

Introduction to African Catholicism: Contemporary Issues: Volume: 1, Issue 2 of the Journal of Global Catholicism

Reappropriating Public Space In Nanchang, China: A Study Of Informal Street Vendors, Bryan C. Winter

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Since China's shift to market socialism, many marginalized by this process work as informal street vendors where they reappropriate public space in order to survive―a practice at odds with urban authorities' modernizing agenda. In relation to these competing logics concerning public space's use value versus its exchange value, this dissertation examines the practices, experiences, and agency of informal street vendors working in Sanjingwuwei, an ordinary, yet rapidly gentrifying, neighborhood of Nanchang, capital and largest city of southeastern China's Jiangxi Province. After describing the growth of an informal economy in modern China and providing a history of street vending, I describe …

What Does Diversity Mean To Chinese Employees?, Singapore Management University

Perspectives@SMU

In Western technology industry, diversity is seen as a way to promote innovation. What does diversity mean to Chinese companies and how diversified are they?

Smu Libraries 2016 Annual Report, Smu Libraries

SMU Corporate Reports

In 2016, SMU had one library, Li Ka Shing Library. From January 2017, the new Kwa Geok Choo Law Library opened its doors to the SMU community. The new Kwa Geok Choo Law Library has been in the making for over five years, designed to provide services to the entire SMU community, with focus on law collections. The unique and iconic dome of Kwa Geok Choo Law Library has become a magnet for photographers visiting Fort Canning Park.

Ma In International Education - Low-Residency Singapore Program, Joyce Ting (Chen)

Capstone Collection

The Master’s of Arts (MA) in International Education (IE) Low-Residency Singapore Program is a new graduate program designed for SIT Graduate Institute. It is created to value-add to the current program offerings of SIT Graduate Institute. The MA in IE Low-Residency Singapore Program is a two year long program, and is delivered via a unique combination of online coursework and low-residency periods in Singapore. The program is designed to allow current working professionals to keep their current job in the field of International Education while pursuing a higher degree. Participants will study in Singapore for two weeks in the first …

A Morphology Of Liberalism, Development And Trusteeship: Some Implications For South East Asia, Trevor Parfitt

Asian Review

This paper will apply Freeden's morphological approach to the analysis of liberalism and development to explore the centrality of trusteeship (as defi ned by Cowen and Shenton) in both modes of thought. There is an intellectual kinship between development as an idea and liberalism in that both emerged from a Western Enlightenment context that emphasized progress and the prospects for human development through the growing influence of rationalism and the application of scientific method to human endeavor. Both development thinking and liberalism bear the imprint of these influences, one of them being that of trusteeship. The morphological approach will be …

Catalyst Asia Issue 05, Institute For Societal Leadership

Catalyst Asia

STORIES FROM THE GROUND

Grow A Forest In Your Mind

The Volunteer Bank A Labour of Love

The Art of Helping Others

It Takes A Village

Fit For Life

The People's Doctor Planting Big Trees in Everybody's Hearts

Organic Rice Revolution

Lighting Up Lives

INSIGHTS FROM THE INSIDE

A Lifesaving Journey

A Pen For The Blind

Battling the Transport System

The Mentor and Inspirer of Social Change

Caring For Migrants

Road Safety Advocates

Consumer Protection in the Digital Age

The Rescue Squad

The Hero and Sidekick

A Hybrid Profile of Social Entrepreneurship

Perception And Reality: Measuring Digital Skills In Singapore, Swapna Gottipati

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

ICDL Asia carried out a digital literacy study in Singapore, looking at an essential skill for everyday life. The goal of the study was to discover the digital skills gaps among young people in Singapore. Singapore is considered to be a digitally advanced country where young people have access to the latest technology and gadgets. At the same time, it is imperative for young people to possess relevant digital skills for a future-ready and healthy economy. The studies consisted of two key parts: self-assessment and practical assessment of digital skills. Our findings show that, though the digital native fallacy exists …

The Memorialization Of Historical Memories In East Asia, Bo Ram Yi

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

East Asia is embroiled in one of the most titillating historical memory wars in present-day politics. A highly complex and intricate matter, conflict over history is the underpinning strain behind political and social relations between China, South Korea and Japan. Mired by the past, tension often rises from conflict over the Yasakuni Shrine visits, comfort women and the textbook matter.

This dissertation will examine how China, South Korea and Japan maintain their historical memory narratives. Through a case study method, each state is analyzed through five factors: commemoration, rhetoric, education, compensation and punishment.

Overall, China and South Korea have maintained …

China’S Agrarian Transition: Peasants, Property, And Politics, By René Trappel, Qian Forrest Zhang

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Rene Trappel’s book is an ambitious attempt to address some of the key issues in thecomplex process of agrarian transition unfolding in China today. Trappel favors the“commodification of farmland” – the transfer of the land rights of small-scale farmers,especially to large-scale agribusiness producers – as a necessary condition for agrariantransition. He selects this as the dependent variable for his investigation and equates thiswith ‘agrarian transition’. He collected information from four counties (one each in Sichuanand Shandong and two in Guizhou) through three field trips between 2008 and 2010.

Introduction: Ideological Aspects Of Development, Empire And Inter/Nation: Selected Cases From Southeast Asia, Michael K. Connors

Asian Review

No abstract provided.

Urban Resilience And The Neo-Liberal Subject Of Climate Change In Thailand, Robert A. Farnan

Asian Review

This paper analyses the ideology of resilience, as it is manifested in Thailand, through the relationship between urban climate change security and the neo-liberal subject. The neo-liberal project of resilience that is commonly advocated by ideologues and policy makers in response to catastrophic events, such as floods, has generated considerable debate in architectural and urban design circles but has largely failed to consider the ontology of vulnerability that underwrites neo-liberal notions of political responsibility and its attendant practices of (in)security. Although the literature in political ecology has fruitfully interrogated urban climate change resilience from the point of view of disaster …

The Bandung Ideology: Anti-Colonial Internationalism And Indonesia's Foreign Policy (1945-1965), Ahmad Rizky Mardhatillah Umar

Asian Review

In this paper, I introduce the concept of "anti-colonial internationalism" as the ideological source of Indonesia's foreign policy between 1945 and 1965. This concept has been neglected by international relations scholars in favor of the rival idea of "liberal internationalism." I argue that anti-colonial internationalism in Indonesia's foreign policy has been rooted in three aspects, namely 1) decolonial thought that was developed by Indonesian anti-colonial intellectuals in early 20th century, 2) the political thoughts of nationalist leaders and debates during the state formation process in 1945, and 3) the memory of the diplomatic struggle during the revolutionary era (1945-1955). The …

Awkwardly Included: Portugal And Indonesia's Politics Of Multi-Culturalism In East Timor, 1942 To The Early 1990s, Kisho Tsuchiya

Asian Review

This article explores the history of East Timor from 1942 to the early 1990s, examining how ideological tolerance of racial and cultural diversity functioned as a state policy under Portuguese and Indonesian regimes to limit the appeal of separatist movements. The Portuguese policy shift towards multi-racialism in the middle of the 20th century reflected their experiences of Timorese hostility during the Pacific War and the rise of international anticolonialism in the post-war period. Portuguese multi-racialism (1951-74) justifi ed their "European" presence in Asia and Africa, and it resulted in the promotion of Portuguese citizenship among the Timorese. Th e Indonesian …

The Unbound Postcolonial Leviathan, Pranoto Iskandar

Asian Review

This paper discusses the overlooked dimension of the aboriginal discourse that serves as the genesis of Indonesia as a postcolonial state. More pointedly, it argues that the nationalist's appropriation of European romanticism should be seen as the last attempt of the local aristocracy to preserve their hegemony in the postcolonial order; post-coloniality does not necessarily mean positivity. In fact, in Indonesia's case, the repeated failure to embed liberal values is arguably a result of the half-hearted commitment to enlightenment values of the early nationalist intellectuals. Some of the early nationalist fi gures blatantly imbued the 1945 Constitution with pre-colonial feudalism. …

Is Islamofascism Even A Thing? The Case Of The Indonesian Islamic Defenders' Front (Fpi), Stephen Miller

Asian Review

Although a term with roots going back to 1933, "Islamofascism" did not gain wide-spread use until the beginning of the 21st century. In the West the term has often been associated with conservative and far right-wing politics, giving it Islamophobic overtones. However, in Indonesia and other Muslim majority countries at times it can emerge in public discussion and debates as a rhetorical weapon of liberal intellectuals when discussing conservative and far right-wing "Islamist" organizations—although in Indonesia the more common term is "religious fascist." This paper examines theories of fascism built up in "Fascist Studies" (the so-called "New Consensus"), as well …