Turning Points and Transitions

“Southeast Asian Affairs has for decades been an indispensable reference for those concerned with political and economic developments across this vibrant and highly diverse region. Each year, leading experts on the region and its constituent states have contributed detailed assessments of individual countries and region-wide themes which collectively provide an important and reliable record of Southeast Asia¹s often dramatic evolution since the early 1970s. Some of the most significant and interesting of these chapters have been carefully selected and brought together in this volume, which will be a valuable resource for students of the region.” —Dr Tim Huxley, Executive Director, The International Institute for Strategic Studies-Asia, Singapore

“At a time when Southeast Asia is under-going rapid changes, this compilation of essays is a must-read for all those who seek to understand ASEAN and its member states. Southeast Asia is more than ASEAN and as an inter-state organization that works by consensus, ASEAN can do no more than what its members allow it to do.” —Bilahari Kausikan, Chairman Middle East Institute, National University of Singapore and former Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Singapore

“For the last fifty years, ISEAS has been the ‘go to’ place for students and scholars from all over the world seeking to develop a deeper knowledge of Southeast Asia. Since it first appeared in 1974, Southeast Asian Affairs has provided thoughtful and timely analysis of critical developments in the region annually. This carefully chosen collection of some of these essays authored over the years brilliantly maps out the contours of change and transformation that have shaped Southeast Asia’s recent history, and captures the dynamism of this fascinating region.” —Joseph Chinyong Liow, Dean, College of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences and Dean, S.Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University

“The book Turning Points and Transitions, commemorating the 50th anniversary of the founding of ISEAS, is like a literary time machine. It takes us back through contemporary expert commentary and analysis to the major forces and events that shaped the political and economic evolution of the Southeast Asia region. A new generation of scholars has replaced typewriters with computers, but many of the roots of the issues and conflicts that ISEAS will be dealing with in the future are to be found in the past that is so ably documented in this volume.” —Donald E. Weatherbee, Donald S. Russell Distinguished Professor Emeritus at the University of South Carolina