Southeast Asia

In the complex puzzle that is being displayed by the political situation in the sub-region of Southeast Asia (SEA), a totally non-routine event occurred on the 9th of May. On this day, the Philippines held general elections to elect the president and vice-president of the country, as well as all the 24 members of the upper house of parliament and local government authorities.

Earlier this year, despite immense fanfare, the US-ASEAN Summit held in Sunnylands, California ended in a fizzle rather than a bang. Little of substance emerged from and admittedly “symbolic” summit, and the US even went as far as criticizing guests as they departed – lecturing them regarding “democracy” and “human rights.”

Myanmar’s “de facto leader” Aung San Suu Kyi recently warned the United States to not refer to the Rohingya ethnic minority as “Rohingya,” in an attempt to deny them the dignity and human rights she and her party posed as renowned defenders of.

The so-called “Pivot to Asia” serving as the current underpinning of American foreign policy in Asia has been repeatedly exposed as a continuation of a decades-old cynical region-wide US gambit to encircle and contain China while establishing military, sociopolitical, and economic hegemony over China’s neighbors, particularly those in East and Southeast Asia.

The 32nd military American-Philippine drills “Balikatan” (“Shoulder to shoulder”) were held on April 5-15, 2016 in the Philippines. This time 4 thousand American and 5 thousand Philippine soldiers participated in the event.
A formal reason for holding the drills was preparation of the Philippine army for “struggle against radical-Islamist guerrillas and extremist groups challenging political and social regime.”

So-called Thai “academic” Thitinana Pongsudhirak of Chulalongkorn University in a Bangkok Post op-ed titled, “Thailand lags as Myanmar gains ground,” attempts to convince readers that Myanmar is an example for Southeast Asia to follow, while Thailand is in reverse.

Myanmar’s political transition is being hailed by Western politicians, special interests, and its media as “historic” and a new beginning for “democracy” in the Southeast Asian nation.

In March 2016, China got a chance to make its move in the complex geopolitical game played by the three leading Asia-Pacific Region powers (the USA, China and Japan) in the Southeast Asia. This move can be classified as a preventive measure taken to counter propagandistic attack that US and Japan are likely to launch during the Japan-hosted G7 Summit scheduled for the end of the coming May.

An opposition lawyer might seem like a relatively insignificant piece on the grand chessboard of geopolitics, but when the guns are silent, and proxy wars are not possible, these foot soldiers of foreign interests fight Wall Street and Washington’s battles on a daily basis.