Carnival of Chaos
Published on Nov 16, 2024 by Luke Hunt
Foreign relations was never a strong point for Donald Trump and his “America first” policy, and his return to the White House signals a return of China policy to center stage, forcing smaller countries to play a wily game if they are to win his attention.That means a further loss of relevance for multilateralism and trade blocs like the Association of Southeast Asian Nations(ASEAN), with Trump’s first two years in office expected to follow his first term, which was characterized as a “Carnival of Chaos” with decisions enforced in an ad hoc manner by presidential decree.As Keith Richburg, a long-standing East Asian correspondent for The Washington Post, puts it, Trump’s transactional style of negotiating, coupled with a dislike of multilateralism....
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Witness to Genocide
Published on Nov 12, 2024 by Luke Hunt
Journalists and filmmakers Am and Steve Sandford have covered Southeast Asia as a couple for the last 30 years and have been intimately involved with the Rohingya in Myanmar since 2009, when members of the Muslim minority group began fleeing their homes.That culminated in a mass exodus amid an alleged genocide of the Rohingya in 2017, when more than 700,000 fled into Bangladesh. The Rohingya’s plight has gone from bad to worse amid the civil war in Myanmar following the coup d’etat in early 2021.The Sandfords have released a book – “Witness to Genocide, Chasing the Rohingya in Southeast Asia” – that details their experiences in gathering evidence. The well-written chronicle leaves readers with no doubt about the tragedies inflicted....
Ray Leos: 1956-2024
Published on Nov 2, 2024 by Luke Hunt
Vale Ray Leos, an American academic who probably did more for higher education in Cambodia than anyone else. He died Nov.1, 2024.Ray was a good friend, a mentor who steered me into an academic career at Pannasastra University and was primarily responsible for my last book, The Punji Trap, getting published. For more than two decades, Ray was totally dedicated to his students and that so many of them have gone onto successful careers in international relations, journalism, film making and advertising -- or simply made a better life -- is a testament to his extraordinary talent, patience and ability. He was no-nonsense and did not suffer fools gladly but he was kind-hearted. The calibre of this man can not be replaced.....
Asian Logistics
Published on Oct 29, 2024 by Luke Hunt
Why do Southeast Asian farmers get paid so little? How can people respond to the immediate impact of climate change? What must governments in ASEAN do if they’re serious about cross-border trade? Why is Cambodia building a 180-kilometer canal at a cost of $1.7 billion?Chris Catto-Smith is a logistics specialist, a career which began with the Royal Australian Air Force in the 1970s. He moved to the private sector and then took his experience to Southeast Asia and the Pacific Islands encouraging disadvantaged communities to develop value chains and new routes to markets.He spoke with The Diplomat’s Luke Hunt in Melbourne, where he explained the issues confronting farmers and fisherfolk who are struggling to make ends meet and discussed what....
Nic Dunlop Photography
Published on Aug 31, 2024 by Luke Hunt
Nic Dunlop ranks among the best and most prominent photographers in Southeast Asia and he was the first journalist to track down and interview the former Khmer Rouge commandant from the S-21 extermination camp that operated in Cambodia under Pol Pot.Dunlop believes in the language of photography but like many of his peers, the Irishman is increasingly annoyed by the state of press photography and where it is going.He recently penned an article for Light Rocket in which he sharply criticized the judging and the standards of many entrants at this year’s World Press Photo awards.The Diplomat’s Luke Hunt spoke with Dunlop from his home in Bangkok about deteriorating industry standards and what exactly ‘the press’ means anymore. He also....
Sean Turnell on Myanmar
Published on Aug 30, 2024 by Luke Hunt
Australian economist Sean Turnell has released his latest book “Best Laid Plans,” detailing his efforts to lift Myanmar out of deep poverty as a policy advisor to Aung San Suu Kyi before she was ousted by a military coup in early 2021, when both of them were jailed.He spent 650 days behind bars as Myanmar was tipped into civil war by a military that ended an all-too-brief experiment with democracy and has since proven itself as ill-prepared on the battlefield as it is on the economic front with the nation’s finances in tatters.Turnell spoke with The Diplomat’s Luke Hunt about his new book and the technocrats who lined up and prepared the country for trade and investment with the outside....
Ei Ei Love
Published on Aug 18, 2024 by Luke Hunt
Ei Ei is a Burmese translator, fixer and reporter who covers the civil war in Myanmar from Mae Sot on the Thai border. She has worked with Bomborra since early 2024, among other media outlets including the BBC. Ei Ei also delivers humanitarian assistance across the border for people and children in need..
Mae Sot Book Dispensary
Studio Bomborra is sponsoring the Mae Sot Book Dispensary to deliver books written in English, Burmese and Karen for children under eight years of age across the border from Thailand to a school in Myanmar. Key people involved in this are Ei Ei Love, David Armstrong and Luke Hunt. Please do not send money. If, however, you have old, unwanted books at home that are suitable for young children and you're prepared to send them via sea mail, then please post to the following address:Mae Sot Book Dispensary: 61/21 Rat Uthit Road, Mae Sot Subdistrict, Mae Sot District, Tak Province, 63110, ThailandJust a point out, not all postal services provide seamail to Southeast Asia and airmail can be expensive, so....
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Trafficked
Published on Jul 27, 2024 by Luke Hunt
Judah Tana has spent the last two decades in humanitarian work along the Thailand-Myanmar border where criminal syndicates have revolutionized human trafficking and 21st century slavery into an industry with world-wide turnover in the trillions of dollars. He recorded this podcast with Luke Hunt from Beyond the Mekong. Click here to listen..
Washington's View of Myanmar
Michael Martin is an adjunct fellow with the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) . He's also a Washington insider with a firm focus on Myanmar and a civil war that erupted after the military ousted an elected government in early 2021. He spoke with Luke Hunt from Beyond the Mekong. Click here to listen..
Vicheka Kol
Vicheka Kol is a Cambodian filmmaker who has built-up an impressive resume working with her compatriot Rithy Panh and Australian documentary maker David Brown. She has produced for Voice of America and Minnow Films in the UK with Studio Bomborra and conducts her own work shops at Meta House in Phnom Penh..
Condoms & Cabbages
Published on Jul 26, 2024 by Luke Hunt
Mechai Viravaidya has spent the last 50-years at the helm of Thailand's family planning policies and is credited with saving millions of lives through his safe sex campaigns as the HIV-AIDS virus took hold in 1981. Mechai spoke with Luke Hunt from Beyond the Mekong. Click here to listen..
