Is the Trial of 'Duch' a Catalyst for Change in Cambodia's Courts? 

At his trial under an international hybrid tribunal, the notorious member of the Khmer Rouge regime Kaing Guek Eav, known as quot;Duch,quot; admitted to being responsible for the deaths of more than 12,000 people between 1975 and 1979. This admission and expected conviction (the only real question left is the level of punishment) signify a symbolic victory for the Cambodian people. It is important for Cambodia's healing that the people know their history and believe that there can be justice....

The U.S.-ROK Alliance and China: Beyond the Sinking of the Cheonan 

The sinking of the South Korean navy vessel Cheonan on March 26, 2010 is rapidly changing the security landscape on the Korean peninsula. While Pyongyang continues to deny its involvement, an official announcement of the investigation's results on May 20 clearly points the finger at North Korea. One of the most important security implications from this incident is that it has forced South Koreans to think hard about how China is likely to react to a North Korea contingency, such as a succession...

Impulse Journal 2010: Recollections, Reflections, and Remembrance 

The year 2010 marks the 50th anniversary of the East-West Center (EWC). This issue is a tribute to all the EWC visionaries, to those who laid the foundations and paths, and to those who traveled them. Many carried the mission to completion and even continued the journey beyond the given paths in multifarious ways of quot;building an Asia Pacific community.quot; Thus, this year's Impulse Journal theme, quot;Recollections, Reflections, and Remembrance,quot; was chosen to echo and celebrate the golden...

Engaging Civil Society: Emerging Trends in Democratic Governance 

The rapid pace of globalization has led to the increasing interdependence of member states of the United Nations to achieve sustainable development objectives, including the eradication of extreme poverty, environmental protection, access to basic services and livelihoods, and the promotion of economic growth and opportunities. Policymakers, scholars and development practitioners recognize the centrality of effective governance at the local, national and global levels to promote sustainable development....

Building Trust in Government: Innovations in Governance Reform in Asia 

The ability of governments and the global community to achieve the Millennium Development Goals, ensure security and promote adherence to basic standards of human rights depends on people's trust in their governments. However, public trust in government and political institutions has been declining in both developing and developed countries in the new millennium. One of the challenges in promoting trust in government is to engage citizens, especially marginalized groups and the poor, into the policy...

International Environmental Agreements: Politics, Law and Economics--Special Issue: Services, the Environment and NAFTA 

Environmental assessments of trade agreements remain in its infancy, and demonstrate that trade in itself will not green our economies. To address services and the environmental concerns, the two central topics in recent rounds of international trade negotiations, this special issue has undertaken in-depth analysis of the following key services and environmental issues under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA): Pollution and International Trade in Services NAFTA, Tourism and Environment...

Very Low Fertility in Asia: Is There a Problem? Can It Be Solved? 

Fifty years ago, women in Asia were having, on average, more than five children each, and there was widespread fear of a quot;population explosionquot; in the region. Then birth rates began to fall--in several countries more steeply than anyone had anticipated. This unexpected trend has now raised concerns about the social and economic impact of extremely low fertility. Today, four of Asia's most prosperous economies--Japan, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan--have among the lowest birth rates...

Noynoy Aquino: A Philippine Nixon? 

The election of Benigno quot;Noynoyquot; Aquino III as president of the Philippines provides the Aquino family one more opportunity to fulfill its promise to the Filipino people. Noynoy's martyred father and late mother instilled hope in the common Filipino that the elite's rapacious hold over government policies and the nation's wealth could be broken. Marcos' assassination of Ninoy and Cory's inability to overcome her family and class background proved a national disappointment. Now Noynoy...

Confronting Environmental Treaty Implementation Challenges in the Pacific Islands 

Popular literature and the entertainment industry commonly portray the Pacific Islands as a homogeneous, tropical, and timeless Eden where life is leisurely and free from care and the problems of the twenty-first century. The region's tourist industry itself does its utmost to promote that very image and first-time visitors to Hawaii today are often unprepared to discover that Honolulu, for example, is a modern metropolis with high-rise buildings and freeways. Located in the world's largest...

The 2010 U.S. QDR and Its Impact on China 

The 2010 U.S. Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) has particular bearing on China, specifically parts concerning Afghanistan/counterterrorism, anti-access capabilities, and military transparency. Shen Dingli discusses the 2010 U.S. QDR and its impact on China. amp;nbsp; Additional titles in the Asia Pacific Bulletin series

U.S.-India Relations Get a Boost 

Now that the U.S.-India Strategic Dialogue has had its inaugural meeting, how does the state of the relationship between the world's largest two democracies look? Not very different from the uncertain shape it took before the dialogue, say skeptics. Not bad at all, say optimists, the dialogue yielded positive results. Gautam Adhikari discusses the outcome of the first U.S.-India Strategic Dialogue,amp;nbsp;with a focus on Indian perceptions of the bilateral dialogue.

Cooperation and Pragmatism: Malaysian Foreign Policy under Najib 

At an April 15, 2010, presentation in Washington, Malaysia's Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak remarked that his country's relationship with the United States is approaching a quot;new beginning.quot; If his recent bilateral meeting with President Obama on the sidelines of the April 2010 Nuclear Security Summit is any indication, he may be right. The meeting was significant in that it demonstrated the potential emergence of a deeper, more cooperative relationship between the United...

Shaping the G20 Agenda in Asia: The 2010 Seoul Summit 

The latest issue of East-West Dialogue features Il SaKong, Chairman of the Presidential Committee for the G20 Summit, Republic of Korea. In his article, Looking Toward the 2010 Seoul G20 Summit, he discusses emerging issues on the agenda for the November 2010 Summit in Seoul and efforts to build the G20 into an effective, durable institution. Responses to SaKong's article are provided by Amar Bhattacharya, Director of the G24 Secretariat (Enhancing the G20's Inclusion and Outreach); Mahani...

Localising Power in Post-Authoritarian Indonesia: A Southeast Asia Perspective 

Localising Power in Post-Authoritarian Indonesia: A Southeast Asia Perspective is the sixteenth title in the East-West Center book series, Contemporary Issues in Asia and the Pacific, published by Stanford University Press. This book is about how the design of institutional change results in unintended consequences. Many post-authoritarian societies have adopted decentralization--effectively localizing power--as part and parcel of democratization, but also in their efforts to entrench...

Separate but Loyal: Ethnicity and Nationalism in China 

Beijing has faced the challenge of granting autonomy to ethnic minorities but maintaining their loyalty to the Chinese state. This paper tackles complex issues of ethnic identity and nationalism among the most politically sensitive groups in China: the Uyghurs, Tibetans, Mongols, Huis, and Kazaks. Specifically, it draws on original research conducted by the authors, the 2006amp;#8211;2007 Chinese Ethnicity Surveys, to explore the extent to which ethnic minorities are sinicized and the meaning...

Realizing the ASEAN Economic Community: A Comprehensive Assessment 

The ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) constitutes the most ambitious program of economic cooperation in the developing world. Its goal is to create no less than a free flow of goods, services, foreign direct investment, and skilled labor, as well as a freer flow of capital, throughout the region. Implementing this agenda will be technically and politically difficult. Hence, understanding the potential economic quot;payoffquot; is of the essence. The goal of this book is to assess empirically the...

Food: A Celebration 

It has been said that among the best places in the world for a quot;foodiequot; are the East-West Center residence hall kitchens, where the international students cook, because you can experience the aromas and flavors of foods from all over the world all at the same time. Current students at the Center have produced a cookbook that captures the diversity of the student body and of the larger Center community, which comes from throughout the United States, the countries of Asia and the...

The East-West Center Legacy 

amp;nbsp; The PDF version of the book contains links to the Center's Oral History Project. The East-West Center has published The East-West Center Legacy in celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of its establishment by the U.S. Congress with the mandate to promote understanding and relations between the people of the United States and those of the nations of Asia and the Pacific through quot;cooperative study, training, and research.quot; (click on outer corner of page...

East-West Center 50th Anniversary Commemorative 2-Volume Set 

The East-West Center has produced two books in commemoration of its 50th anniversary. Proceeds support the Student Scholarship Fund of the EWC Foundation; the 2-volume set is available for a suggested donation of $10. The East-West Center Legacy and East-West Center: Fifty Years, Fifty Stories are also available individually for a suggested donation of $6. (click on outer corner of page or use keyboard arrows to turn pages) (click on outer corner of page or use keyboard arrows to turn pages)The...

East-West Center: Fifty Years, Fifty Stories 

Celebrating 50 years with 50 stories of alumni representative of a vast network that stretches beyond the Asia Pacific region and their countries of origin. Women and men of high promise, East-West Center alumni have gone on to become presidents and prime ministers, leading educators and business executives, senior journalists and social advocates. Many are trailblazers influencing change at the grassroots, local, national, regional, and international levels. They have earned recognition for pioneering...