Make or break for ASEAN to matter in Myanmar

Cambodia's chairmanship of regional bloc is not expected to bring a breakthrough in Myanmar's intensifying morass

After being excluded from last month’s Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit in an unprecedented rebuke of Myanmar’s recalcitrant military regime, junta chief Min Aung Hlaing was similarly conspicuously absent from two virtual ASEAN meetings with the European Union (EU) and China this week.

In what analysts viewed as the most severe sanction against any ASEAN member has ever been dealt by the regional bloc, ASEAN leaders barred the commander-in-chief, increasingly regarded as an international pariah, from attending an October 26-28 summit and called for a “non-political” Myanmar figure to participate instead. The junta refused.

Frustrated by Naypyidaw’s failure to honor pledges to allow an ASEAN special envoy access to deposed civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi and other elected lawmakers overthrown in February’s coup, the decision to bar the junta chief was seen as a last-ditch effort to salvage credibility lost to the months-long impasse.

Now, with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen taking the reins of ASEAN’s annually rotating chairmanship in 2022, debate is swirling over whether Phnom Penh has the mettle to display leadership by dealing sternly with Myanmar or instead defer to China, its closest political ally and economic benefactor, in its handling of the crisis.

Read the full story at Asia Times.

Nile Bowie is a journalist and correspondent with the Asia Times covering current affairs in Singapore and Malaysia. He can be reached at nilebowie@gmail.com.

Najib on the comeback trail with Melaka poll sweep

Corruption-tainted ex-prime minister leads UMNO to thumping state election win that could bolster his bid to retake the premiership

To those who celebrated the downfall of Malaysia’s graft-tainted and since criminally-convicted former premier Najib Razak at 2018’s watershed election, heralded at the time as a democratic new beginning, the results of the bellwether state election in Melaka on November 20 are sobering.

The ex-prime minister, despite being virtually synonymous with the globe-spanning multi-billion dollar the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) scandal, was the political face of the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition’s resounding victory over the weekend, clinching a supermajority in the state legislature by capturing 21 of 28 seats.

Analysts see the decisive win for Najib’s United Malays National Organization (UMNO), the lynchpin of the BN coalition, as a sign that the historic ruling party could go on to once again dominate national politics after the upcoming general election, which is not due until 2023 but is widely expected to be held in the latter half of next year or even earlier.

The results are also being seen as proof that Najib, who governed Malaysia from 2009 to 2018, has shaken off the taint of graft he has always adamantly denied and retained his popularity with voters even after being sentenced to 12 years in prison for corruption and other charges last year, a verdict he has appealed while mounting a political comeback.

Read the full story at Asia Times.

Nile Bowie is a journalist and correspondent with the Asia Times covering current affairs in Singapore and Malaysia. He can be reached at nilebowie@gmail.com.

Spotlight on Singapore’s propensity to kill

Mentally disabled Malaysian on Singapore's death row for drug trafficking sparks a global outcry

Activists, lawyers and rights groups are calling on authorities in Singapore to halt plans to impose the death penalty on 33-year-old Nagaenthran Dharmalingam, a mentally impaired Malaysian man convicted of drug trafficking, after a court stayed his imminent execution until further notice after he tested positive for Covid-19.

The announcement on Tuesday (November 9) came less than 24 hours before Nagaenthran was due to be executed by hanging at Singapore’s Changi Prison and gave relatives and advocates a glimmer of hope that his life will be spared. The Court of Appeal has yet to grant a prohibitory order against Nagaenthran’s execution sought by his lawyers.

Prominent rights lawyer M Ravi mounted an eleventh-hour judicial appeal before the High Court on Monday, arguing that executing a “mentally disabled person” would violate Singapore’s constitution and its international obligations as a signatory to a United Nations-sanctioned treaty protecting the rights of disabled persons.

The court dismissed the plaintiff’s argument but granted a temporary stay of execution to allow for an appeal of that decision. “We have got to use logic, common sense and humanity,” said judge Andrew Phang as he stayed the execution prior to the court’s adjournment. It is still unclear whether his death sentence will ultimately be commuted.

Read the full story at Asia Times.

Nile Bowie is a journalist and correspondent with the Asia Times covering current affairs in Singapore and Malaysia. He can be reached at nilebowie@gmail.com.

Ismail on a spending spree to revive Malaysia

New prime minister advances nation's richest ever budget with an eye on post-Covid recovery and possible early elections

After nearly two years under Covid-19 movement restrictions that have stifled the economy and shuttered thousands of small businesses, Malaysian Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s government is betting that the largest budget in the country’s history will ease unemployment and spur a robust post-pandemic recovery.

The ambitious 332.1 billion ringgit (US$80.2 billion) spending plan is Ismail’s first since taking the reins as the nation’s ninth prime minister in August. The 2022 budget includes increased developmental spending, support for businesses, subsidies and cash aid, and a dedicated fund for combating Covid-19 and boosting public health care capacity.

Having signed an unprecedented political ceasefire with the opposition shortly after taking power, Ismail’s budget will likely win approval when Parliament votes on the plan in mid-November, analysts say. Ismail’s predecessor, Muhyiddin Yassin, only narrowly passed the 2021 budget amid speculation at the time that his government would fall.

The expansionary spending plan and its various support measures for low-income earners set the stage for an early general election that analysts suggest could be called as early as the middle of next year. Malaysia’s next polls must be held by 2023.

Read the full story at Asia Times.

Nile Bowie is a journalist and correspondent with the Asia Times covering current affairs in Singapore and Malaysia. He can be reached at nilebowie@gmail.com.