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Thank you for subscribing to the Southeast Asia Insider, showcasing the best of Asia Times’ latest reporting, commentary and analysis from across Southeast Asia.
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Four years on from his initial arrest for multi-billion dollar corruption tied to the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) debacle, Malaysia’s former premier Najib Razak is finally behind bars after his final appeal was rejected in court. Nile Bowie also reported on another Najib-era scandal that has bubbled back to the surface in recent weeks involving undelivered naval ships.
Shawn W. Crispin, meanwhile, covered another major political development in the region, Thailand’s suspension of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-ocha amid a constitutional challenge over his term limit, while John McBeth published a thoughtful obituary on renowned photojournalist Tim Page, famed for his legendary documentation of the Vietnam War.
Ever prolific, McBeth also recently reported on Indonesia’s premature release of Islamic militant Umar Patek, one of those behind the 2002 Bali bombings; controversial moves by Joko Widodo’s administration to carve up the sprawling Papua province; and how Jakarta’s booming instant noodle industry is weathering headwinds from the Russia-Ukraine war.
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Najib-era ship scandal resurfaces to sink UMNO
Nile Bowie | August 25, 2022
Another day, another multibillion-dollar corruption scandal in Malaysia. 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), was one of the world’s largest ever financial heists, but now another Najib Razak-era scandal has gripped the country, this time involving its largest-ever defense procurement deal for six littoral combat ships that are years behind schedule.
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US sanctions reversing Russian gains in SE Asia
Richard Javad Heydarian | August 25, 2022
While Russia has partly managed to stave off the worst effects of the new wave of Western sanctions imposed in recent months over its Ukraine invasion, its relative economic resilience masks major strategic setbacks in places like Southeast Asia, where both new and traditional partners are reconsidering their once blossoming ties with Moscow.
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Suspended Prayut down but not yet out in Thailand
Shawn W. Crispin | August 24, 2022
Thailand’s topsy-turvy politics were thrown into new disarray today with a Constitutional Court ruling to suspend Prime Minister Prayut Chan-ocha from his official duties until it rules on an opposition petition that argues he has already served his legal eight-year term limit, a potential signal that establishment elites want a new top candidate at the next election.
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Death of a Vietnam War photographer legend
John McBeth | August 24, 2022
When the legendary 78-year-old photojournalist Tim Page died at his home in rural Australia today (August 24), his losing battle with pancreatic cancer came 53 years after he was given 20 minutes to live on a battlefield in Vietnam, the decade-long war that was to consume and define his colorful life. Page leaves behind an archive of 750,000 war-era images.
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Justice served: Najib is finally going to jail
Nile Bowie | August 23, 2022
In a historic unanimous ruling, Malaysia’s Federal Court on Tuesday upheld former prime minister Najib Razak’s guilty conviction and a 12-year jail sentence on charges related to a multi-billion dollar corruption scandal at state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), sealing the 69-year-old’s fate as the Kajang Prison Complex’s newest inmate.
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Bali bomber released after serving just half sentence
John McBeth | August 20, 2022
Javanese-Arab militant Umar Patek was one of the last of the 2002 Bali bombers to be apprehended, in far-off Pakistan. Now, to the anger of Australians, he stands to be released after serving only half his term and within weeks of the 20th anniversary of their greatest peacetime tragedy, a terror attack that killed 202 mostly Australian tourists.
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Carving up Indonesia’s Papua province
John McBeth | August 19, 2022
The Indonesian Government’s decision to carve up the sprawling province of Papua into four, a move that authorities have always insisted it is aimed at speeding up development, has been widely seen by its detractors as a strategic move to divide and conquer the rebellious indigenous population living mostly along the central mountain chain.
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Indonesia averts a Ukraine war noodle crisis
John McBeth | August 16, 2022
Despite the involvement of a domestic company in renewed grain shipments, Indonesia, the world’s fifth-largest wheat importer and a thriving manufacturer of instant noodles, has not been – nor is likely to be – the early beneficiary of any wheat from Ukraine or Russia following the reopening of Black Sea ports under a United Nations-brokered deal last month.
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Singapore’s woes sound a warning for wider Asia
William Pesek | August 13, 2022
To those betting on a strong Asian rebound from the Covid-19 era, Singapore has a sobering message: “Think again.” Asia’s weathervane is signaling fresh headwinds coming its way, from the US Federal Reserve’s accelerating interest-rate hike cycle to Europe’s slowing growth under the weight of high energy costs. More gusts are blowing from China.
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