In Asia: Weekly Insight and Features from Asia

As the May 10 national election approaches in the Philippines, efforts are underway in many quarters, all competing to shape the agenda of the new administration that will assume office on July 1. Early this week, in a large ballroom filled with the country’s major foreign investors, government officials and media, the Joint Foreign Chambers (JFC), an umbrella organization of several Philippine-based foreign chambers of commerce, unveiled a new roadmap of recommendations for the new administration to spur investment and development in the Philippines.

The JFC’s goal for the Philippines is ambitious: an 11 percent annual growth rate and $75 billion in foreign direct investment to create 10 million new jobs by 2020.

The strategy, referred to as “7 Big Winners,” targets seven specific sectors for reform: agribusiness, business process outsourcing, creative industries, manufacturing and logistics, infrastructure, mining, and tourism (including medical tourism and retirement).

This is a tall task for a country that has consistently underperformed, trapped in a low-growth, low-investment equilibrium.

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When the Spanish-American War in the Philippines ended in 1898, the Americans attempted to subjugate the southern territories of the Muslims (“Moros” – so called since the Spanish had likened them to the Muslims they had fought on the Iberian peninsula), who had remained unconquered during the 377 years of Spanish colonization. True to form, the Moros in Mindanao, particularly the Maranaos (known as the “People of the Lake”) fought American rule in various battles throughout the southern Lanao del Sur province. In resistance to American sovereignty, the Maranaos protected the border along Lake Lanao from American entry, killing soldiers who attempted to cross with surprise attacks and ambushes.

One of the most important battles between Americans and the Maranaos was the Battle of Bayang in 1902, at the beginning of the American colonial period. The Americans overran Padang Karbala fort, leaving only seven male Maranaos survivors. These warriors ultimately became local datus (local chieftains) and it is believed that the people of Bayang have descended in seven clans from these datus.

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As Thais begin to celebrate Buddhist New Year (known as “songkran”) next week, they will be doing so under the specter that forces inside the country will not have reached an acceptable agreement in resolving the nation’s four-year political impasse.

Since mid-March, thousands of anti-government demonstrators, known as “red shirts,” from the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) have tied-up traffic in major intersections of Bangkok, including the city’s commercial center where shopping malls and banks were closed for three days earlier this week. Today, after protesters pushed through the main gate of the parliament compound, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva declared a state of emergency in Bangkok to help restore order, the red shirts are demanding that Mr. Abhisit dissolve Parliament and call for new elections.

Red shirts protest this week in Bangkok's commercial center. Photo by Flickr user Pittaya, used under a Creative Commons license.

They vow to stay put until Mr. Abhisit steps down. The red shirts believe Mr. Abhisit lacks legitimacy because neither he nor the political party he leads, the Democrat Party, has won a popular mandate in an election.

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President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has dominated Philippine politics this entire decade, first in January 2001 as a vice president who succeeded President Joseph Estrada on the heels of a “people power” protest (triggered by the suspension of the impeachment trial of President Estrada) – a succession that was confirmed by the Supreme Court. She then went on to serve as president longer than any since Ferdinand Marcos when she won a full six-year term in May 2004. That election was marred by significant controversy that peaked when an audio recording was leaked purporting to reveal Ms. Arroyo on the phone with Commission on Election Commissioner Garcillano talking about padding her vote margin. Her popularity (as measured by periodic citizen surveys) subsequently plumbed to depths never before reached in Philippine politics, and has consistently remained low for five years. We now watch and wait as the nation prepares to elect a new president on May 10, 2010.

At the recent Association for Asian Studies (AAS) 2010 Conference in Philadelphia in late March, the only session (of 282) that was devoted to the Philippines focused on Arroyo’s legacy.

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When Kang Chunmin heard that a law protecting the historic city wall built during the Ming Dynasty in the ancient capital of Xi’an, his hometown, passed in November 2009, he was pleased. He was further pleased to see that his comments on the draft law had actually made it into the final legislation. Kang was one of more than 180 Xi’an residents who provided comments during the drafting phase of the Xi’an Regulations on the Protection of City Wall before it passed. During a meeting with the Xi’an Legislative Affairs Office representatives, law professors and city residents, including Kang, recommended that the regulation forbid any carving or painting on the wall, and any events or performances on or around it that could potentially cause damage.

After seeing the final version of the law, Kang said, “The government has heard the views of ordinary citizens. … Public participation in this drafting process not only helped educate the public on the value of protecting our city wall, but also helped build trust between us and the government and generated enthusiasm from the general public to participate in more government decision-making in the future.”

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