By Anthea Mulakala

Last week, the Malaysian Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development reported three more incidents of “baby dumping” in a 24-hour period, bringing the total to 60 abandoned babies this year. Many of these children have been found in dumpsters and toilets.

In hopes of deterring such incidents, Malaysia’s Cabinet has recently requested that the police start classifying baby dumping investigations as attempted murder, or if found with intent, murder.

But critics say capital punishment is not the answer. Rather, says Women’s Aid Organisation President Ivy Josiah, sex education and better access to help for pregnant mothers is what’s needed.
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By Anthea Mulakala

More Malaysians may soon request one sugar instead of two in their teh tarik and opt for the bus rather than the car for their commute to work. On July 18, 2010, Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak’s announced cuts to subsidies on items such as sugar and fuel. This is the first step in the government’s subsidy rationalization programme that it argues will save the country RM 750 million (over $233 million) this year. Money, they say, that can instead be used as resources for families, communities, and business growth. This comes at a time when the Malaysian economy has strongly rebounded from the global financial crisis with double digit growth and Najib’s administration enjoys a healthy public satisfaction rate of 72 percent.
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By V. Bruce J. Tolentino

As tantalizing hints of recovery from the global financial crisis pop up in international economic statistics, a curious dichotomy of narratives about the status of various Asian economies has emerged in the international media:

China Dominant

First, there is the big story, related with relish and surprise, of unexpected and robust economic recovery in most countries across Asia, with a dominant, triumphant China leading the way. Meanwhile, more-developed Asian economies – such as Japan, which is commonly portrayed as somewhat stuck in a low-growth, lack-luster rut – are seen as mere supporting players.
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By Nurshafenath Shaharuddin

There is no end to the supply of topics to engage your average Malaysian kopitiam (coffee shop) conversation these days: the mortality rate of our parliamentarians; palace intrigue from any one of our 11 royal households; and even the juicy court proceedings ranging from test cases on civil liberties to plain old criminal proceedings.

But that old mainstay, the state of race relations in Malaysia, gained a new lease on life on March 31, when Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin – in response to a challenge by advisor to the Democratic Action Party Lim Kit Siang – said he considers himself Malay first, before Malaysian. This latest episode in Malaysia’s ongoing serial drama played out as predictably as one would expect from a sequel in an established franchise.

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By Kim McQuay

There is an instant before the start of a large event when, with logistical arrangements set and the agenda fine tuned, attention shifts to participants. One draws a breath and wonders what the chemistry of personalities, perspectives, and experience will yield. So I reflected at the start of last week’s regional conference on the role of leaders of influence in national development efforts in Dhaka. Over 80 participants representing 14 South, Southeast, and Central Asian nations sat in country teams, a human landscape of traditional white and saffron robes, capes, and headscarves, elegant saris and shalwar kameez, colorful batiks, and jackets and ties. Microphones crackled to life from the podium, and the session began.

Convened by The Asia Foundation and USAID, the conference provided a forum where those gathered could share views and experience drawn from different country contexts and working environments.
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Upon their return from the Leaders of Influence (LOI) regional conference in Dhaka March 21-24 that convened over 80 participants from 14 countries, In Asia spoke with Rosita MacDonald, program officer for The Asia Foundation’s Governance, Law, and Civil Society program, and Russell Pepe, chief of party for the LOI program in Bangladesh, on what they heard.

Q: Was there a sense from conference participants that progress has been made since U.S. President Obama’s much-heralded Cairo speech last year in which he declared the U.S.’s commitment to reengage with the Muslim community?

Rosita MacDonald: There was a lot of talk from the U.S. delegation about the shift to enhanced engagement with the Muslim community as well as with other religious communities. This point was acknowledged by several of the delegates, but they also made the point that the U.S. needs to be more effective in its public diplomacy efforts in Asia and to highlight tangible examples of engagement with, and support for, the Muslim world. There is optimism to be sure, but still a lot of uncertainty as to what this “engagement” actually involves and how deep it runs.

Russell Pepe: Participants were encouraged by President Obama’s speech, but several also expressed a need to see more concrete actions. LOI was cited as a very good example of how the U.S. can support a wider engagement with the Muslim community, and can effectively build bridges between different faiths and secular groups.
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When President Obama declared in his Cairo speech last year “Americans are ready to join with citizens and governments, community organizations, religious leaders, and businesses in Muslim communities around the world to help our people pursue a better life,” a new sense of optimism charged those dedicated to building bridges between the two communities.

In direct response to President Obama’s call for greater engagement and his Global Engagement Initiative in which the United States has committed to work with Muslim-majority countries to advance democracy and development, USAID and The Asia Foundation convened a regional conference in Dhaka, Bangladesh, March 21-24 that attracted nearly 70 religious and traditional leaders from 14 countries to candidly exchange views and ideas on the critical role that “leaders of influence” play in promoting positive change in their communities and the power they have to affect national development.
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By Carol Mercado

At the 15th ASEAN summit, held this past October, ASEAN inaugurated its Inter-Governmental Commission on Human Rights (AICHR).  The announcement was met with criticism from some quarters, but ASEAN called it a “historic milestone” in its 42-year history of community-building in the region.

During the summit’s concluding statement, ASEAN said that the AICHR “gives concrete expression to the implementation of Article 14 of the ASEAN Charter and ASEAN’s commitment to pursue forward-looking strategies to strengthen regional cooperation on human rights.” The Commission is mandated to support and protect human rights by promoting public awareness and education, and providing advice and capacity-building to government agencies and ASEAN bodies, among other things.
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By John J. Brandon

From 2002 to 2006, The Asia Foundation implemented a series of exchanges for 80 promising young professionals from Southeast Asia and the United States to help develop a better understanding of one another’s region. This program was initiated by the Foundation because of concern that fewer Americans had been involved with Southeast Asia since the end of the Vietnam War and subsequently were less familiar with the region’s nuances and complexities. Consequently, a younger generation of Southeast Asians had limited exposure to the United States and their understanding has been limited as well.
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By Herizal Hazri

Herizal Hazri is The Asia Foundation’s Program Director in Malaysia. He can be reached at herizal@asiafound.org.

Malaysia is among the most successful middle income nations in the world. Fuelled by export-led economic expansion with GDP growth rates between 4-8 percent sustained for 30 years, Malaysia now has a substantial middle class and a relatively well established institutional infrastructure. The country’s population is both ethnically diverse (Malay 50 percent; Chinese 24 percent; Indigenous 11 percent; Indian 7 percent) and religiously diverse (Muslim 52 percent, Buddhist 17 percent, Taoist 12 percent, Hindus 8 percent, Christian 8 percent, and Tribal 2 percent), and relatively peaceful co-existence has been maintained among religions and cultures. Malaysia’s constitution provides for freedom of religion, though proselytization of Muslims is illegal.
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