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ID:
089668
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2009.
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| Summary/Abstract |
The saga of the "Green Dam," Beijing's most recent censorship initiative, has become a Rorschach test for how one views the development of the Chinese Internet. Facing mounting opposition, the government announced it was temporarily shelving a controversial requirement to install the problem-laden filtering program on every personal computer sold in China just hours before the policy was to go into effect on July 1. Some see this as a victory for freedom of expression; others as a temporary reprieve.
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| 2 |
ID:
089655
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| Publication |
2009.
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| Summary/Abstract |
After six decades of one-party rule, Japanese voters are ready to take a historic gamble and create a two-party system. But can the domocratic party of Japan overcome other forces of inertia?
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| 3 |
ID:
089667
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2009.
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| Summary/Abstract |
The rioting by Uighurs in Xinjiang's capital Urumqi in early July has put the spotlight back on China's handling of its ethnic minority regions. Coming just over a year after a similar outburst in Lhasa, the incident shows that hardline policies designed to suppress dissent have fostered bitter resentment that periodically erupts. However, it would be a mistake to interpret this as a sign that China's control over Tibet and Xinjiang are unraveling. Rather the incidents should be put into a broader context of rising tensions within the broader society.
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| 4 |
ID:
089665
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| Publication |
2009.
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| Summary/Abstract |
Speaking in Tokyo last month, Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo proudly proclaimed that thanks to her leadership, the impoverished country is headed in the right direction. The Philippine economy grew 6.1% last year, Ms. Arroyo boasted-although she did concede that forecasts for continued growth in 2009 are edging lower because of the current global economic travails. "The Philippines is finally unlocking its full potential," the president told a high-powered audience of business leaders and diplomats who convened at the Imperial Hotel on June 19. "We want to succeed someday as Japan has succeeded.
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| 5 |
ID:
089664
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| Publication |
2009.
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The publishing of Zhao Ziyang's memoirs on the 20th anniversary of the 1989 student protests serves as a reminder that before that fateful turning point many observers expected China to embark on a program of political reform. In 1987, the National People's Congress passed legislation that introduced elections at the village level, and given the fact that Zhao's advisers were studying democratic models in other countries, optimists expected the elections to progress to higher levels-and perhaps eventually the national level.
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| 6 |
ID:
089669
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| Publication |
2009.
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The Indonesian election on July 8 seems likely to give Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono another five years in office. He is ahead of other candidates in opinion polls, and his Democratic Party emerged as the country's largest in the parliamentary elections in April. A high degree of normality and stability has returned to Indonesia after years of political and social turmoil. Only a decade ago, many feared that Indonesia would break up along ethnic lines and become a "Southeast Asian Yugoslavia.
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| 7 |
ID:
089659
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2009.
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| Summary/Abstract |
This summer the public mood in Afghanistan is a combination of anxiety and hope. With more than 400 attacks in a single week in June, violence has reached the highest level since late 2001. The trend is expected to continue, making this the bloodiest summer since the downfall of the Taliban nearly eight years ago. Meanwhile Afghans across the country hope that a new United States approach, coupled with a much desired improvement in governance following the Aug. 20 Afghan presidential election, might reverse the security decline and pave the way for stabilizing the situation.
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| 8 |
ID:
089663
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| Publication |
2009.
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| Summary/Abstract |
The failure of Aluminum Corporation of China (Chinalco) to consummate its planned $19.5 billion investment in the Australia-based mining group Rio Tinto is the latest and largest failure of the "go out" policy adopted 10 years ago by the Chinese government. Since the China National Offshore Oil Company's dramatic aborted attempt to acquire America's Unocal in 2005, China has learned a lot-but perhaps not enough. More and more Chinese capital has been invested in companies outside of the mainland, but the amounts are still small relative to other economies of China's size and miniscule relative to the immense amount of foreign exchange China has accumulated.
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| 9 |
ID:
089662
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2009.
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To most outsiders Sri Lanka is a far-away tourist destination, a tropical paradise that has fallen into a vicious cycle of ethnic conflict. To me it is closer to home. It is where I grew up; and Colombo, the capital city, is my hometown. I think of Sri Lanka as a heaven-and-hell country, consumed by its own extremes and contradictions. These play out at today's crossroads, with the seeming end of a 26-year military conflict.
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| 10 |
ID:
089660
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| Publication |
2009.
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| Summary/Abstract |
After seven and a half years of international engagement, Afghanistan is at a very important turning point. The country faces a daunting set of challenges: a ruthless insurgency, comprised of militant groups with different capabilities and objectives; the government still struggles with corruption and delivery of basic services; the country produces 90% of the world's heroin, with the volatile province of Helmand producing half of the crop; and regional players are still involved and trying their utmost to influence Afghanistan's future.
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| 11 |
ID:
089657
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| Publication |
2009.
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| Summary/Abstract |
Japan stands on the threshold of a change that could signal a step toward political maturity. After six decades of being ruled by the Liberal Democratic Party, voters in the upcoming general election are expected to give a mandate to the opposition Democratic Party of Japan. While this possibility is certainly an encouraging sign that Japanese people are ready for open competition over national policies, what's really remarkable is that it has taken so long.
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