Southeast Asia in Global Context


Roundtable discussion series


Situated between India and China, along the busiest maritime sea routes in the world, Southeast Asia remains today at the crossroads of ideas, commerce, migration, language, religion, and law, as it has for centuries. With a total population greater than that of the European Union, the countries of Southeast Asia have been working through the ASEAN—the Association of Southeast Asian Nations—to integrate their economies and cooperate politically and economically on matters of common concern, increasing the region’s influence on global affairs. This roundtable series situates contemporary Southeast Asia in Asia and the wider world, examining the many ways the pressing issues in the region affect us all.


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Elections in South and Southeast Asia: Trends and Trajectories

21 November, 2024 | Fraser 192 | University of Victoria

In this 17th CAPI Roundtable on Southeast Asia in Global Context—which took place alongside the Indian Ocean Perspectives 2024 Conference—we examined socio-political trends and trajectories against the backdrop of a year of elections across the wider region of Southeast and South Asia. What do these elections tell us about the state of democracy in the region relative to authoritarianism, illiberalism, military government, and political dynasties? What has been the fate of incumbent governments? And what human security concerns—economic, food, environmental, physical, digital—have been prominent in these elections? And how do global developments and trends—including environmental issues, geopolitics, and China’s Belt & Road Initiative—affect domestic politics in South and Southeast Asia? The participants addressed these questions to help understand the political dynamics and to identify patterns and trajectories within and beyond the region.

Roundtable Participants:

Neilesh Bose, Associate Professor & Canada Research Chair, Department of History, UVic

Akshaya Chandani, PhD Candidate in Law & Instructor, UVic

Yukiko Nishikawa, Professor, Global Studies Cluster, Doshisha University in Kyoto

Mark Williams, Professor of Political Studies, Vancouver Island University

Moderated by Victor V. Ramraj, CAPI Director and Chair in Asia-Pacific Legal Relations, Professor of Law, UVic, and Thiti JamkajornkeiatAssistant Professor, Pacific and Asian Studies, UVic.


 

Past Roundtables


CAPI's Southeast Asia in Global Context series is led by Phil Calvert, CAPI Senior Research Fellow and former Canadian Ambassador to Thailand, Cambodia, and Laos, and Victor V. Ramraj, CAPI Director and Chair in Asia-Pacific Legal Relations.

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