Southeast Asia in a New Era: Ten Countries, One Region in ASEAN

Author : Rodolfo C. Severino

Publisher : ISEAS

ISBN  : 9789812309570

Year  : 2010

“This book is about Southeast Asia in a new era. This  new era began with a new      century and a new millennium posing great challenges to the region and to each country in it. It has a chapter on each of the ten countries in the region, covering both the politics and the economic aspects. It has one on the region as a whole, and one on the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. It has  a thoughtful afterword that is a summary of its contents but is more than the sum of the individual chapters. Many books and chapters of books have been written on Southeast Asia, usually by external observers. Aside from being up-to-date, this book is different from most of them in several ways. Most of the chapters are written by Southeast Asians; indeed, most of the country-chapters are written by natives of those countries. This means that the perspectives are based on local insights, which provide nuance and sensitivity. The book is addressed primarily to the young people of Southeast Asia, so that they can get  to know their neighbors better. Each chapter has a guide to further  reading and a series of questions to provoke further research and deeper inquiry.”– Fidel V. Ramos, Former President of the Philippines (1992-1998)

Oxford Compact Advanced Learner’s English-Malay Dictionary

Author          : Hornby

Publisher       : Oxford University Press

ISBN                : 9789676578662

Year               : 2007

A pared-down version of the existing Oxford Fajar Advanced Learner’s English-Malay Dictionary. An additional 1000 new entries consisting mainly of ICT words, Science and Mathematics terms and new current words/terms/ expressions taken from the OALD (6/e) have been added. The definitions and explanations of some of the existing words have been replaced with the corresponding ones from the (6/e) which are simpler and clearer. Topics on Computing and Numbers have also been added. This new compact edition is much smaller in size thus making it more user/carry-friendly

Japanese-Trained Armies in Southeast Asia

Author          : Joyce Chapman Lebra

Publisher       : ISEAS

ISBN                 : 9789814279444

Year               : 2010

This is the first study by a Western scholar of a significant facet of the history of World War II – Japanese-trained independence and volunteer armies as agents of revolution and modernization. At the time, the Japanese did not see that their military imprinting would affect a whole generation of political/military leadership of nations of post-World War II Southeast Asia. Leaders like Suharto, Ne Win and Park are all products of Japanese military training.

Beyond the Blue Gate: Recollections of Political Prisoner

Author          : Teoh Soh Lung

Publisher       : SIRD

ISBN                : 9789675832017

Year               : 2010

Teo Soh Lung’s book should be read by all people who are interested in democracy and the rule       of law. Not only is it a poignant personal account of official ill treatment, but it is a brilliant testimony to the cruelty of authoritarianism, even, indeed especially – when it comes in the guise of legal due process. This is perhaps the most shocking aspect of her story: the abuse of the law in a republic which is democratic in theory, but sacrifices its most democratic citizens to the whims of the rulers. – Ian Buruma, Henry R Luce Professor of Democracy, Human Right and Journalism, Bard College Lawyer
Teo Soh Lung’s memoir of her 21 May 1987 arrest and framing by the Singapore authorities as part of the so-called ‘Marxist Conspiracy’ is a remarkable document. Not only does it show how a person of courage and integrity can speak truth to power, but it also illustrates how that power corrupts and destroys the souls of those who wield it unscrupulously. One day a Singaporean Truth and Reconciliation Commission will determine the truth of the PAP years. Until this happens, this memoir will serve as an essential benchmark. – Peter Carey, Fellow Emiritus, Trinity College, Oxford

Behind the Blue Gate documents vividly Soh Lung’s intellectual and emotional awareness and reflections of a person in captivity. How power blinds justice is nothing new in the world of politics. But Soh Lung’s accounts impressively details and transmits viscerally her physical and psychological journey whilst in detention. This book is a must-read. It not only gives the reader insights to the human condition, but it also enables one to reflect on one’s moral capacity when facing the hurdles and challenges in standing up for one’s beliefs. It’s also very important to have this literature. Thanks, Soh Lung for taking the trouble to write it all down. Reading the accounts amazes me how sharp your memory was. It is testimony of how human cruelty can be etched so deeply in the human psyche. – Alvin Tan, Founder and Artistic Director, The Necessary Stage

Lee Kuan Yew: Hard Truths to Keep Singapore Going

Author          : Han Fook Kwang et al.

Publisher       : Straits Times Press

ISBN                : 9789814266727

Year               : 2011

Lee Kuan Yew is Singapore’s most influential son but he is not without his critics. He has not flinched from taking them on, even now after almost 60 years in the political fray. Why is Lee so hard on his political opponents? Could the People’s Action Party ever lose its grip on power? Are the younger leaders up to the mark? Will growing religiosity change Singapore for the better of worse? How will rising giants China and India affect Singapore’s fortunes?

Lee, fields these issues and many other questions as he covers the terrain of the past and contemplates the expanse of the future for tis iland nation that he and his foundin generation uilt on the hopes of a people. Based on 32 hours of interviews at the Istana, along with 64 pages of photographs and a dvd insert, the book features Lee in full flow, combative, thought-provoking controversial.

South And Southeast Asia: Responding to Changing Geo-Political and Security    Challenges

Author : KV Kesavan, ed.

Publisher       : KW Publishers

ISBN                : 9789830502250

Year               : 2010

The essays in this volume provide the Indian and Southeast Asian perspectives on some of the geo-political and security challenges facing South and Southeast Asia, These include the interests and role of major outside powers in the two regions and the relations between these powers; the trends in Asian regionalism, especially the ASEAN-led regionalism and India’s place in it; the growing maritime and naval interests of the two rising Asian powers, China and India; and the impact of climate change. Also addressed are two specific issues of great potential importance for the security calculus of the two regions: the South China Sea and Myanmar.

Chinese Business in the Making of a Malay State, 1882-1941: Kedah and Penang

Author          : Wu Xiao An

Publisher       : NUS Press

ISBN                : 9789971694968

Year               : 2010

The Chinese in colonial Malaya were noted for their involvement in revenue farming, the rice trade, mining and estates, and pawnbroking. However, the Chinese presence was also significant in broader economic and social spheres, and the wealth and power of the Chinese community helped fuel the emerging colonial state and the modern transformation of Southeast Asia. In Chinese Business in the Making of a Malay State, Wu Xiao An argues persuasively that Chinese ventures owed much of their success to the flexibility and dynamism of Chinese family and economic networks, and the moral imperatives that governed relationships within the Chinese community.

Using Penang and Kedah as a case study, Wu draws on archival sources, family histories and an examination of legal arrangements and the press to show that personal business and business networks were not bound by the territorial borders of traditional or modern states, but extended across much of Southeast Asia and into China. His demonstration of the complexity of interactions involving new migrants, sojourners and settlers, both Chinese and non-Chinese, challenges understandings of state formation and economic growth in colonial Malaya based on ethnic stereotypes and accounts of events limited by fixed political boundaries.

Understanding the Dewan Rakyat

Author          : Deborah Loh

Publisher       : ZI Publications

ISBN                : 9789675266188

Year               : 2011

Understanding the Dewan Rakyat provides a comprehensive profile of the Lower House of Parliament in Malaysia, known as the Dewan Rakyat, as a measure of the state of the country’s parliamentary democracy. The book provides answers to help readers understand Malaysia’s system of governance, and how power is vested in Parliament, in the speaker of the House, and in those who are elected to represent the people.

For the first time in Malaysia, the book also compiles the profiles of all 222 Members of Parliament (MPs) who were elected in 2008. These profiles were obtained through The Nut Graph’s MP Watch: Eye on Parliament online project, and provide voters with a sense of how their respective MPs would vote on issues that affect Malaysia’s democracy.

Specifically, it clues Malaysians in on what they can expect of their MPs with regard to issues such as detention without trial, the “Islamic versus secular state” issue, and freedom of information. It also delves into the challenges MPs face that prevent them from fulfilling their legislative roles as fully as possible. Additionally, the book highlights MPs’ suggestions across the political divide for strengthening parliamentary democracy in Malaysia.

Part informative and part analytical, Understanding the Dewan Rakyat is a useful guide to Malaysia’s political landscape and the health of the country’s democracy. It provides citizens, journalists and analysts a tool to navigate Malaysia’s Parliament, and also gives politicians, political parties and the government vital clues on what needs to be and can be done for the nation.

Selangor : 300 Early Postcards

Author          : Cheah Jin Seng

Publisher       : Editions Didier Millet

ISBN                : 9789834477349

Year               : 2011

Selangor : 300 Early Postcards presents an extensive collection of early views of Selangor which, by the time the first postcards of the state were published, had cemented its position as the administrative and commercial centre of the Malay States.

The postcards show Selangor’s changing landscapes and townscapes from the late 19th century to the cession ofKuala Lumpur to the Federal Government of Malaysia in 1974. The picture postcards are presented in a series of galleries. These focus on: an extensive selection of scenes of Kuala Lumpur; views of Klang and other towns; and the state’s people, economy, flora and fauna. The history of postcards in Selangor is also covered.

Nearly all the postcards included in the book are drawn from the author’s personal collection and are reproduced at, or very closely to, their natural size and colour.

An important reference work for collectors of postcards and stamps, Selangor : 300 Early Postcards is also a richly informative visual document for a wider audience.