In The News

The Virtual Middle Class Rises

Thomas L. Friedman February 5, 2013
The poor around the globe may still live on a few dollars per day. But price pressure on electronics like smart phones and computers have lowered costs of education and communications and increased the ranks of a virtual middle class. Expanded numbers of people connecting via the internet will have political and economic repercussions, notes Thomas L. Friedman in his column for the New York Times...

Pakistan’s Two Worlds

Hassan Siddiq January 30, 2013
Pakistan’s youth confront two stark realities: one that’s ambitious and cosmopolitan and the other radical and inward looking. Oddly enough, young Pakistanis obtain much of their news from international sources like BBC or CNN, even as those same broadcasts focus on violence and radical elements of society. Young, educated Pakistanis are as disturbed as audiences in the West about a vicious...

China-Myanmar Pipeline to Open in May

Jamil Anderlini, Gwen Robinson January 28, 2013
A gas pipeline extending from the Indian Ocean through Myanmar to Southwest China is scheduled to begin pumping before summer. “At present, about 80 per cent of China’s crude oil imports are transported through the strategically important Strait of Malacca, but the new oil pipeline is expected to reduce China’s reliance on that route by about one-third,” report Jamil Anderlini and Gwen Robinson...

Island Nations Play China, India

Harsh V. Pant January 9, 2013
As rising powers India and China compete for influence, Indian Ocean’s small island states like Maldives, Seychelles or Mauritius gain disproportionate prominence and attract new funding for their strategic space in the Indian Ocean. In domestic politics, parties take advantage of the rivalry and take sides. A recent example described by Harsh V. Pant of King’s College is the cancellation of a 25...

Delhi Gang Rape Spurs China Debate, Censorship

Ananth Krishnan January 1, 2013
A horrific crime in one country can spur reflection and debate about social mores in another. A gang rape in Delhi, and the victim's subsequent death, went from being widely reported in China to subject of censorship. Many official news outlets and commentators used the incident to criticize the unruliness of democracy, but other commenters marveled at massive protests throughout India. “...

Dark Side of Free Speech

John Morrison November 12, 2012
President Barack Obama will be the first US president to visit Burma, nestled between India and China, since renamed by its government as Myanmar, as well as Cambodia. The tour includes his attendance at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations with also a stop in Thailand. The trip emphasizes Burma’s steps toward democracy and improved relations even as the country struggles with sectarian...

Burma: Trouble Brewing for China

Bertil Lintner November 5, 2012
Burma’s government is trying to win over the Burmese people and the West, and one way has been to suspend unpopular deals with China. In September 2011, the government suspended construction of the controversial Myitsone hydroelectric dam. Now protests are underway against a Chinese firm, Wanbao Mining, which signed an agreement in June to mine copper in Monywa. Burma’s reactions could serve as...