Shankari Sundararaman

Apr 28, 2010
Shankari Sundararaman

Shankari Sundararaman

Shankari Sundararaman

Diplomatic flip-flops

Over the last few weeks the stand-off between China and the Philippines over the Scarborough Shoal, also known as the Huangyan Island, has once again brought international attention to the long-pending territorial disputes in the South China Sea. And now, with the presence and interest of the United States and the fact that over the past few months India, too, has been looking at assisting Vietnamese resource exploration in this region, new players and dimensions have been added to an already agitated dispute.

Changing equations

The byelections held in Burma on April 1, 2012, resulted in a victory for Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.

Here’s how to rebuild political pagodas

While the politics that ravages Cambodia tends to make the headlines with the ongoing Khmer Rouge trials and the stand-off between the ruling party of Prime Minister Hun Sen and the Opposition under Sam Rainsy, there is another aspect of Cambodia’s history and current economy that needs to be looked at. As India and the region negotiate the move towards a free-trade agreement in the services sector, the opening up of the two country’s tourism sector will significantly push the level of interaction between Cambodia and India. For India and Indian tourists, Cambodia provides a treasure trove of India’s cultural linkages and historical ties which are alluring and breathtaking in their magnitude and splendour.

Burma’s march to democracy

In January, the European Union (EU) removed visa bans on Burmese political leaders, including the President and top government officials.

A regime on trial

The second case in the Khmer Rouge Trials, popularly called Case 002, began at the end of November 2011.

Real change looks good in Burma

Last week’s release of 200 political prisoners in Burma by the government of President Thein Sein was a first step in the promise to free more than 2,000 political prisoners in that c

Make autonomy a reality, not rhetoric

Last week in the Philippines the debate around the on-and-off negotiations between the government and the country’s largest Muslim rebel group, Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), resumed after fighting broke out in certain regions of southern Philippines. In this 40-year-old conflict — one of the longest-running insurgencies in the world — the layers of factionalism that have emerged within the rebel entities in the south make attempts at finding a linear solution very difficult. At the core of the conflict is the issue of severe marginalisation and deprivation which Moro Muslims feel and see as part of the state policy against them. Since the Philippines is staunchly Catholic, the divide between the Centre and this region is unmistakable.

Rice, rights and nuclear dreams

In early August two important developments took place in Burma, which at first glance seem unconnected but are, in fact, intrinsically linked to where Burma may be headed in the years to come. The first was US’ appointment of a special envoy to Burma who would have the rank of ambassador, and the second was Burma’s rice agreement with North Korea, which is based on a barter deal. Both these incidents signal a clear shift in terms of how the international community views and will engage with Burma.

Good luck to Yingluck

On July 3, 2011, the Thai elections resulted in a resounding victory for the Puea Thai Party, headed by the youngest sister of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. Yingluck Shinawatra, born in 1967, is the youngest sibling of the former Prime Minister and will be the first woman Prime Minister of Thailand.

Muzzled in Malaysia

Those who have been following the developments on the Lokpal Bill and the debates in the camps of Anna Hazare and Baba Ramdev believe that these are intrinsic to the traditions of political participation, which most Indians have taken almost for granted.
However, it is a privilege not enjoyed by many countries even in our own extended neighbourhood.

The just-concluded summit meeting of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato) in Chicago leaves gaping questions about the viability and direction of the world’s largest military alliance.

If we rework Shankar’s cartoon with, say, Mahatma Gandhi riding a bullock cart of democracy in his dwija dress and Jawaharlal Nehru standing in his sanatan pundit’s dress, a thread across his body, an

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