WHERE DO WE GO from HERE? Half a Century After Its Founding, Asean Faces Internal Fault Lines
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Duterte’s vision for Asean Beijing’s Chinese charm o ensive MIT’s Andrew McAfee on the future of jobs April – May 2017 MCI (P) 148/08/2016 Asean@50: WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE? Half a century after its founding, Asean faces internal fault lines. But while there are potential obstacles ahead, there is also much to cheer. Letter from the Editor-in-Chief Choppy waters as Asean turns 50 and there’s disruption all round Dear readers, of Technology research scientist Andrew McAfee on the future of jobs, and a sean turns 50 in a few months’ commentary by our Opinion Editor Chua time. Mui Hoong on the need to attend to the That’s a major milestone in well-being of citizens, amid mounting the life of a person, organisa- A job insecurity. tion or nation. The Straits Times has been covering Hence, we thought it would be a good developments in Singapore and around time to pause and reflect on how the Asia since 1845. Our network of much -underrated regional grouping has correspondents and contributors provides fared over the years. insights and an insider’s view of these In this edition, we turn our attention events. And our ST Asia Report is a to the group, which has grown from five regular publication which compiles some members in 1967 to 10 now, and whose of our best work, which is also available influence goes beyond. online at www.straitstimes.com In our cover story, our Associate A PDF version of the magazine is Editor Ravi Velloor ponders what lies also available online to subscribers of ahead for Asean, while our Philippine The Straits Times. Correspondent Raul Dancel shares In this issue, you will find: Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s • A special report by our Senior Writer vision for Asean, which the Philippines Cheong Suk-Wai on international relations will chair this anniversary year. Lee Kuan scholar Leo Suryadinata’s new book The Yew School of Public Policy Dean Kishore Rise of China and The Chinese Overseas Mahbubani also shares his insight on how and an interview with pre-eminent scholar best to understand Asean. Wang Gungwu on the issue. Another highlight of this issue is • A feature on Singapore’s quest for our report on the disruption that is a robust water supply by our journalist unfolding all round in the face of rapid Lin Yangchen. and relentless technological change. • A look at Changi Airport’s effort to This was the topic we focused on build Jewel, a multi-storey retail complex, in this year’s Straits Times Education slated to open in 2019. Forum, organised in partnership with • A special feature by our Regional the Singapore Management University Correspondent Tan Hui Yee on Thailand’s (SMU) in March, on the topic of what daughters of Buddhism the future of jobs might look like. We hope you will enjoy this publication SMU board of trustees chairman and will return to The Straits Times across Ho Kwon Ping delivered a thought – our various platforms. provoking opening address – an excerpt Why? To put it starkly and simply: of which we have reproduced on page You need to know Asia. We do. 24 – in which he challenged universities to go beyond simply repeating the mantra Best regards that the future is too uncertain to predict which jobs will disappear. A lively debate followed, which set me thinking, and I set out my reflections on the discussion in a Thinking Aloud Warren Fernandez column, which can be found on page 22. Editor-in-Chief Also part of this package is our Senior The Straits Times Education Correspondent Sandra Davie’s & SPH’s English, Malay and interview with Massachusetts Institute Tamil Media Group 1 Duterte’s vision for Asean Beijing’s Chinese charm o ensive MIT’s Andrew McAfee on the future of jobs April – May 2017 MCI (P) 148/08/2016 Asean@50: WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE? Half a century after its Contents founding, Asean faces internal fault lines. But while there are potential obstacles ahead, there is also much to cheer. 3 Asean: The next 50 years 5 Seven interesting things about Asean Asia Report April – May 2017 6 Duterte’s Asean vision Warren Fernandez 8 How fear, luck and golf brought Asean together Editor-in-Chief Alvin Tay 10 Beijing’s Chinese charm offensive: Kinship or chimera? Managing Editor Tan Ooi Boon 12 A challenge to test one’s loyalty Senior Vice-President (Business Development) 14 The fake news conundrum Eugene Leow Head, Digital Strategy 16 Xiongan: China’s new special economic zone Irene Ngoo Vice-President 17 Saudi King’s mega deals with Asia Shefali Rekhi 18 Next on the anvil Editor A hopeful spring for Sino-US ties? & Copy Desk 20 Daring to dream big despite small size Sim Mui Hoon Chief Sub-editor 22 Best route to the future is the one you chart yourself Design Peter Williams 24 Disruptive change and the Singapore dilemma Art Editor Anil Kumar 26 Race with machines, not against them Graphic Artist Manny Francisco 28 Future economy needs future ready social safety net Cover Illustration 30 Keeping the nation’s taps flowing Editorial research Nadia Chevroulet 32 Changi’s Jewel shaping up well for sparkling start in 2019 Benjamin Chua Circulation 34 Thailand’s unrecognised daughters of Buddhism Eric Ng Head, Circulation Marketing 36 Luxury on wheels Tommy Ong Senior Manager (Circulation) Reach out to us: Global Outlook Forum Leong Lin Choo Senior Manager We welcome your feedback and views [email protected] Letters can be sent to [email protected] Circulation & subscription: Kitty Tan Senior Manager (Circulation) Published by [email protected] The Straits Times, Singapore Press Holdings For advertising enquiries: Printed by Sharon Lim Ling KHL Printing Co Pte Ltd Manager (Business Development) All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in whole or [email protected] in part without written permission from the publisher. Cover Story Ravi Velloor Associate Editor, The Straits Times Asean: The next 50 years Religious extremism is just one problem the grouping faces, but on balance, the future is bright hese days, with Britain poised to exit the European Union, and fear that other nations may take a cue from its go-it-alone ways, the EU Tis not the preferred template for regional integration. Yet it cannot be denied that this has been the most successful regional organisation in modern history, even though the 28-member union doesn’t yet include Ukraine, the biggest European nation whose landmass is slashed tariffs and so on has been in entirely on the Continent. the low hanging fruit. Serious matters Who’s in second place as a model such as harmonisation of standards, free for regional integration? Asean, surely. movement of labour, and the financial As a body set up at the height of industry’s access to markets in the the Cold War, meant to ensure that region remain work in progress. Air Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, carriers within the 10-nation grouping Malaysia and Singapore weren’t do not fly the Asean flag, even as their dominoes that could be knocked down liveries announce their allegiance to Star by Communism’s iron ball, it has evolved Alliance, OneWorld or other aviation spectacularly. From five members at its groupings. A shared visa policy, as in the founding in 1967 to six in 1984 when Schengen countries, would give a boost Brunei signed on, and eventually ten as ST ILLUSTRATION: MANNY FRANCISCO to inter-regional travel and tourism. But Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, and finally that is a long way off. Indeed, Asean Myanmar, came on board, the group centre”. Asean, she went on to say, “has itself has moderated its ambitions for has only expanded. an influence throughout Asia that is not an economic union; from aspirations And it’s not done growing: Timor always well-understood”. of a single market and production base, Leste could be next on board. While Fifty years after its founding as a the talk, increasingly, is of a ‘highly once-role model the EU is straining at political bloc that would quickly also integrated economy’. the seams, Asean’s hemlines are getting turn its attention to economic relations, broader. What’s more, every major it is interesting to ponder what lies The creation of the Asean power on earth, from the United States ahead for Asean. In that there is as much Economic Community is to Russia and Australia, sees value in to cheer as to ponder. no doubt a remarkable snuggling up closer to this outfit, the The creation of the Asean Economic achievement, especially reason they make it a point to attend the Community is no doubt a remarkable East Asia Summit held on the sidelines achievement, especially given the given the varying levels of of Asean’s annual gathering of leaders. varying levels of development in the development in the region, Indeed, people from outside the region, from first-world Singapore to from first-world Singapore region sometimes tend to see its least developed nations such as Laos. to least developed nations significance more clearly than those This has helped Asean become a such as Laos. This has within. major manufacturing and investment helped Asean become a In January, in a major foreign policy destination. Indeed, foreign direct major manufacturing and speech in the US, Australian foreign investment inflows to Asean have investment destination. minister Julie Bishop declared Asean outpaced flows to China since 2013. Indeed, FDI inflows to not only “the geographic centre of the Yet, it cannot be denied that most Asean has outpaced flows Indo-Pacific (but) also its diplomatic of the economic integration through to China since 2013.