ASEAS 11(1) 2018 Österreichische Zeitschrift für Südostasienwissenschaften Austrian Journal of South-East Asian Studies FOCUS THE POLITICAL ECONOMY OF NEW AUTHORITARIANISM ASEAS Österreichische Zeitschrift für Südostasienwissenschaften Austrian Journal of South-East Asian Studies ASEAS Österreichische Zeitschrift für Südostasienwissenschaften Austrian Journal of South-East Asian Studies The Austrian Journal of South-East Asian Studies (ASEAS) is an international, interdisciplinary, and open access social sciences journal covering a variety of topics (culture, economics, geography, politics, society) from both historical and contemporary perspectives. Topics are related to Southeast Asia, but are not restricted to the geographical region, when spatial and political borders of Southeast Asia are crossed or transcended, e.g., in the case of linguistics, diaspora groups, or forms of socio-cultural transfer. ASEAS publishes two focus issues per year and we welcome out-of-focus submissions at any time. The journal invites both established as well as young scholars to present research results and theoretical and methodical discussions, to report about on-going research projects or field studies, to publish conference reports, to conduct interviews with experts in the field, and to review relevant books. Articles can be submitted in German or English. MEDIENINHABERIN & HERAUSGEBERIN / PUBLISHER SEAS – Gesellschaft für Südostasienwissenschaften / Society for South-East Asian Studies ZVR-Zahl 786121796, Kreitnergasse 44/31, 1160 Wien, Austria GEGENSTAND / PURPOSE Der Verein SEAS bezweckt unter anderem die Förderung der Südostasienwissenschaften und der Bildung des wissenschaftlichen Nachwuchses, sowie des Stellenwertes und der Auseinandersetzung mit der Region Südostasien in Österreich und darüber hinaus. OFFENLEGUNG / DISCLOSURE (§ 25MEDG) Der Verein SEAS ist zu 100 Prozent Eigentümer von ASEAS. Die namentlich gekennzeichneten Beiträge enthalten die Absichten der Autor_innen und nicht notwendigerweise jene der Redaktion. REDAKTIONSANSCHRIFT / EDITORIAL ADDRESS Kreitnergasse 44/31, 1160 Wien, Austria; E-Mail: [email protected] CHEFREDAKTEUR_INNEN / EDITORS-IN-CHIEF Melanie Pichler, Alexander Trupp REDAKTION / EDITORIAL BOARD Claudia Dolezal, Timo Duile, Rainer Einzenberger, Simon Gorski, Dayana Lengauer, Chiedza Mutsaka Skyum, Melanie Pichler, Michelle Proyer, Daniela Rubelli, Gunnar Stange, Alexander Trupp REDAKTIONELLE UNTERSTÜTZUNG / EDITORIAL SUPPORT Michelle Proyer, Nat Sattavet WISSENSCHAFTLICHER BEIRAT / ADVISORY BOARD Ramses Amer (Stockholm University, Sweden), Birgit Bräuchler (School of Social Sciences, Monash University, Australia), Karl Husa (University of Vienna, Austria), Harold R. Kerbo (California Polytechnic State University, USA), Huong Thanh Bui (Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University, Japan), Rüdiger Korff (Passau University, Germany), Prasit Leepreecha (Chiang Mai University, Thailand), Wolfram Schaffar (University of Vienna, Austria), Susanne Schröter (Goethe University Frankfurt/ Main, Germany), Rosalia Sciortino (Mahidol University, Thailand), Martin Slama (Austrian Academy of Sciences, Austria) ISSN: 1999-2521 (Print), ISSN: 1999-253X (Online) UNTERSTÜTZT VON / SUPPORTED BY ASEAS 11(1) 2018 Österreichische Zeitschrift für Südostasienwissenschaften Austrian Journal of South-East Asian Studies FOCUS THE POLITICAL ECONOMY OF NEW AUTHORITARIANISM ASEAS Österreichische Zeitschrift für Südostasienwissenschaften 11(1), 2018 Austrian Journal of South-East Asian Studies 11(1), 2018 FOCUS THE POLITICAL ECONOMY OF NEW AUTHORITARIANISM New authoritarianism has become a global phenomenon over the past years, and Southeast Asia is no exception to this trend. The current issue of ASEAS 11(1) discusses the rise of authoritarianism in the region from a political economy perspective. It raises questions about the connection between economic crises and the rise of authoritarian regimes, as well as the specific kinds of economic projects that authoritarian regimes pursue. The articles in this issue include an analysis of a Chinese mining project in Myanmar’s frontier region as well as a re-interpretation of Thailand's military coup in 2014 against the background of China's Belt-and-Road Initiative and the changing economic world system. Other contributions analyze the continuity and intensification of Malaysia's neo-liberal development paradigms, and the role and potential of National Human Rights Institutions in big transnational infrastructure projects. The articles illustrate not only facets of persistent authoritarian neoliberalism, but they also highlight the dawn of a new Chinese-centered accumulation cycle in world history. They reveal transnational mechanisms of primitive accumulation as well as sophisti- cated transnational institutionalization processes for the defense of human rights. It becomes clear that any response to new authoritarianism will need transnational cooperation and include a search for more fundamental economic alternatives. KOORDINATOR DIESER AUSGABE / MANAGING EDITOR Rainer Einzenberger GASTHERAUSGEBER_INNEN / GUEST EDITORS Wolfram Schaffar, Rainer Einzenberger, Carl Middleton, Naruemon Thabchumpon TITELFOTO / COVER PHOTO Nick Nostitz SATZ / LAYOUT Karl Valent Inhalt Contents 01 The Political Economy of New Authoritarianism in Southeast Asia Rainer Einzenberger & Wolfram Schaffar Aktuelle Südostasienforschung Current Research on Southeast Asia 13 Frontier Capitalism and Politics of Dispossession in Myanmar: The Case of the Mwetaung (Gullu Mual) Nickel Mine in Chin State Rainer Einzenberger 35 The Iron Silk Road and the Iron Fist: Making Sense of the Military Coup D’État in Thailand Wolfram Schaffar 53 The Institutions of Authoritarian Neoliberalism in Malaysia: A Critical Review of the Development Agendas Under the Regimes of Mahathir, Abdullah, and Najib Bonn Juego 81 National Human Rights Institutions, Extraterritorial Obligations, and Hydropower in Southeast Asia: Implications of the Region’s Authoritarian Turn Carl Middleton Außerhalb des Schwerpunktes Out of Focus 99 Thai Doctoral Students’ Layers of Identity Options Through Social Acculturation in Australia Singhanat Nomnian 117 Typhoons, Climate Change, and Climate Injustice in the Philippines William N. Holden Forschungswerkstatt Research Workshop 141 The Social Base of New Authoritarianism in Southeast Asia: Class Struggle and the Imperial Mode of Living Wolfram Schaffar Im Dialog In Dialogue 149 “Trust Me, I Am the One Who Will Drain the Swamp”: An Interview With Walden Bello on Fascism in the Global South Wolfram Schaffar Rezensionen Book Reviews 157 Book Review: Robinson, B. G. (2018). The Killing Season. A History of the Indonesian Massacres, 1965-66. Timo Duile Editorial The Political Economy of New Authoritarianism in Southeast Asia Rainer Einzenberger & Wolfram Schaffar ► Einzenberger, R., & Schaffar, W. (2018). The political economy of new authoritarianism in Southeast Asia. Austrian Journal of South-East Asian Studies, 11(1), 1-12. INTRODUCTION Over the past years, the deterioration of democracy and the rise of authoritar- ian forms of governance have been a growing global phenomenon. In the Global North, this became painfully clear not least since the establishment of right-wing governments in Hungary and Poland, or the election victory of Donald Trump in November 2016. Southeast Asia is certainly no exception to this trend (Chacko & Jayasuriya, 2018; Docena, 2018; Kurlantzick, 2014). With General Prayuth Chan-o-cha in Thailand (2014) and Rodrigo Duterte in the Philippines (2016), two more ‘strongmen’ joined the ranks of authoritarian leaders in a region that is departing fast from democratic pathways. They follow a law and order attitude reflected in statements such as that of General Prayuth who warned of “obses- sion with rights” which could “lead to anarchy” (“Obsession With rights”, 2017). Duterte's central message is that the Philippines suffer from elites who care too much about Western notions of human rights and Western democracy (Bello, this volume; Focus on the Global South, 2017; Juego, 2017). Several recent sur- veys confirm the authoritarian trend in Southeast Asia. The Democracy Index 2017, for example, listed six out of ten nations of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) (Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam) as unfree, two (Indonesia and Malaysia) as largely free and only Timor- Leste as partly free (Brunei not included). None of the countries was considered as fully free (The Economist Intelligence Unit, 2018). www.seas.at doi 10.14764/10.ASEAS-2018.1-1 www.seas.at Meanwhile, research on new authoritarianism has emerged as a dynamic field in different disciplinary and regional epistemic communities. Due to the global scope of the issue, its political relevance and its highly contested nature, emerg- ing debates are very vibrant, and yet fragmented. This fragmentation is mirrored, firstly, in the variety of concepts which are being used – the most prominent being authoritarianism, populism, and fascism – sometimes in combinations or with specifying adjectives (authoritarian populism, populist authoritarianism, right-wing populism, right-wing authoritarianism, authoritarian neo-liberalism, etc.). For this special issue, we will use new authoritarianism as an umbrella term – in singular, without suggesting that it denotes a single well-defined homo- geneous concept or regime type (for a different approach see Docena, 2018). Secondly, the dynamism and fragmentation of the debate