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313 results in Books and Monographs

Page 1 of 16

S. Rajaratnam, The Authorised Biography
  • The Lion's Roar
  • Irene Ng
  • Published by:
    ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute
    Published online:
    10 July 2025
    Print publication:
    18 July 2024
  • S. Rajaratnam, one of Singapore’s core founding fathers and its first Foreign Minister, was a man of ideas, ideals and action. In engaging prose, Irene Ng, bestselling author of the first volume of Rajaratnam’s biography, The Singapore Lion, reveals - as never before - how Rajaratnam changed the course of his country’s history, often by the sheer force of his ideas and will. The second volume, The Lion’s Roar, begins with his struggles during Singapore’s traumatic years in Malaysia from 1963 to 1965. Informed by decades of research, numerous interviews, and access to Mr Rajaratnam’s private and government papers, the book gives new insight into his personality and priorities as he was confronted with Singapore’s sudden independence, which left the island exposed to all the calamities of a vulnerable state.

S. Rajaratnam, The Authorised Biography
  • The Singapore Lion
  • Irene Ng
  • Published by:
    ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute
    Published online:
    09 July 2025
    Print publication:
    06 May 2024
  • S. Rajaratnam was one of the most significant and influential founding fathers of modern Singapore. This first volume of Irene Ng’s biography of Rajaratnam gives unparalleled insight into his early life and influences. The riveting story spans his birth in 1915 to Singapore’s independence as part of Malaysia in 1963, arguably the most formative years in his life and also for the nation on the cusp of independence. It traces his family roots in Ceylon and Malaya, his political awakening in London during the Second World War, and his transformation into a crusading journalist and feisty politician in Singapore.

Governing Urban Indonesia
  • Edited by Edward Aspinall, Amalinda Savirani
  • Published by:
    ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute
    Published online:
    05 July 2025
    Print publication:
    26 August 2024
  • Indonesia has become a majority urban society. Despite the classic images of rice fields, volcanoes and rural life we often associate with the country, now almost 60 per cent of Indonesia's people live in cities, towns, suburbs, gated communities and other urban areas. Urbanisation has brought with it a familiar range of problems, including some of the worst traffic jams and air pollution in the world, housing scarcity, periodic flooding and dramatic land subsidence. These problems pose massive challenges to Indonesian governments as they try to provide clean water, public transport, housing, garbage disposal and other services to urban dwellers. Governing Urban Indonesia brings together scholars and practitioners with diverse backgrounds to examine how urbanisation is remaking Indonesia, and how governments are responding. It focuses on how varied political patterns are shaping urban governance, enabling some cities to pioneer improved service delivery and better public amenities for their citizens, while others stagnate. And it brings to bear multiple perspectives on how historical legacies, changing residential patterns, social inequality and myriad other factors are combining to produce a new social and political landscape across urban Indonesia.

Praetorian Kingdom
  • A History of Military Ascendancy in Thailand
  • Paul Chambers
  • Published by:
    ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute
    Published online:
    05 July 2025
    Print publication:
    26 August 2024
  • 'This is one of the most comprehensive studies of contemporary Thai politics seen through the careers of Thai military leaders since 1932 up until now. It is of vital importance if one is to understand present-day Thai politics.' Kullada Kesboonchoo-Mead, Chulalongkorn University (retired) and author of 'The Rise and Decline of Thai Absolutism'.

A Myanmar Miscellany
  • Selected Articles, 2007-2023
  • Andrew Selth
  • Published by:
    ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute
    Published online:
    03 July 2025
    Print publication:
    02 September 2024
  • Andrew Selth has been watching Myanmar for fifty years. During this time, he has published ten books and more than four hundred other works about the country. In 2020, he released a collection of almost one hundred articles that had been posted on the Lowy Institute's Interpreter website. This second anthology brings together another seventy-two articles, written for a range of outlets between 2007 and 2023. This period saw the installation of a 'disciplined democracy' under Aung San Suu Kyi, the 2021 military coup, and the country's descent into a bitter civil war. Many of the articles in the book deal with international relations and security issues, but there are also works on Myanmar's history, politics and culture, as well as some personal reminiscences. Together, they make a unique contribution from an Old Myanmar Hand with wide ranging interests and insights.

Visiting Sexual Exploitation
  • How Should Indonesia Strengthen Its Policies to Curb Sex Work in Response to Its Extramarital Sex Criminalization
  • Jason Hung
  • Published by:
    ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute
    Published online:
    16 April 2024
    Print publication:
    01 February 2024
  • Similar to neighbouring Southeast Asian countries, Indonesia is, simultaneously, infamous for its prevailing sex tourism economy, sex industry and sex trafficking activities. On 6 December 2022, Indonesia's parliament passed the criminal code to criminalize extramarital sex. The anti-extramarital sex legalization was established to help reinforce Indonesia's stance of disallowing sexual behaviours beyond marital relationships. Those who engage in extramarital sex, per the criminal code, are sentenced to up to a year in prison.

    This book responds to Indonesia's latest legislation that passed the criminal code of criminalizing any act of extramarital sex. The premise in this book is that, by criminalizing extramarital sex, the Indonesian government aims to crack down on the local prostitution industry to minimize any act of sexual exploitation, prostitution and sex trafficking. It presents how cracking down on the local or regional prostitution industry cannot be accomplished by simply taking legislative actions.

    It examines and analyses how sex work is socio-economically and institutionally constructed. It presents the underlying unequal power of relations in Indonesian society that facilitates sexual exploitation, especially against disadvantaged children and women. It highlights the policymaking discourse on how local Indonesian policymakers should respond to such an unequal power of relations and the prevalence of sex work. Moreover, it visits the anti-extramarital sex legislation in order to explain how the Indonesian government should endeavour to crack down on its domestic sex industry in order to uphold the values of human rights and lower the prevalence of the practice of commercial sex.

Gender Equality and Diversity in Indonesia
  • Identifying Progress and Challenges
  • Edited by Angie Bexley, Sarah Xue Dong, Diahhadi Setyonaluri
  • Published by:
    ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute
    Published online:
    26 March 2024
    Print publication:
    31 October 2023
  • Over the past 20 years, gender relations and the expression of power and authority between men and women in Indonesia have been shaped by the forces of reformasi, decentralisation, a reassertion of central power, and economic transitions. These changes have given rise to policy reform, an increase in women's political representation, and new expressions of diverse gender identities. But to what extent has the 'gender order' of the New Order, where women's role as a mother was the basis of citizenship, been challenged or just found new articulations? What shape do contemporary contestations to gendered power take? The chapters in this volume bring gender to the centre stage and provide reflections on the political, economic, social, and cultural progress and barriers in achieving gender equality and diversity in Indonesia.

Chinese Investments in Southeast Asia
  • Patterns and Significance
  • Evelyn Goh, Nan Liu
  • Published by:
    ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute
    Published online:
    26 March 2024
    Print publication:
    06 September 2023
  • Southeast Asia's growing economic linkages with China have generated political opportunities and strategic concerns in equal measure. This study provides a fuller picture of Chinese investments in Southeast Asia for those seeking to understand its significance and impacts. From their carefully constructed dataset, Goh and Liu provide a regionwide, multi-sectoral analysis quantitative survey and analysis of key changes in Chinese investments in Southeast Asian economies over fifteen years, from 2005 to 2019. Additionally, they provide a qualitative assessment of the geopolitical significance of these trends and patterns. Thus, this study creates a baseline understanding of more recent Chinese investments in the region. In the near future, when a feasible data series can be collated for the years from 2020, it will also allow a sharper analysis of the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on Chinese investments in the region.

Port Security and Preman Organizations in Indonesia
  • Senia Febrica
  • Published by:
    ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute
    Published online:
    01 March 2024
    Print publication:
    15 August 2023
  • The global war on terrorism created pressure for Indonesia to improve its security measures for dealing with maritime terrorism. Following the 9/11 attacks and the 2002 Bali bombings, Indonesia has improved the security of its major ports and entered various international agreements to ensure its trading activities are not impeded. At the same time, in a bid to secure small ports and coastal areas in various parts of the country, preman-self-supporting, autonomous paramilitary-organizations began to play a greater role. This book explores the involvement of preman organizations in securing ports and coastlines in Jakarta, North Sulawesi, and the Riau Islands. The security of ports and coastal areas in the three provinces is of international importance because of their proximity to major sea lanes of communication. This book carefully maps out the tensions, contradictions, and implications of the use of preman organizations in the realization of Indonesia's efforts to be a truly democratic civil society.

Transforming Borneo
  • From Land Exploitation to Sustainable Development
  • Chun Sheng Goh, Lesley Potter
  • Published by:
    ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute
    Published online:
    27 February 2024
    Print publication:
    09 March 2023
  • 'There is an energizing boldness in this synthesis: the right big-picture questions aligning all the way down to the right complexities on the ground, and across the diverse territories that comprise contemporary Borneo. A manifesto for the kinds of cross-sectoral and applied research that can make the difference to the future of Borneo.' - Cynthia Ong, Chief Executive Facilitator, Forever Sabah

    'A surgical and timely compendium on the transformation of Borneo's forests and land use with clear regional implications. If you care about the future of conservation in this part of the world, you will find all the key ingredients here for its salvation.' - Gopalasamy Reuben Clements, Professor at Sunway University, Co-founder of Nature-Based Solutions

    'A perspective about balancing the future amidst the need for economic and social development while providing a better and more sustainable Borneo. It is something that you will need to help drive home change and make a sustainable impact for people and planet without compromising profit.' - Timothy Ong, Head of Circular Bio-economy Unit, Malaysian Investment Development Authority (MIDA)

Just Another Crisis?
  • The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Southeast Asia's Rice Sector
  • Edited by Jamie Seth Davidson
  • Published by:
    ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute
    Published online:
    27 February 2024
    Print publication:
    17 May 2023
  • 'This timely volume chronicles and analyses the intersection of rice policies and the pandemic through case studies of a diverse range of Southeast Asian countries: rice exporters, rice importers and city-states. There is no group of eminent researchers better suited to carrying out this work, and they conduct the analysis by illuminating the historical context that is essential to an understanding of rice policies in the region. This volume is a must-read for anyone interested in rice policies and politics in contemporary Southeast Asia.' - David Dawe, Former Senior Economist with the International Rice Research Institute and the Food and Agricultural Organization.

    'This is highly recommended reading for those interested in an up-to-date and in-depth treatment of the political economy of rice policies in five major ASEAN countries, one chapter per country. While the book title indicates a topical focus on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Southeast Asia's rice sector, these chapters are much more than this, giving considerable historical context leading up to the outbreak of the pandemic and looking forward after the pandemic.' - Howarth Bouis, Laureate, World Food Prize; Emeritus Fellow, International Food Policy Research Institute

Stability, Growth and Sustainability
  • Catalysts for Socio-economic Development in Brunei Darussalam
  • Edited by Aris Ananta, Chang-Yau Hoon, Mahani Hamdan
  • Published by:
    ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute
    Published online:
    10 January 2024
    Print publication:
    18 January 2023
  • As in many other oil and gas dependent countries, Brunei Darussalam - a country with a small population but the second highest income per capita in Southeast Asia - has been diversifying its economy in three sectors: from oil and gas to other sectors of export/economic growth; from the dominance of public sector employment to a more balanced public and private sectors employment; and from heavy dependence on foreign labours to development of local talents. This book examines the current socio-economic development in the journey toward a diversified social economy, as targeted in Brunei Vision 2035. By examining the unique context of Brunei, this book fills in the gap on studies focusing on socio-economic diversification. It highlights the importance of the environment, digital technology and human capital in the diversification process. The book culminates with analyses on business, economy, employment and welfare in Brunei toward 2035, with a new face: a digitalized, sustainable and self-reliant society with a highly developed human capital and a flourishing private sector.

In Sickness and In Health
  • Diagnosing Indonesia
  • Edited by Firman Witoelar, Ariane Utomo
  • Published by:
    ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute
    Published online:
    09 January 2024
    Print publication:
    27 November 2022
  • Despite significant improvements in many health outcomes over the past sixty years, many chronic problems in Indonesia's health system including financial sustainability, governance and inequities in accessing health care have long been apparent, even before the COVID-19 pandemic. The epidemiological transition associated with demographic and socioeconomic change in recent decades makes Indonesia one of many countries that still struggle to address the issues of communicable, maternal and nutritional diseases while facing an increasing burden of non-communicable diseases.

    The contributors to In Sickness and In Health: Diagnosing Indonesia investigate challenges and opportunities facing the Indonesian health system and assess hurdles that Indonesians have to navigate in their quest to achieve a longer and better quality of life. Politics shaping recent health policy reforms in Indonesia, barriers to the supply of specialist doctors and quality medicines, availability of accurate health and population data, and the financial toll of the COVID-19 pandemic are among the topics discussed in this book. Accessing essential health services for mothers and children and for those living with disability, discrimination and mental illness, as well as an innovative trial to control dengue, are also examined.

Reaching for the Crescent
  • Aspirations of Singapore Islamic Studies Graduates and the Challenges
  • Norshahril Saat, Azhar Ibrahim, Noor Aisha Abdul Rahman
  • Published by:
    ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute
    Published online:
    01 September 2023
  • Islamic religious teachers (asatizah) and scholars (ulama) play a significant role in providing spiritual leadership for the Singapore Malay/Muslim community. Lately, the group has been cast under the spotlight over a range of issues, from underperformance in the national examination, their ability to integrate into the broader society, exposure to radical and conservative ideas such as Salafism from the Middle East, and unemployment. Reaching for the Crescent examines a growing segment within the group, namely Islamic studies graduates, who obtained their degrees from universities in the Middle East and neighbouring Malaysia and Indonesia. It identifies factors that condition the proliferation of Islamic studies graduates in Singapore, examine the dominant religious institutions they attend, the nature of Islamic education they received, and their challenges. It tackles the impact of their religious education on the spiritual life and well-being of the community. Based on qualitative and quantitative data collected, the book calls for a rethinking of a prevailing discourse of Arabization of Singapore Muslims and academic approaches that focus on madrasah education and Islam through the security lens.

Indonesia's Foreign Policy under Suharto
  • Aspiring to International Leadership
  • 2nd edition
  • Leo Suryadinata
  • Published by:
    ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute
    Published online:
    01 September 2023
  • The book, which was first published in 1996, examines Indonesia's foreign policy under Suharto. It not only details Indonesia's foreign policy behaviour vis-à-vis Indonesia's neighbours and major powers, but also places it in the context of foreign policy analysis. Today, the book remains as the only full-length study on Indonesia's foreign policy under Suharto. It is now reprinted with a new postscript which discusses the post-Suharto era from B. J. Habibie to Joko Widodo.

    Indonesia under Suharto had attempted to become a regional power to lead Southeast Asian states and beyond. As the largest country and also the richest in terms of natural resources, Suharto's Indonesia was held in deference by the ASEAN states. However, due to its limited capabilities, its lack of military strength, advanced technology and economic strength, the political influence of Jakarta was in fact quite limited. During the economic crisis, Suharto was forced to step down. He was succeeded by B. J. Habibie who was largely preoccupied with domestic issues, who in turn was followed by weak presidencies such as Abdurrahman Wahid (Gus Dur) and Megawati. Only after the ex-general Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono assumed presidency did he manage to stabilize the situation and attained economic growth. He even became known as the 'Foreign Policy President'. Nevertheless, he was constrained by the harsh Indonesian reality: limited resources, a weak military and absence of political influence. His successor Joko Widodo has been more concerned with economic matters and domestic politics; Indonesian regional leadership declines further.

Capitalism Magic Thailand
  • Modernity with Enchantment
  • Peter A. Jackson
  • Published by:
    ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute
    Published online:
    01 September 2023
    Print publication:
    02 January 2022
  • By studying intersections among new cults of wealth, ritually empowered amulets and professional spirit mediumship - which have emerged together in Thailand's dynamic religious field in recent decades - Capitalism Magic Thailand explores the conditions under which global modernity produces new varieties of enchantment. Bruno Latour's account of modernity as a condition fractured between rationalizing ideology and hybridizing practice is expanded to explain the apparent paradox of new forms of magical ritual emerging alongside religious fundamentalism across a wide range of Asian societies. In Thailand, novel and increasingly popular varieties of ritual now form a symbolic complex in which originally distinct cults centred on Indian deities, Chinese gods and Thai religious and royal figures have merged in commercial spaces and media sites to sacralize the market and wealth production. Emerging within popular culture, this complex of cults of wealth, amulets and spirit mediumship is supported by all levels of Thai society, including those at the acme of economic and political power. New theoretical frameworks are presented in analyses that challenge the view that magic is a residue of premodernity, placing the dramatic transformations of cultic ritual centre stage in modern Thai history. It is concluded that modern enchantment arises at the confluence of three processes: neoliberal capitalism's production of occult economies, the auraticizing effects of technologies of mass mediatization, and the performative force of ritual in religious fields where practice takes precedence over doctrine.

COVID-19 and the Structural Crises of Our Time

Myanmar (Burma) since the 1988 Uprising
  • A Select Bibliography
  • 4th edition
  • Andrew Selth
  • Published by:
    ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute
    Published online:
    01 September 2023
  • Updated by popular demand, this is the fourth edition of this important bibliography. It lists a wide selection of works on or about Myanmar published in English and in hard copy since the 1988 pro-democracy uprising, which marked the beginning of a new era in Myanmar's modern history. There are now 2,727 titles listed. They have been written, edited, translated or compiled by over two thousand people, from many different backgrounds. These works have been organized into thirty-five subject chapters containing ninety-five discrete sections. There are also four appendices, including a comprehensive reading guide for those unfamiliar with Myanmar or who may be seeking guidance on particular topics. This book is an invaluable aid to officials, scholars, journalists, armchair travellers and others with an interest in this fascinating but deeply troubled country.

The Creative South
  • Buddhist and Hindu Art in Mediaeval Maritime Asia
  • Edited by Andrea Acri, Peter Sharrock
  • Published by:
    ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute
    Published online:
    01 September 2023
  • This edited volume programmatically reconsiders the creative contribution of the littoral and insular regions of Maritime Asia to shaping new paradigms in the Buddhist and Hindu art and architecture of the mediaeval Asian world. Far from being a mere southern conduit for the maritime circulation of Indic religions, in the period from circa the seventh to the fourteenth-century those regions transformed across mainland and island polities the rituals, icons, and architecture that embodied these religious insights with a dynamism that often eclipsed the established cultural centres in Northern India, Central Asia, and mainland China. This collective body of work brings together new research aiming to recalibrate the importance of these innovations in art and architecture, thereby highlighting the cultural creativity of the monsoon-influenced Southern rim of the Asian landmass.

Peranakan Chinese Identities in the Globalizing Malay Archipelago
  • Leo Suryadinata
  • Published by:
    ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute
    Published online:
    01 September 2023
  • Peranakan Chinese communities and their 'hybrid' culture have fascinated many observers. This book, comprising fourteen chapters, was mainly based on papers written by the author in the last two decades. The chapters address Peranakan Chinese cultural, national and political identities in the Malay Archipelago, i.e., Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore (IMS). This book is divided into two parts. Part I which is on the regional dimension, contains nine chapters that discuss the three countries and beyond. Part II consists of five chapters which focus on one country, i.e., Indonesia. This book not only discusses the past and the present, but also the future of the Peranakan Chinese.

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