isas newsletter 15

A ‘New’ Japan andPossible Implications forJapan-India Relations

Issue No. 15 • April 2010

SOUTH ASIAA publication of the Institute of South Asian Studies

In This IssueA ‘New’ Japan and Possible Implications for Japan-India RelationsIndian Newspapers: The Revolution ContinuesAfghanistan after the ElectionsNepal: Whither the Peace ProcessCounter-Terrorism in Pakistan: The Next Steps

MICA (P) 128/04/2010

South Asia enters a new decade amidst several opportunitiesand challenges. Led by India, the largest economy in theregion, economic growth in most of the region hasrebounded strongly after a year-long economic downturn.There is growing optimism that India will return to its highgrowth trajectory in the coming quarters. Bangladesh’seconomic performance has continued to remain satisfactorydespite the global financial crisis and, projections regardingthe economy are distinctly upbeat. Sri Lanka’s near termeconomic prospects look bright following an end to

prolonged ethnic hostilities and reconstruction initiatives.

Most of the region appears to be enjoying the much-desired political stability. The UnitedProgress Alliance (UPA) government in India has hardly encountered any major politicalchallenge since its re-election in May 2009. In more recent months, however, Maoistviolence is threatening to emerge as a major threat to internal security. The past oneyear following the Parliamentary elections in Bangladesh has also witnessed a peacefulpolitical environment. Peaceful conclusion of the Presidential and Parliamentary electionsin Sri Lanka is expected to consolidate the process of economic recovery and ethnicreintegration. The presidential election in Afghanistan has kept Hamid Karzai in officealbeit amidst controversies. American military presence in Afghanistan is expected toincrease. Whether this will introduce new complexities in the strategic dynamics of theregion remains to be seen.

The sharp improvement in India-Bangladesh relations following the Bangladeshi PrimeMinister’s trip to India augurs well for the region. It is expected that Nepal and Bhutanwill also benefit from the wider regional cooperation efforts emanating from the Dhaka-Delhi engagements. India’s relationships with key extra-regional actors such as Japanand the United States (US) are also seen to be improving as is noticeable from the positiveimpressions gathered following the visit of the Japanese Prime Minister to India and theIndian Prime Minister’s visit to the US.

South Asia, however, continues to face critical challenges. People in Nepal await therestoration of the peace process and unveiling of a new constitution for guaranteeingdemocratic rights and a better economic future. The problems in Pakistan continue toremain complex. While the war on terror remains the key focus of the government, theruling establishment is struggling to cope with internal friction between differentstakeholders. The Supreme Court’s ruling on the National Reconciliation Ordinanceproviding legal amnesty to significant political and government personalities on corruptioncharges has created considerable pressure on the government.

ISAS continues monitoring the developments in the region and those beyond its bordersthat may have implications for the region. In order to sharpen and streamline its researchagenda, the institute has grouped its research efforts into five thematic clusters: Economicsand Trade Policy; Multilateral and International Linkages; Politics and Governance; Security;and South Asia and Economic Change.

As in the past, ISAS has also been organising several events highlighting the developments,issues and priorities in the region. The high-profile, ‘Singapore Symposium’, held in NewDelhi in December 2009 explored possibilities of cooperation between India and Singaporein the fields of education, infrastructure and governance. Other notable events in recentmonths include the ISAS flagship annual conference and a workshop on prospects ofgreater engagement between China and India organised jointly with the East AsianInstitute.

We hope you enjoy the coverage in this issue of the newsletter. As always, we lookforward to your comments and suggestions.

Tan Tai Yong

Director ’s Message

Editorial InformationSouth Asia is a newsletter of the Institute of SouthAsian Studies. You may send your comments to:

The EditorSouth AsiaInstitute of South Asian Studies469A Bukit Timah Road#07-01, Tower BlockSingapore 259770Tel : (65) 6516 4054Fax : (65) 6776 7505Email : [email protected]

No part of this newsletter should be published withoutthe consent of the Editor, South Asia.

2 SOUTH ASIA: Issue No. 15 - April 2010

Contents

Cover Story

• A ‘New’ Japan and Possible Implicationsfor Japan-India Relations

Feature Stories

• Indian Newspapers: The Revolution Continues

• Afghanistan after the Elections

• Nepal: Whither the Peace Process

• Counter-Terrorism in Pakistan:The Next Steps

An Eye on South Asia

• Bangladesh• Bhutan• Maldives• Nepal• Pakistan• Sri Lanka

Corporate News

• New Researchers• New Administrative Staff

Publications & Programmes

• Latest Books• Publications• Events

A ‘New’ Japan andPossible Implications

for Japan-IndiaRelations

The victory of the Democratic Party of Japan(DPJ) in the Japanese elections in August2009 signalled a potential “revolution” inJapan’s domestic and foreign policies.

Much has happened since the DPJ cameto power, with some implications for Japan-India relations. The rest of this piecesketches the significance of some of theseevents within the context of four areas.

Climate Change and CopenhagenAs part of its approach to the CopenhagenSummit, Japan’s new government hadearlier made a commitment to cut itsgreenhouse gas emissions by 25 per centby the year 2020 from 1990 levels. This isa considerable increase in comparison tothe eight per cent target pledged by theearlier Liberal Democratic Party (LDP)government. In real terms, this is asignificant pledge for a country which isthe fifth largest emitter of greenhousegases. Before the Copenhagen Summit,Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyamaand Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh

Cover Story

had publicly “agreed to work together in apositive and constructive way on the climatechange issue”, with India, announcing onthe eve of the summit, a pledge to cut itscarbon intensity by 25 per cent by 2020,compared to 2005 levels.

India, together with China and the UnitedStates (US), played a leading role informulating the final agreement reachedin the Copenhagen Summit in December2009. Clearly, there is a variation inapproach between India and Japan onthis issue. India, together with China, hastaken the position that major developedeconomies like Japan should commit tosignificantly deeper cuts in greenhouseemissions on the principle of “commonbut differentiated responsibilities”. PrimeMinister Hatoyama, on the other hand,recently rejected a request from the UnitedNations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon,

SOUTH ASIA: Issue No. 15 - April 2010 3

for Japan to act to meet its ambitiousgreenhouse gas emiss ion targetunconditionally, saying “Tokyo needs aninternational framework covering all majoremitters to do so”. The next climate changesummit is scheduled to take place inMexico at the end of 2010. But, it is unclearat this moment how much political capitalthe DPJ government will invest into nudging“major emitters” into making legally bindingdeeper emission pledges.

The Nuclear DimensionThe nuclear dimension has been a significantfactor in relations between Japan and India.Japan suspended all political exchangeswith India and froze all economic assistancefor a period of close to three years whenIndia conducted its nuclear tests in 1998,and Tokyo publicly condemned India’snuclear tests in the harshest of tones. But,over time, Japan-India relations have

Sinderpal SinghResearch Fellow

Institute of South Asian Studies

Overall, in the nuclearfield, both on the NPT(and consequently oncivilian nuclear trade),and the CTBT, bilateralrelations have beengiven a boost in therecent months since theDPJ came to power.

improved, with India’s nuclear programmecasting less of a shadow on bilateralrelations.

The DPJ era, initially at least, seemed tospell new difficulties for bilateral ties in thenuclear field. Significantly for India, the DPJ’spolicy manifesto represented the US-Indiacivilian nuclear agreement as sending “thewrong message” to states like Iran andNorth Korea. In this, it seemed to share theUS President Barack Obama administration’sbroad stress on the importance of bringingmore countries under the Non-ProliferationTreaty (NPT) as part of a global pact onnuclear weapon and technology proliferation.Recent developments, however, show apossible softening of Japan’s line on theNPT. The report of the InternationalCommission on Nuclear Non-Proliferationand Disarmament (ICNND), co-chaired byJapan with Australia and released in Tokyoon 15 December 2009 recommends theestablishment of a parallel nuclear non-proliferation system for non-NPT states likeIndia. In this proposed parallel system, forstates that are not signatories to the NPT,“provided they satisfy strong objective criteriademonstrating commitment to disarmamentand non-proliferation, and sign up to specificfuture commitments in this respect, thesestates should have access to nuclearmaterials and technology for civilianpurposes on the same basis as an NPTmember”. The ICNND proposals couldprovide an avenue for Japan to commencecivilian nuclear trade with India since theJapanese nuclear industry, with supportfrom the Ministry of Economy, Trade andIndustry, has been placing significantpressure on the government over the yearsto allow Japanese companies to participatein India’s nuclear programme.

Even the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty(CTBT) is gradually becoming less of anobstacle to bilateral relations in light of recentdevelopments. During his recent trip to India,Prime Minister Hatoyama had publicly askedIndia to sign the CTBT. In response PrimeMinister Singh outlined India’s position andstated that “should the US and China ratifythe CTBT, a new situation will emerge”. Thiseffectively defers, into the medium future,the issue of the CTBT in this bilateralrelationship by shifting the onus of ratifyingthe treaty onto the US and China. Overall,in the nuclear field, both on the NPT (and

consequently on civilian nuclear trade) andthe CTBT, bilateral relations have been givena boost in the recent months since the DPJcame to power.

Economic CooperationEconomic relations between Japan andIndia have been growing steadily in recentyears. Bilateral trade has nearly doubledfrom US$5.4 billion in 2004-05 to US$10.9billion in 2008-09. Direct investment fromJapan to India has also grown rapidly fromUS$126 million in 2004-05 to more thanUS$1 billion during April-November 2009-10. Japan is currently the fifth largest sourcecountry for foreign direct investment in India.Additionally, in December 2006, Japan andIndia agreed to initiate negotiations for abilateral Economic Partnership Agreement(EPA). Though the EPA has gone throughtwelve rounds of negotiations, it is yet tobe finalised. Negotiations on the EPA areongoing.

The Japanese government is also a majorpartner in what would be India’s largestinfrastructural project, the Dedicated FreightCorridor (DFC). The DFC will involve buildinga 3,300 km railway network exclusively forfreight movement, with two freight corridors,from Mumbai to Delhi and West Bengal toPunjab respectively. Prime MinisterHatoyama has indicated that hisgovernment places great importance in thisproject, urging Prime Minister Singh toimplement the projects “at the earliest”.

In the economic sphere, Japan-Indiarelations do not appear to have deviated inany meaningful fashion. Both sides seemkeen to pursue the finalisation of the EPA.The political will on both sides does notseem to be wavering on this count. Similarly,with the DFC, the new Japanesegovernment seems committed to moveahead with pledges made by the earliergovernment.

Strategic-Political-Military Ties One of the major symbols of closer relationsin recent years was the release of the “JointStatement on the Advancement of theStrategic and Global Partnership betweenJapan and India” in 2008. One of the centralelements of this joint statement referred todeveloping common approaches to variousregional and global institutions and globalissues like terrorism and world trade. In the

A ‘New’ Japan and Possible Implications for Japan-India Relations


security-military sphere, the JapaneseMaritime Self-Defense Forces (SDF) alsoparticipated in the “Malabar 07-2” exerciseshosted by India. Coast guards from bothcountries have also participated in joint anti-piracy exercises since 2000.

Such Japanese efforts appeared to derivefrom it’s uneasiness with China’s growingeconomic and consequently, strategic-political power. However, the DPJ’s initialposition on China appears to be appreciablydifferent. It aims to build closer relationswith China, rejecting what it sees as earlierattempts by certain sections, in both Tokyoand Washington, to contain China. It alsoaims to build a more “equal” associationwith its traditional military partner, the US.Prime Minister Hatoyama’s recent proposalat the East Asian Summit (EAS) of a futureEast Asian Community (EAC), though,includes India, by virtue of the latter beingpart of the EAS process.

Prime Minister Hatoyama’s summit meetingwith Prime Minister Singh in New Delhi inDecember 2009 has been largely seen asa signal that the DPJ wants to continue anddeepen the strategic-political engagementits predecessor governments had forgedwith India. During his visit – designed to fulfila 2006 bilateral commitment to hold anannual summit meeting – both sides agreedon action plans to hold regular viceministerial-level dialogues on foreign policyand defence matters, as well as maritimesecurity dialogues to safeguard the passageof commercial ships in the Indian Ocean.This summit meeting has largely assuagedfears in certain quarters in New Delhi aboutthe commitment of the DPJ government tobuilding on the momentum in strategic-political ties forged with earlier Japanesegovernments. In this case at least, there isdiscernible relief that a “revolution” inthe Japanese policy is not imminent.

Much of the world has been watching, withanticipation, how the DPJ government willimplement its “revolution” in Japanesepolitics. In terms of Japan-India relations,despite earlier fears, the DPJ governmentnow seems largely very keen to continuewith past policy. In that respect, there isnow much optimism for the future of thisbi lateral relationship under a DPJgovernment.


India’s newspaper revolution continues. Butas the rewards become greater and thestakes higher, age-old questions of ethicsacquire a new magnitude.

The Parliamentary elections in May 2009generated a host of charges about the useof newspaper influence to extract largesums of money from desperate candidates

and political parties.P. Sainath in The Hindu(26 October 2009)summed up many of thecharges, which werefurther explored in TheHoot online in November2009. At the core areallegations that majornewspapers, especiallyin Andhra Pradesh andMaharashtra, so ldfavourable coverage ata high price – the“advertorial” carried toits logical conclusion.“Their poll-period take,”Sainath wrote, “ isestimated to be inhundreds of millions ofrupees.”

There is nothing new injournalists being on thetake or in newspapersp a d d l i n g t h e i rproprietor’s canoes.Newspaper owners

have interests, and their newspapers oftenreflect those interests. Among thoseinterests is profit, which can be gleaned inmany ways, some of which do notnecessarily fit with heroic legends of a freepress. What is new in India is the magnitudeof the sums allegedly changing hands, and

Robin JeffreyVisiting Research Professor


Indian Newspapers:The Revolution Continues

the fact that Indian-language newspapersare now regarded as key players in thepower-and-influence game. Twenty yearsearlier that game was chiefly seen as“English only.”

Explosive increases in daily newspapercirculations (in 13 major languages and 11different scripts) are the essence of India’snewspaper revolution. Between 2000 and2007, the figures of the Registrar ofNewspapers for India indicate that thecirculation of daily newspapers increasedby 66 per cent – to more than 95 millioncopies a day (Figure 1). In the West, dailynewspaper circulations fell in the first fiveyears of the twenty-first century – by 10per cent in the United Kingdom (UK), eightper cent in Europe as a whole and four percent in the United States (US). In NorthAmerica and the UK, newspapers close; inIndia, newspaper chains open centres insmaller towns off the beaten track.

The newspaper revolution began when MrsGandhi’s “emergency” ended in 1977. Twothings happened. First, a thirst forinformation, pent up after 19 months ofcensorship, spurred journalists and owners:it was an opportunity to make money orbuild a career, sometimes both. Second,the arrival of cheap computers liberatedIndian scripts. In the days of metal type, itcould take 900 individual letter-shapes todo justice to a script like Devanagari (inwhich the national language, Hindi, is written)or Malayalam (the language of the state ofKerala). Typography was limited; productionwas slow. But once computer software wasmarried to the offset press the making of aletter was no longer a problem for metallurgy.Words could be composed on a computer,produced in many different fonts and printedin thousands of copies from an offset plate

Feature Story

Source: Press in India (New Delhi: Registrar ofNewspapers for India, for relevant years).

Figure 1


made by photography. Indian scripts wereset free.

In 1979, daily newspaper circulations inHindi, spoken by about 40 per cent ofIndians, exceeded those of English dailies(used by no more than five per cent of thepopulation) for the first time. Today, nine ofIndia’s 13 big languages have dailynewspaper circulations larger than that ofAustralia (i.e., more than 2.9 million copiesa day). Even Assamese, the smallest of the13 languages, claimed sales of 600,000papers a day in 2007. Hindi, the nationallanguage, was selling more than 40 millioncopies a day, an increase of 65 per centin seven years.

Politics and capitalism have propelled thenewspaper revolution. As a growingproportion of India’s people became caughtup in political and social organisations –the “emergency” of 1975-7, for example,dragged many people into politicalawareness – a desire for information grew.This process was first seen in the state ofKerala, for generations the most literatecorner of India, where newspaper

penetration reached levels in the 1960sthat other parts of India are onlyapproaching today. Kerala was home inthe twentieth century to profound socialchange and fierce political rivalry betweenCommunists and anti-Communists; everyinterest ran a newspaper.

The other bullock in the cart that has pulled

newspaper circulations upward is consumercapitalism and the advertising that isinseparable from it. In the 1980s, asconstraints on production of consumergoods diminished, manufacturers soughtto push their products into new markets –smaller towns and the countryside.Proprietors of Indian-language newspapers,which until then had received only a paltryshare of a small national advertisingexpenditure, offered ways of reaching newcustomers who did not use English. To winlucrative national advertisements from majorbrands, newspaper proprietors looked fornew readers in untouched localities.Incentives to do this increased with the“liberalisation” of the Indian economy from1991.

The spread of television has cut intonewspapers’ share of the advertising cake.But the cake has grown so mightily that forthe past 15 years there has been enoughfor everyone. Indeed, in the 1990s, theexpenditure on advertising in India wasestimated to have grown by an average of30 per cent a year. This growth waspropelled by an explosion of commercial

television; today an estimated 120 millionIndian households have a television. Onsuch calculations, about half of India sleepseach night in a place with a TV set.

In the twenty-first century, print still securesabout half of advertising expenditure, dividedroughly 50:50 between English-languageprint and all 13 of the major Indian languages

combined. “English” scores so well becauseit acts as a proxy to identify the wealthiestsection of the population, in front of whoseeyes the biggest-spending advertisers wantto put their products.

There are two views about the social andpolitical consequences of this multi-languagenewspaper revolution. One contends thatthe growth of a number of big dailies,publishing in local languages from manydifferent centres, fragments a public spherethat was once nationally focused and broad-visioned. It has been replaced, the argumentgoes, by fragmented, consumer-orientedpublic spheres – in the plural – dedicatedto petty local events and profits forproprietors.

A different view holds that though the vastgrowth is driven by consumer capitalism, itnevertheless brings to remote towns andvillages the capacity for their people to makethemselves heard – to talk back – as neverbefore. Some analysts argue that as wellas advertising and consumerism, increasingpolitical and social action in small-town andrural India has been crucial in propelling thespread of newspapers. People buynewspapers because they have politicaland social interests and want informationabout those interests.

For now at least, television also appears toaid newspaper sales. Two things mayexplain this. First, TV is seldom able to coverlocal news in the way newspapers can.Thus big dailies such as Dainik Jagran and

...Indian-languagenewspapers aretransforming India. As theadvance guard ofcapitalism, they havecarried consumerism intothe countryside, andalong with it, a missionaryzeal to teach peopleabout the joys ofadvertising...

Indian Newspapers: The Revolution Continues

Source: Press in India (New Delhi: Registrar of Newspapers for India, for relevant years).

Figure 2

The Institute of South Asian Studies (ISAS) successfully organised itsFifth International Conference on South Asia on 4 November 2009 inSingapore. Entitled, “South Asia: Beyond the Global Financial Crisis”,the conference attracted about 170 participants from the diplomaticcommunity, government agencies, academic institutions, and financialand business communities.

Giving an “outsider’s perspective”, Singapore’s Law MinisterK. Shanmugam said that there were political and social realities whichhad to be recognised in the make-up of the one-billion-strong India.Responding to a member of the audience, Mr Shanmugam said thateven though India should not be judged using normal benchmark, NewDelhi had to understand that it would be judged by those standards ifit wanted to be a global player.

During the plenary sessions, speakers from South Asia and other parts of the world shared their insights and perspectiveson socio-economic and political issues in South Asia,including the role of financial institutions; South Asia’seconomic integration; South Asia and extra-regionaleconomies; governance; education; environmentalchallenges; conflicts, extremism and terrorism. Thespeakers included Mr Mani Shankar Aiyar, Chairman,South Asia Foundation-India, and former Minister ofPanchayati Raj (Rural Local Self-Government), India;Mr Sartaj Aziz, Vice-Chancellor, Beaconhouse NationalUniversity, Lahore and former Federal Minister forFinance, Planning and Economic Affairs, and ForeignAffairs, Pakistan; Dr Atiq Rahman, Executive Director,Bangladesh Centre for Advanced Studies, and DrDayan Jayatilleka, former Permanent Representativeand Ambassador of Sri Lanka to the United Nations.

ISAS is in the process of publishing the conferenceproceedings.


Dainik Bhaskar in the Hindi region orEenadu in Telugu or Malayala Manoramaand Mathrubhumi in Malayalam publishfrom 20 or more centres. This enables themto supply readers with coverage rich in localreports, pictures, entertainment andscandal. Second, fleeting references to anoccurrence on television appear to provokea desire to know more, which newspapersare able to satisfy.

The first indication that this happyrelationship for newspaper publishers maybe coming to an end is in Tamil Nadu.There, newspaper circulations have grown,but not so strongly as in other regions, andTamil daily circulations (2.7 million in 2007)are exceeded by every language except

Kannada, Punjabi and Assamese (Figure2). A reason may lie in the fact that TamilNadu has the greatest television penetrationof any Indian state, partly a result of theDravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK)government’s promise to put colourtelevision sets in the homes of the poor. Itclaimed to have distributed 300,000 setsby 2009 with a further 400,000 sets to bedistributed in coming months. If globalexperience is a guide, such wide televisionpenetration – and the habits it generates –ult imately erode the popularity ofnewspapers.

Journalists who supply Indian-languagenewspapers are often poorly paid and nevermade full employees of the newspapers

they work for. Training too is often scant.Yet there are still plenty of stories that upholdlegendary newspaper ideals of bravereporters taking risks – sometimes endingeven in murder – to get dangerous storiesbefore the public.

Whatever their failings, Indian-languagenewspapers are transforming India. As theadvance guard of capitalism, they havecarried consumerism into the countryside,and along with it, a missionary zeal to teachpeople about the joys of advertising –whether for brides, grooms, real estate,political support or livestock. They havealso, at their best, highlighted problemsand injustice that in the past would havebeen ignored.

Fifth International Conference on South Asia

Law Minister Shanmugam delivering his keynoteaddress at the conference.

Participants listening attentively to a panel discussion.

Indian Newspapers: The Revolution Continues


Feature Story

The lesson that elections do not producedemocratic systems unless a number offunctioning systems are present in a societywas learnt once again by the West in Afghan-istan. The Afghans went to the polls on 20August 2009 to elect their president after MrHamid Karzai completed his first term. Agreat deal was expected from the elections.The Americans had hoped that the electionswould produce an effective government inKabul that would be able to cooperate withWashington in beating back the Talibaninsurgents. By the time the elections wereheld, what had come to be called the“counterinsurgency strategy” seemed to havesucceeded in Iraq. The level of violence inthe country had reduced to the extent thatthe Americans felt comfortable in initiating

the process of pulling out their troops. GeneralStanley McChrystal, who was involved inimplementing the strategy in Iraq, was Pres-ident Barack Obama’s choice for headingthe American effort in Afghanistan. The Gen-eral asked for an additional 40,000 troopsfrom Washington to bolster the 65,000 healready had in the field. This was to be theAfghanistan version of the surge in Iraq. Theonly other thing that was needed was a

Afghanistan after the Elections Shahid Javed Burki

Visiting Senior Research FellowInstitute of South Asian Studies

partner in Kabul that had both credibility andlegitimacy. It was expected that the electionswould provide that.

It did not happen that way. The electionswere held on time but were deeply flawed.The official count gave President Karzai morethan 54 per cent of the vote, enough to avoida run-off and reclaim the presidency. However,a commission appointed by the UnitedNations after a review of the votes castindicated that perhaps a third of the votesthat were claimed to have gone to theincumbent president were fraudulent. Somearm-twisting resulted in President Karzaiagreeing to a run-off to be held on 7 November2009 between him and his main rival AbdullahAbdullah. Abdullah, however, withdrew andKarzai was declared the winner for the secondtime. This time his election was accepted bythe United States (US) and its North AtlanticTreaty Organization (NATO) partners.

On 1 December 2009, President Obamadelivered his long-awaited speech announcingthat he would add another 30,000 troops tothe American contingent, hoping that theNATO partners would provide another 7,000.But, at the same time, the president said thatWashington would begin to pull out troopsfrom July 2011. During this period of 18months, it was expected that the momentumof insurgency would be checked; Kabul would

be able to extend its control over most of thecountry, and the Afghan forces would havebeen built up and trained to start taking overfrom the Americans and the NATO.

From the reaction to the speech, it becameclear to the Administration that someclarification was required on both the speedat which the surge would take place and thepace at which the drawdown would beachieved. The day after the speech, seniorofficials appeared before various Congresscommittees to explain what the presidenthad said. The officials described thedeployment curve as beginning at a baselineof the 68,000 troops currently in Afghanistan,rising at a 45-degree angle to 100,000, thencontinue horizontally until July 2011 beforebeginning to slope down again. Thedownward sloping curve could be steep ifconditions permitted. Defense SecretaryRobert M. Gates, in a prepared statementbefore the Senate Foreign RelationsCommittee, explained the meaning of theJuly 2011 target date as follows, “July 2011,the time at which the president said the UnitedStates will begin to drawdown our forces willbe the beginning of the process. But thepace and character of that drawdown, whichdistricts and provinces are turned over andwhen will be determined by conditions onthe ground. It will be a gradual but inexorableprocess.”

The lesson that electionsdo not producedemocratic systemsunless a number offunctioning systems arepresent in a society waslearnt once again by theWest in Afghanistan.

Forthcoming Event


Afghanistan after the Elections

Anders Fogh Rasmussen, Secretary-Generalof NATO, welcomed the American initiativein a newspaper article: “But this is not justPresident Obama’s war”, he wrote. “We allface the same threats from what is happeningin Afghanistan: threats from terrorism, fromdrugs, from extremism. This is an allianceeffort, and we will finish it together.” He wenton to discuss in detail the NATO strategywhich included the transition of the alliance’stroops from “lead role” in the fight againstthe insurgents to a “supporting role” as thetrained and expanded Afghan force movedinto the front position. “NATO will also focuson the broader political strategy, which in-cludes what we expect from the new Afghangovernment. Good governance is the bestway to close off oxygen supply to the Taliban.After all that we have committed to thismission, we have the right to insist on it”. TheNATO was also to pay attention to economicdevelopment. An international conferencewas to be convened in London to assistAfghanistan in its development efforts.

There are a number of questions concerningthe likelihood of the success of the strategywhich was based on a number of assump-tions. Three of these are most important.One, whether resolute action by foreign troopswill begin to wean away the youth, not ideo-logically committed to the cause of the Taliban,from insurgency against the state? Two,whether the new type of corruption that wasundermining the Afghan state can bechecked? Three, whether the border regionsof Afghanistan and Pakistan can be pacified?

The US military commanders had begunto appreciate the dynamics that was at playin attracting the Afghan youth towards theTaliban which was similar to the one thathad worked in Iraq. According to oneanalyst, “in areas where coalition forcesprovide effective security and communitiesrespond well” the strategy works. Hecontinues, “But there are not enough ofthese stable communities, because thereare not enough troops on the ground.” Thiswas the reason why President Obama hadaccepted General McChrystal’s advice toprovide him with additional troops. “In placeswithout security, the Taliban rules by

intimidation. Locals receive ‘night letters’threatening harm and death if they work withthe coalition or with cooperative mullahs.Delivered in the dead of night, these notesare often effective.” This approach workedin Iraq since there was a concentration ofinsurgents in some areas. But Afghanistanis a larger country with insurgency morewidespread.

The second issue is corruption, not of thekind that had deep historical roots inAfghanistan but massive, vertically integratedgangsterism growing in size and reach.Those who lead these criminal associationsare selling off the assets of the state anddiverting development money into offshoreaccounts. The pressure on President Karzaito remove some of these people from hisadministration will be one indication that heis responding to it.

The third issue concerns the concentrationof the most committed terrorists in the tribalareas of Pakistan from where they are oper-ating not only against the Pakistani state butalso taking the fight into Afghanistan. The USwas encouraging Pakistan to act in the area– sometimes this encouragement took theform of threats from Washington that it wouldbe prepared to act unilaterally if Islamabaddid not move effectively.

There is no assurance that this strategy willwork but it is the only one that has somepolitical support in the US and in Europe.

ISAS has given its website (www.isas.nus.edu.sg) a fresh look. Visitors can nowaccess the institute's publications, and learn about its research and events moreeasily online. Registration for events is also easy.

As part of the website revamp, ISAS launched its weblog, South AsianSoundings, on 17 March 2010. The blog provides a platform for discussions andintellectual sparring of ideas on the rapidly changing dynamics in the South Asianregion.The blog also provides a forum for the exchange of views on issues relevantto South Asia, and aims to stimulate and promote constructive debates.

South Asian Soundings has received several postings on a diverse rangeof issues since its launch. Apart from posts by researchers, the blogalso features editorials under "Editor's Pick". For a list of the latest postings on theblog, please visit http://blog.nus.edu.sg/southasiansoundings/ or simply go to theISAS website for a direct link. South Asian Soundings welcomes comments andcontributions from the NUS family.

ISAS revamps its website and launches weblog

Supporters rejoicing in the streets of Kabul on hearing news of President Hamid Karzai’s successfulre-election.


Nepal is drifting towards chaos. The Maoistsconcluded a three-day nationwide strike inthe latter half of December 2009, paralysingnormal life in the capital Kathmandu andother parts of the Republic. They havethreatened to continue their agitation in thecoming months as well to restore what theycall the “civilian supremacy”. There are nosigns of the constitution being drafted bythe stipulated deadline of 28 May 2010.According to some constitutional experts,in the absence of a new constitution, thegovernment, the presidency and the electedConstituent Assembly (CA) will be renderedillegitimate and the prevailing political orderwill collapse. This deadline can be extendedby six months only in the case of a nationalemergency, which does not seem likely inthe near future. Speculations are rife of apossible presidential takeover supportedby the army in that situation. There arepolitical soothsayers who even wish for thereturn of the monarchy. What becomes ofthe fate of Nepal’s democracy, its peace,stability and development remains shroudedin the darkness of an uncertain future.

At the root of the present malaise is thebreakdown of political consensus amongthe Maoists, traditional political parties

Feature Story

Nepal: Whitherthe Peace Process

S.D. MuniVisiting Research Professor


[especial ly the Nepal iC o n g r e s s a n d t h eCommunist Party of Nepal(Unified Marxist-Leninist)(CPN-UML)] , and theinternational community. Itwas this consensus thatbrought about Nepal’stransformation from a so-ca l led ‘Const i tut iona lMonarchy’ to ‘an inclusive

democratic republic’. The consensusessentially broke down over issues of powersharing. Following the CA elections in April2008, the Maoists emerged as the largestparty claiming to lead the government. Thiswas not palatable to the political partiesthat had claimed a dominant share of powerunder the ‘Constitutional Monarchy’. Theyand sections of the international community,including India, never expected the Maoiststo perform as well as they did electorally,securing nearly 40 per cent of the 600-member strong CA. The Maoists tally waslarger than that of the Nepali Congress andthe CPN-UML put together. The interimgovernment headed by the late NepaliCongress president Girija Prasad Koiralatook more than three months to hand overpower to the popularly elected Maoists.Even after the transfer of power, while theMaoists suspected that their opponentswere scheming to marginalise them, thetraditional parties felt that the Maoists wereout to capture the whole state and turnthe new democratic republic into atotalitarian state. The issue that broughtthis mutual distrust to a boil was thequestion of integrating the Maoists armedcadres into the Nepalese army. This wasagreed to in principle between the Maoists

and other parties under the ComprehensivePeace Agreement, but its specific detailshad not been worked out. The Maoists onseeing resistance from the army to thisintegration sacked the Army Chief GeneralRukmangad Katawal in May 2009,precipitating a crisis. The Presidentintervened on behalf of the other parties,defying the constitutional principles andreinstated the army chief. This led to theresignat ion of the Maoist-headedgovernment and the installation of agovernment led by their opponents. TheMaoists are opposing the government onthe issue of “civilian supremacy” which wasviolated by the Presidential action. Thedistrust between the two sides hasdeepened since then. The parties fear thatany prospect of the Maoists heading thegovernment again will create conditionsfor their political consolidation at the costof the political parties. The Maoists’ grouseis that though they gave up their ‘people’swar’ and violent struggle, and decided towork within the framework of a multi-partydemocratic structure, the other parties areconspiring to keep them out of powerdespite the popular mandate they received.Nepal’s peace process that promised thewriting of a new constitution and creatinga new Nepal of popular aspirations hasbecome a casualty of this national politicaltrust deficit between the Maoists and theothers.

The peace process can move forward andthe drafting of the constitution can beresumed seriously and sincerely only if thebroken national political consensuscan be restored. This is possible only ifcompromises are made on both sides. The

traditional political parties have to endorsethe Maoists demand of “civilian supremacy”in some form to provide a face savingjustification for the Maoists’ withdrawalfrom power. Besides this, the Maoists haveto be brought back to power as a principalcomponent of the national coalition. Theparties are internally divided on both theseissues and the leadership of these partieshave lost much of their élan and influenceto present a coherent position. In order torestore the confidence of the politicalparties, the Maoists also have to move inthe direction of dismantling their militantyouth wing (the Young Communist League)and give up their aggressive agitationstrategies on issues like land grabbing bythe landless people and autonomy for theethnic groups. While the Maoists leadershipis in f irm command of their partyorganisation, there are internal divisions onthe basic issues of the Maoist approach.There are powerful sections that want togo the “people’s war” way to seize politicalpower while the leadership generally favoursa peaceful, incremental and multi-partyway to gradually establish their dominance.This organisational hiatus keeps the Maoistsleaders inconsistent and unduly radical intheir rhetoric. Unless bold and courageousinitiatives are taken on the part of both theMaoists and the main parties to reach acompromise, there is little hope of rebuildingthe broken consensus and moving thepeace process forward.

There surely is an external dimension toNepal’s internal turbulence. India had playeda key role in helping the main political partiescome closer to the Maoists on the questionof peace and democracy during 2005-2006.A deep distrust between the Maoists andIndia has also crept in. The Indian policymak-ers had not expected the Maoists to emergeas the strongest force in Nepal in the 2008CA elections. They have found Maoists adifficult entity to deal with on issues of stra-tegic significance to India, particularly on

China and the traditional thrust of India-Nepal relations. After the fall of the Maoists’government, the alternative coalition gov-ernment could not have been formed with-out India’s direct and undue involvement,as reported in the Nepalese media. India’sexaggerated fears of the Chinese dominat-ing the Nepalese strategic space with helpof the Maoists came at a time when Indiahad got alarmed at the Chinese“assertiveness” in Arunachal Pradesh andthe unsettled border. India has also beenalarmed at the quicker pace of the Chinesemilitary modernisation and their growingpolitical clout in India’s close neighbourhood.Indian policy, however, has to take cogni-sance of the hard reality in Nepal, which isthat the Maoists have a popular mandatewith them, that they are the largest andmost well organised political force andtherefore cannot be ignored or suppressedfor a long time. The socio-economic realityin Nepal also makes it impossible for China


to have significant influence in Nepal. Noregime, howsoever radical or powerful,can rely heavily on China and do withoutIndia’s support and goodwill. Continuingpolitical uncertainty and the spectre ofchaos in Nepal will in no way serve India’slegitimate long term national interests. Indiaand the international community haveplayed a key role in Nepal’s transition andit is obligatory for them to see the processof transition brought to its logical conclu-sion. They cannot get away from this ob-ligation by alleging foul play on the part ofany of the Nepalese players, including theMaoists. Mainstreaming the Maoists wasan agenda they all had and the Maoistsalone cannot be expected to move on thattrack.

The hope of the Nepalese peace processbeing carried forward lies in the realisationby all the principal Nepalese political forcesand the international community, includingIndia, that the complete collapse of thisprocess will not serve the long-term interestsof any one of them. The Nepalese peopleare looking desperately for the restorationof the peace process and a timely andsmooth drafting of a new constitution thatgives all of them democratic rights and aneconomic future. Anyone who fails themwill be severely punished by the Nepalesepeople.

Unless bold and courageous initiatives are taken onthe part of both the Maoists and the main partiesto reach a compromise, there is little hope of rebuildingthe broken consensus and moving the peaceprocess forward.

Nepal: Whither the Peace Process

In keeping up with the dynamism of the South Asian region and emergingcomplexities, ISAS continually reviews its research agenda. The institute’songoing research is presently catergorised into five thematic clusters:Economics and Trade Policy; Multilateralism and International Linkages;Politics and Governance; Security; and South Asia and Economic Change.

The clusters allow ISAS to focus more intensely on key political, economicand strategic developments in the South Asian region whilst projecting theprimary developments and issues in the Indian subcontinent in the medium-to long-term.

Led by a research faculty, each cluster forms part of the institute’s efforts tosharpen and intensify its research focus. A detailed research agenda hasbeen drawn up for the clusters for the next couple of years. The deliverablesinclude policy briefs and insights, working papers, monographs and books.The clusters are also engaged in the process of identifying external sourcesof funding for their programmes. They also play a critical role in expandingthe external outreach of ISAS.

ISAS Research Clusters


Since 11 September 2001, the world,including South Asia, has been faced withthe apparition of ‘terrorism’. Terrorism initself is not new, but its new globalinterlinked nature – exemplified by thenetwork of militant Islamist organisationsacross the world – is unprecedented.Terrorism as a concept also defies clear-cut definitions. What may be labelledrebellion or a nationalist struggle by somemay be perceived as terrorism by others.However, one can loosely define terrorismas an act of political violence directed atstate and/or civilian targets with the aimof causing widespread fear whilst conveyinga political message or to further politicalgoals, whether enacted by individuals,groups or states.

Feature Story

In South Asia, political violence in the formof groups employing terrorist tactics tochallenge the state is not new. Since thelate 1980s, militant groups in Kashmirhave challenged the Indian state’s claimon the territory. The Maoist left-wingextremist groups and various insurgentgroups in northeast India have alsoengaged in violence against the Indianstate. Similarly, until their recent defeat inMay 2009, the Liberation Tigers of TamilEelam (LTTE) waged a bloody campaignagainst the Sri Lankan state. However,these movements have generally beenconfined to the domestic realm, in thatthey have been directed at single stateactors. In a marked difference, Islamistterrorism in South Asia has evolved into

an unstructured movement that threatensto destabilise the entire region. Much ofthis movement in centred in the tribalregion located at the Afghanistan-Pakistanborder.

Lately, Pakistan has found itself increasinglyunder threat. New Year’s Day 2010 sawthe latest in a string of deadly attacks inPakistan – a suicide bomber killed around105 people and injured another 100 at avolleyball tournament in Lakki Marwat, apro-government town in the North-WestFrontier Province. Just three days earlier,on 28 December 2009, 43 people werekilled and another 100 were injured in asuicide attack in Karachi. This articleexamines the roots of Islamist terrorism in

Counter-Terrorism in Pakistan:The Next Steps

Syeda Sana RahmanResearch Associate



Pakistan and its evolution, followed by anassessment of some counter-measuresthe Pakistani state needs to undertake tomitigate terrorism within its borders.

The beginnings of the current violence canbe found in the Afghan War of the 1980s.Then Pakistani President, GeneralZia-ul Haq, with American backing andfunding, set up camps in Pakistan where‘mujahideen’ (Islamic warriors) could trainto fight out the Soviet invasion ofAfghanistan (1979-89). During this time,a number of extremist madrassas (Islamicschools) were also set up in the region toindoctrinate pupils drawn mainly fromthe border regions of Afghanistan andPakistan. These madrassas continue tofunction in the tribal regions, and as theyoperate at little cost, are often the onlysource of literacy and education availableto the population. Once the Soviet forceswithdrew in 1989, the United States (US)also abandoned Afghanistan and its‘mujahideen’ to its own devices.

This had two consequences. First,it created a power vacuum inAfghanistan, which various rival tribalgroups and warlords struggled to fillin a bloody civil war. ViewingAfghanistan as a strategic assetagainst each other, India andPakistan both supported rivalfactions. India threw its weight behindthe Northern Alliance, a groupcomprising various ethnic groupslike the Uzbeks and Tajiks, whilePakistan supported the ultimatelyvictorious Taliban. Second, Pakistan-based militant groups, like theLashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and the Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM), which hadparticipated in the Afghan War,redirected their attention towardsKashmir and launched a violentstruggle against Indian rule there.These two factors set the conditions

for the wave of Islamist terrorism in SouthAsia, and in Pakistan.

Since the US invasion of Afghanistan in2001, the erstwhile Taliban regime hasfound sanctuary in the tribal region alongboth sides of the Afghan-Pakistan border.At the same time, Pakistan joined the US‘war on terror’ and, in 2002, officiallybanned groups like the LeT. However,these groups continued to operate out ofPakistan and have been associated withvarious terrorist attacks in Kashmir andother parts of India, including the 2000attack at Red Fort in New Delhi; the 2001attack on the Indian parliament; and the2005 New Delhi bombings that killed over60 people. India also blamed the LeT forconspiring in the 26 November 2008Mumbai attacks.

Under increasing US pressure, Pakistan’smilitary also launched operations againstthe Taliban in Pakistan. In retaliation, thePakistani Taliban groups commenced an

Counter-Terrorism in Pakistan: The Next Steps

offensive against Pakistan. Since 2007,these attacks in Pakistan have intensified,reaching major cities like Lahore andKarachi. Under the civilian government thatcame into power in March 2008, Pakistanhas taken a stronger stance againstterrorism. Shortly after assuming office,Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani declaredthat “terrorism and extremism are[Pakistan’s] greatest problems” and thus itwas Pakistan’s “first priority to bring peaceto the country and fight terrorism”.

This has been borne out in the Pakistanimilitary’s actions against the Taliban. SinceMay 2009 it has undertaken an offensiveto weed out the militants from theirstronghold in South Waziristan. At thesame time, the US has increased economicand military aid to Pakistan under the Kerry-Lugar Bill, which pledges aid worth US$7billion to be dispersed over five years.While Pakistani forces have intensified theircampaign against the militants, the militantstoo have increased the frequency anddeadliness of their attacks. More than halfof the attacks in 2009 took place betweenOctober and December.

Pakistan’s firm stance against terrorism isa welcome development. However, it needsto couple its military offensive with a hostof non-military measures to deal with theunderlying conditions that enable and fuelthe growth of militancy operating within its

Islamist terrorism in South Asia has evolved intoan unstructured movement that threatens todestabilise the entire region. Much of this movementin centred in the tribal region located at theAfghanistan-Pakistan border.

Pakistani police escort US militant suspects to court. The men face terror charges for allegedly plottingattacks in Pakistan.

With three strikes of the dholak,Singapore’s President, Mr S R Nathan,launched the South Asian Link (SAL), aSouth Asian diaspora networkingplatform under the auspices of theInstitute of South Asian Studies (ISAS),on 4 November 2009 in Singapore. Among world cities, Singapore has oneof the largest concentration of overseasSouth Asians in terms of percentageof its population. People of South Asiandescent form around nine per cent ofSingapore’s population. They are eithercitizens or permanent residents. Thereare another 350,000 or so SouthAsians living, working and studying inSingapore. More than 4,000 Indiancompanies are based here. Using Singapore as the base, the SALaims to become a hub for the globalSouth Asian diaspora. It will developrelations with the diaspora outside of South Asia and maintain a network of active participants among the South Asiancommunities around the world. Through its regular social and cultural activities, website and newsletter, the SAL promotesthe South Asian culture and heritage, and helps South Asians to keep in touch with one another.


borders. First, major political parties likethe Pakistan Peoples Party (or the PPP,which is in power now) and its mainopposition, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) need to take a unitedstance against terrorism and work toconsolidate civilian rule in Pakistan. InDecember 2009, yet another domesticcrisis erupted when the Pakistani SupremeCourt annulled the amnesty law that hadprotected many politicians, includingcurrent President Asif Ali Zardari, DefenceMinister Ahmed Mukhtar, and InteriorMinister Rehman Malik, from corruptioncharges. This latest development couldlead to another protracted political battlebetween the PPP, the PML-N and thejudiciary. This creates political space thatmilitant groups can exploit to push theiragenda.

Second, the conflict in Pakistan has alsoresulted in over three million internallydisplaced persons (IDPs). Efforts must be

made to quickly resettle the IDPs as refugeecamps filled with increasingly desperatepeople can breed resentment and becomerecruitment grounds for militant groups.Third, development aid is needed in areaslike the Federally Administered Tribal Areas(FATA), where the Taliban and other militantgroups operate. These areas are extremelyunderdeveloped and, as noted by theInternational Crisis Group in an October2009 report, “ideological recruitment (in theseareas) is few and far between. Most of thereasons...are related to economic and politicalmarginalisation”. Thus, there is a need tocreate economic opportunities and providethe physical infrastructure to support theseopportunities in the tribal areas.

Fourth, it is important to create alternativesto madrassas by not only building morepublic schools, but running these and theextant schools well by directing more fundstowards their maintenance and forcompensating the notoriously underpaid

teachers. Finally, as the Pakistani militarydrives out the militants from these regions,it is important to secure the areas byasserting civilian control over these regions.In this regard, it is crucial the armed triballashkars (militias), which have beencontracted by the government as securityforces, are disbanded, and law and orderbecomes the sole purview of the Pakistanipolice force. This is necessary as not onlyare the militias poorly trained, but they arealso prone to abuse of authority andundermine the legitimacy of the Pakistanistate.

Pakistan and the Pakistani people haveshown a determination to deal with thepurveyors of terrorism within. The militaryoffensive launched in May 2009 is aheartening start to its counter-terrorismstrategy. As it moves forward, it now needsto incorporate non-military measures toensure a lasting peace in Pakistan and byextension, in the South Asian region.

South Asian Link launched to keep South Asian Diaspora in touch

Counter-Terrorism in Pakistan: The Next Steps

(L-R): ISAS Board members Professor Wang Gungwu, Mr S. Chandra Das andISAS Director, Professor Tan Tai Yong with President S R Nathan and ISAS ChairmanMr Gopinath Pillai.


An Eye on South Asia Iftikhar A. LodhiResearch Associate


Bangladesh: Progressing Towards Stability

The Awami League (AL) government under Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina completed its first year in office overcomingseveral challenges. The first year of the new government has witnessed an attempt by Bangladesh towards fastereconomic growth, strengthening of democratic institutions and better relations with India.

Immediately after coming to power in January 2009, the government faced its biggest challenge in the shape of a mutinyin the paramilitary forces, Bangladesh Rifles, ostensibly protesting over low pays. The saga left some 150 people dead.The mutiny was quelled quickly and miscreants were brought to justice.

Nevertheless, tackling the country’s chronic corruption remains a big challenge.

On the economic front, the government seems to be living up to its election pledges. The double-digit inflation in thebeginning of 2009 was brought down to half at the close of the year. The country also witnessed a respectable growthin Gross Domestic Product, exports and remittances.

Ms Hasina’s visit to India in January 2010 resulted in marked improvement in bilateral ties. A number of agreements weresigned including a landmark decision in which India extended a US$1 billion credit line to Bangladesh for infrastructuredevelopment. Reciprocating the Indian gesture, Dhaka allowed India access to its ports and transit facilities.

Bhutan: Mounting Problems with Refugees

Bhutan is facing a major challenge in the shape of growing activism by the so-called dissidents. Some 100,000 ethnicNepalese from Bhutan were reportedly expelled in the 1980s and 1990s by the then-King Jigmey Singhye Wangchukon charges of being illegal immigrants. Since then, these people have been living in the United Nations refugee campsin southeastern Nepal. The United States and other developed countries have offered to accept these refugees. WithKing Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck initiating a transition towards democracy, the ethnic issue was expected to surfacestrongly. Many groups claiming to represent Bhutanese refugees have been mobilising in India, Nepal and Europe.There have been some violent clashes in the regions bordering Nepal and India where Maoists and militants are fightingfor greater Nepal. Bhutanese refugees in Europe have announced formation of Bhutanese Advocacy Forum Europe(BAF Europe) to raise the issue of human rights and democracy in Bhutan. Karma Dupto, Secretary of Druk NationalCongress, the Bhutanese political movement in exile in New Delhi, has urged the international community and specificallyIndia to stand by the refugees.

Maldives: Staying Above Sea Level

Maldives occupied a considerable space in the deliberations at the United Nations Climate Change Conference atCopenhagen in December 2009. One of the smallest nations in the world with a land area of less than 300 squarekilometres and population less than 400,000, the island is threatened by rising sea levels. Some estimates indicate thatMaldives may vanish from the face of the earth by the end of this century.

It was this imminent danger of annihilation that took President Mohamed Nasheed to the table where the United States,India, China and other major global powers were negotiating an acceptable action agenda for reducing carbon emissions.President Nasheed is reported to have made an impassioned appeal to the larger countries for framing an acceptablearrangement.

President Nasheed has announced that Maldives will be a carbon-neutral country by 2020. Former President MaumoonGayoom, however, has questioned his climate activism by alleging that it is putting off potential investors. There havealso been criticisms about the wisdom of making Maldives carbon-neutral when the impact of such transformation onthe rising sea level is questionable.


Nepal: A Stalled Peace Process

Nepal’s peace process remains stalled following Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal’s (also known as Prachanda)’sresignation in May 2009. His party, the Communist Party of Nepal (CPN) was voted the single largest party in the 575-seat Constituent Assembly in August 2008. However, major differences surfaced between the CPN and other stakeholders.

The CPN had accused the army chief of not accepting civilian supremacy. The Nepalese Army had shown its defianceto civilian administration on several occasions in the past. The main opposition party, the Nepali Congress (NC) hassupported the Army. Mr Prachanda has also accused India for interfering in Nepal’s internal affairs. The Maoist campaignin Nepal appears to have shifted from the slogan of civilian supremacy to national independence given their firm beliefthat Nepal’s sovereignty is impaired due to India’s overarching influence. In the meanwhile, the targeted date (28 May2010) for completing the draft constitution is approaching fast. It remains to be seen whether the political parties in Nepalwill be able to draft and enact a new constitution for the country in 2010.

Pakistan: Democracy & Terrorism – The Struggle Continues

The year 2009 experienced a sharp increase in loss of human lives in Pakistan following intense fighting in the country’sNorth-West Frontier Province and the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA). Earlier last year, the government decidedto take the fight to the militant’s home turf where they had been denying encroachment upon the territory and institutions.The two military operations in Swat and South Waziristan in May and October 2009 respectively were by and largesuccessful and put the militants on the run.

Nevertheless, demands from Washington to do more and have stricter conditions on the aid that Islamabad receivescontinue to generate frictions between the two allies. In December, the Obama administration announced a surge of30,000 troops in Afghanistan, which would increase the total number of American troops in Afghanistan to 100,000.However, Washington also gave a deadline, July 2011, when its troops will start withdrawing. These mixed signals fromWashington have created enormous confusion in the region.

The Supreme Court’s (SC) ruling left the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) null and void. The NRO was promulgatedby President Pervez Musharraf for giving amnesty to the politicians and for shielding them from corruption charges. TheSC ruling highlighted the moral and legal authority of the government.

The passing of the National Finance Commission Award with unanimous consensus was an encouraging development.The award is a mechanism for vertical and horizontal resource sharing between the centre and the provinces, and amongprovinces.

In the year 2010, Pakistan is expected to face challenges stemming from a deteriorating economy and an ever expandingwar on terror. Managing its volatile relationship with the United States as well as bumpy relations with India will also bedifficult challenges for Islamabad.

Sri Lanka: President Rajapaksa Triumphs

Mahinda Rajapaksa, the incumbent President of Sri Lanka was re-elected in the sixth presidential election held on 26January 2010. He secured 57.9 per cent of votes as against 40 per cent by General Sarath Fonseka. The electionwitnessed an impressive turnout of 72 per cent voters and hardly witnessed any major incidents of violence. GeneralFonseka, however, rejected the results alleging that the campaign was marred by irregularities, violence, and abuse ofstate power. In a letter to the Election Commissioner, he accused President Rajapaksa for intimidating his friends andstaff. Both Rajapaksa and Fonseka claimed credit for victory against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). TheLTTE was militarily overpowered last year ending the three-decade-long armed conflict between the Sri Lankan governmentand Tamil rebels. Fonseka, despite playing a key role in the military operations against the LTTE, was accused by Rajapaksaof being a ‘traitor’ by entering into a deal with the Tamil National Alliance, a party believed to be projecting the interestsof Tamil rebels. The election results revealed the divisions in the Sri Lankan polity with Rajapaksa winning from majoritySinhala areas and Fonseka in Tamil and Muslim-dominated areas.




Robin Jeffrey first lived in India as a school teacher in Chandigarh from 1967 to 1969.He completed a doctorate in Indian history at Sussex University in the United Kingdomin 1973, taught for 25 years in the Politics Program at La Trobe University in Melbourne,worked twice at the Australian National University in Canberra and has lived for six yearsin India between 1967 and 2009.

Professor Jeffrey has written about Kerala, Punjab and Indian media. A third edition ofIndia’s Newspaper Revolution will be published in 2010. He is working on a study ofmobile phones in India and completing a book called, Slices of India, a history of Indiain the second half of the 20th century based around the years of the great Kumbh Melain Allahabad.

John Harriss is a social anthropologist who has worked for most of his professional life inthe inter-disciplinary field of International Development Studies. Following his education atthe University of Cambridge and then at the University of East Anglia, he taught in the Schoolof Development Studies at the University of East Anglia from 1976 to 1990, and served asthe Dean of the School in 1987-90. Thereafter he moved to the London School of Economics(LSE) as the founding Programme Director of the Development Studies Institute (DESTIN),and directed the Institute from 1990. In 1994-96, on leave from the LSE, he worked as theHead of the Regional Office for South and Central Asia of the Save the Children Fund (UnitedKingdom-UK). He served again as Director of DESTIN in 2001-04. In 2004-05, he headeda successful bid for the establishment of the Department for International Development-funded Research Programme Consortium on Institutions and Pro-Poor Growth, and directedthe Consortium – with members from Africa, Latin America and India, as well as from theUK – in 2005-06.

In 2006, Professor Harriss moved to Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, Canada, as thefirst Director of the University’s new School for International Studies. Professor Harriss hasheld visiting research fellowships at the Australian National University and at the Maison desSciences de l’Homme in Paris, and he has had a long running affiliation with the MadrasInstitute of Development Studies. He has undertaken research and advisory work for anumber of development agencies including the Department for International Developmentof the UK government, the International Labour Office, and the United Nations ResearchInstitute for Social Development.

Dayan Jayatilleka was Ambassador/Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the UnitedNations (UN) at Geneva; Chairman of the Governing Body of the International LabourOrganization (ILO); Vice President of the Human Rights Council (HRC); Chairperson ofthe Intergovernmental Working Group (IGWG) on the Effective Implementation of theDurban Declaration; Coordinator of an agenda item of the Conference on Disarmament(CD); Facilitator to negotiate for the Asian Region at the Durban Review Conferenceand Coordinator of the Asian Group of the UN Conference on Trade and Development(UNCTAD) and the UN HRC.

Dr Jayatilleka was Minister of Planning & Youth Affairs in the North-East Provincial Councilin Sri Lanka, and is a Senior Lecturer in Politics at University of Colombo, Sri Lanka. Heobtained a First Class Honours degree in Political Science from the University of Peradeniya,winning the CL Wickremesinghe Prize for best results, an MPhil from the University of

Corporate News

New Researchers

Robin JeffreyVisiting Research Professor

(November 2009 toNovember 2011)

John HarrissVisiting Research Professor

(January 2010 to April 2010)

Dayan JayatillekaVisiting Senior Research Fellow

(February 2010 to February 2012)


New Administrative Staff

Colombo, and a PhD from Griffith University, Brisbane. His most recent book is titled,Fidel’s Ethics of Violence: The Moral Dimension of the Political Thought of Fidel Castro,published by Pluto Press (London) and the University of Michigan Press (Ann Arbor).It was reviewed in the January 2009 issue of Chatham House’s International Affairs byProfessor Clive Foss of Georgetown’s History Department, and earlier by the LondonSchool of Economics’ Professor Emeritus Sebastian Balfour in the Bulletin of LatinAmerican Research. Dr Jayatilleka’s essay on Che Guevara entitled ‘Che’s Visage onthe Shroud of Time’, was featured in Granma, the official organ of the Central Committeeof the Communist Party of Cuba in its November 2007 edition.

Shanthie Mariet D'Souza has a PhD in International Relations, American Studies,School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. She has beena Visiting Fulbright Scholar at South Asia Studies, The Paul H Nitze School of AdvancedInternational Studies, Johns Hopkins University, Washington DC (2005-2006). She isalso affiliated with the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses, New Delhi. She hasbeen a Research Associate at Database & Documentation Centre of the Institute forConflict Management, Guwahati, Assam and Editorial Assistant at the United ServiceInstitution of India, New Delhi, 2001. She has conducted field studies in the UnitedStates, Canada, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Jammu and Kashmir and India's North East.

Among Dr D'Souza’s most recent published work is a co-edited book, Saving Afghanistan(2009) and papers on Talking to the Taliban; Unity of Effort; The missing link in theAfghan Counter Insurgency Campaign; NATO in Afghanistan; Afghanistan in SouthAsia: Regional Cooperation or Competition; India's Aid to Afghanistan; US-PakistanCounter-Terrorism Cooperation; Indo-US Counter Terrorism Cooperation; Taking Stockof the Global War on Terrorism; India-US relations; India-Afghan relations; InternalSecurity Issues; Mumbai Terror Attacks and India-Pakistan Relations; Media andCounter-Terrorism; and others.

Shanthie D’SouzaVisiting Research Fellow

(February 2010 -February 2011)

Sithara DoriasamySenior Manager

Sithara Doriasamy looks after corporate communications and publications at the Institute.She brings with her more than 14 years of journalistic experience, having worked as asenior correspondent with the Singapore Press Holdings, and news producer with ChannelNews Asia. During her 20-year career, she has worked in the private and public sectors,overseeing public affairs and corporate communications functions. She is also honedwith years of experience in events management, marketing, organising and heading large-scale national events and conferences. Sithara is actively involved in grassroots andcommunity work. She was part of the Singapore government’s Remaking SingaporeCommittee (Beyond Cars Sub-Committee) and Tamil Language Curriculum and PedagogyReview Resource Panel, Ministry of Education.

Sithara holds an MSc (International Relations) from the Institute of Defence and StrategicStudies (currently known as the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies), NanyangTechnological University, and BA in Communications and Media Management, from theUniversity of South Australia.

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Latest BooksSouth Asia: Societies in Political and Economic TransitionEdited by Tan Tai Yong, ISAS, January 2010Published by Manohar India

The last few years have been significant for South Asia, with fundamental political and economictransitions in several of the countries.

Bangladesh opted for an interim government followed by the election of a democratic government.Pakistan saw the assassination of a former Prime Minister, followed by peaceful elections and,perhaps, hope for stability. Nepal went through substantial change, with the Maoists initially inpower and, subsequently, opting out of the government. In contrast, elections in Bhutan havebrought a smooth transition to democracy. On the other hand, economic issues have dominatedIndia, including aggressive responses to the global slowdown, fiscal expansion an early return togrowth from the downturn.

In an attempt to capture these changes in South Asia, this publication falls into two parts. Thefirst deals with political issues in the countries that have witnessed the most change and turbulence,while the second part deals with economic issues that have been of concern to all the South Asiancountries, and to India in particular.

In summary, this publication is an eclectic mix that covers a spectrum of current issues in SouthAsia. It is a melting pot of politics and change, of reforms and stagnation, and of growth anddisparity. Most importantly, the publication reflects the dynamism of the region and the fast paceof change in politics as well as in economic policy. The book has been titled, ‘South Asia: Societiesin Political and Economic Transition’, to reflect this dynamism.

To purchase a copy of the book, please contact Mr Ramesh Jain at [email protected].

India’s Foreign Policy: The Democracy DimensionS. D. Muni, ISAS, December 2009Published by Cambridge University Press India

In the new millennium, India has joined the global initiatives like the Community of Democracies(2000) and the United Nations Democracy Fund (2005) for promoting democracy. This marks asignificant shift in India’s foreign policy as never earlier had India claimed or committed itself toplaying a proactive role in promoting and protecting democracy in other countries. India has alwaysremained engaged with the democracy question, particularly in its immediate neighbourhood.

“India’s Foreign Policy: The Democracy Dimension”, is a study of India’s responses to the challengeof democracy in other countries before and after its participation in the global democratic initiatives.India’s similar responses in the past have been dictated and defined by its perceived vital strategicand political interests, and this continues to be so. The newly acquired obligations for promotingdemocracy may have tempered its foreign policy rhetoric and style on the democracy questionbut it has not, and will not, override India’s critical strategic concerns and interests.

To purchase a copy of the book, please visit www.cambridgeindia.org.


The Singapore Symposium jointly organised by the Instituteof South Asian Studies (ISAS) and the Confederation ofIndian Industry (CII) was held at New Delhi on 16 December2009.

The event highlighted areas for long-term collaborationbetween Singapore and India with regards toSingapore’s expertise, India’s developmental prioritiesand the shared concerns of the two countries.Infrastructure, education and governance were the mainthemes of the symposium.

Senior Indian Ministers – Mr Kapil Sibal (Minister of HumanResource Development) and Mr Anand Sharma (Ministerof Commerce and Industry) delivered keynote addresses.Distinguished experts from Singapore and India spokeon the different aspects of infrastructure, education andgovernance during the plenary sessions.

The high point of the symposium was a dialogue session with Singapore’s Minister Mentor, Lee Kuan Yew. The sessionwas moderated by Mr Ratan Tata, Chairman of Tata Sons, India.

The event was attended by key leaders from the Indian industry and business, academic experts, representatives fromIndia’s strategic and diplomatic communities, media and officials from the private and public sectors.


Singapore Symposium: A New Chapter in Singapore-India Ties

(L-R) Mr Tarun Das, Former Chief Mentor, CII, Mr Lee Kuan Yew,Mr Ratan Tata and Mr Gopinath Pillai, Chairman of ISAS.

Latest Books

Challenges of Economic Growth, Inequalityand Conflict in South AsiaEdited by Tan Tai Yong, ISAS, November 2009Published by World Scientific

South Asia’s growing political and economic influence, as well as the dynamism of thisrapidly changing region demands careful examination. Drawing on many areas of expertiseand a wide range of perspectives, this book analyses how recent developments in theeconomic, political and social landscapes of South Asia have affected the region itself aswell as its relations with the rest of Asia and the world at large.

The book gathers together the papers presented at the 4th International Conference onSouth Asia held in Singapore in November 2008. It represents the expert knowledge andopinions of prominent academics and world leaders. Whether dealing with issues of tradeand investment, soft power and cultural influence, or the reduction of poverty, the chaptersin this book are both in-depth and rich in broader implications for the South Asian regionand beyond.

To purchase a copy of the book, please contact Mrs Sandhya Venkatesh [email protected].


As regional integration between Asian giants - China andIndia - and the rest of Asia intensifies, the world iswitnessing a revival of the process of Asian integration.In order to obtain diverse perspectives on the process,ISAS and the Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI),Japan, convened a full-day conference entitled, “EmergingPan-Asian Integration: Linkages between South Asia andEast Asia”, on 11 February 2010 at the National Universityof Singapore.

Dr Masahiro Kawai, Dean of the ADBI, delivered thekeynote address on Asian economic integration. Threeinteresting panel discussions comprising ten eminentspeakers, notably from Sri Lanka, China, Japan, NewZealand, the United States and Singapore, deliberatedthe pattern of historical and contemporary linkagesbetween South and East Asia. An interesting exchangeof views analysed various factors underlying these linkagesand the benefits of greater integration, and maderecommendations for moving forward the Pan-Asianintegration process.

The speakers included Dr Ellen Frost, Visiting Fellow,Peterson Institute for International Economics (US);Professor Robert Scollay, Director, New Zealand APECStudy Centre; principal economists from the AsianDevelopment Bank, Dr Douglas Brooks and Dr GaneshanWignaraja; Mr Masaki Amma, Head of International Finance,Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC); and otherdistinguished experts.

Conference looks at linkages between South and East Asia

Dr Amitendu Palit, Head (Development & Programmes) and Visiting ResearchFellow, ISAS, raises a question during the question-and-answer session.


The Third India-Singapore Strategic Dialogue (ISSD)was held in Singapore during 18-19 February 2010.The two-day conference held at the Shangri-LaHotel was co-chaired by Ambassador Tommy Koh,Ambassador-at-Large, Singapore, and AmbassadorS. K. Lambah, Special Envoy to the Prime Ministerof India.

The Dialogue deliberated at length on variouspolitical, economic and strategic issues pertainingto bilateral ties between Singapore and India. Thecandid exchanges also included discussions on

the regional architecture; religious extremism and political violence. It also focused on the impact and role of China ininfluencing the regional dynamics. This annual event, held alternately in Singapore and India, will be next held in Indiain 2011.

Third India-Singapore Strategic Dialogue

Some members of the Third ISSD.

Ambassador Gopinath Pillai, Chairman of ISAS (R),looks on as Dr Masahiro Kawai delivers his keynoteaddress.



ISAS Briefs

The Kerry-Lugar Bill: Difficult Choices for Pakistan, SajjadAshraf, Consultant, ISAS, 5 October 2009.

Suffering Terrorism but Flirting with Populism: Pakistan'sCurrent Predicaments, Ishtiaq Ahmed, Visiting ResearchProfessor, ISAS, 13 October 2009.

South Waziristan: The Beginning of Pakistan's MilitaryCampaign, Shahid Javed Burki, former Visiting Senior ResearchFellow, ISAS, 19 October 2009.

Afghanistan Presidential Elections 2009: The Run-up to theRun-off, Shahid Javed Burki, Visiting Senior Research Fellow,ISAS, 26 October 2009.

Indian Assembly Elections 2009: Another Blow for theBharatiya Janata Party, Tridivesh Singh Maini, ResearchAssociate, ISAS, 3 November 2009.

Hillary Clinton's Visit to Pakistan: An Exercise in Trust DeficitReduction, Ishtiaq Ahmed, Visiting Research Professor, ISAS,3 November 2009.

Afghanistan Presidential Elections 2009: The 'Run-off' ThatNever Was, Shahid Javed Burki, former Visiting Senior ResearchFellow, ISAS, 4 November 2009.

President Obama's First Asian Visit, Shahid Javed Burki,former Visiting Senior Research Fellow, ISAS, 9 November2009.

A ‘New’ Japan and Possible Implications for Japan-IndiaRelations, Sinderpal Singh, Research Fellow, ISAS, 17 November2009.

Pakistan’s Nuclear Weapons: How Safe Are They?, IshtiaqAhmed, Visiting Research Professor, ISAS, 18 November 2009.

Hamid Karzai's Second Term as Afghanistan's President:Promises, Challenges and Prospects, Shahid Javed Burki,Visiting Senior Research Fellow-designate, ISAS, 24 November2009.

The United States in Afghanistan - President Obama decidesto fight the war his way, Shahid Javed Burki, Visiting SeniorResearch Fellow-designate, ISAS, 3 December 2009.

Publications

A Tale of Two Visits: The India-US-China Relationship,Sinderpal Singh, Research Fellow, ISAS, 7 December 2009.

Climate Change Challenges: Leading up to Copenhagen,Shahid Javed Burki, Visiting Senior Research Fellow-designate,ISAS, 10 December 2009.

Unwinding the Fiscal Stimulus – Dilemmas for India andChina, S. Narayan, Head of Research and Visiting SeniorResearch Fellow, ISAS, 11 December 2009.

The Dubai Debt Debacle: Likely Impact on South Asia,M. Shahidul Islam, Research Associate, ISAS, 11 December2009.

Pakistan's Supreme Court And The National ReconciliationOrdinance: What Now for Pakistan?, Rajshree Jetly, ResearchFellow, ISAS, 22 December 2009.

Sri Lanka's Presidential Election 2010: The Choice beforePluralist Democrats, Dayan Jayatilleka, Visiting SeniorResearch Fellow-designate, ISAS, 29 December 2009.

Hasina’s Visit to India and Emerging Indo-Bangla Relations:Implications for the Region, Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury, SeniorResearch Fellow, ISAS, 18 January 2010.

Jyoti Basu: A Gentleman and a Communist, Bibek Debroy,Honorary Senior Fellow, ISAS, 18 January 2010.

Rescuing Afghanistan: Let the Region Take Charge, ShahidJaved Burki, Visiting Senior Research Fellow, ISAS, 22 January2010.

The ‘Free-Market’ and ‘Social Concerns’: ‘Asian Values’ and‘Walking on Two Legs’!, Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury, SeniorResearch Fellow, ISAS, 29 January 2010.

Afghanistan: The London Meeting, Shahid Javed Burki,Visiting Senior Research Fellow, ISAS, 4 February 2010.

Sri Lanka Polls - Incumbency is Endorsed, S. D. Muni, VisitingResearch Professor, ISAS, 4 February 2010.

The Pakistan Military Proves its Mettle, Ishtiaq Ahmed, VisitingResearch Professor, ISAS, 8 February 2010.



ISAS Insights

Looking beyond Current Account Imbalances: Imperativesfor The United States, Suparna Karmakar, Visiting ResearchFellow, ISAS, 15 October 2009.

Sri Lanka's Post-Conflict Transition: Reconstruction,Reconciliation and Aid Effectiveness, Darini RajasinghamSenanayake, Visiting Research Fellow, ISAS, 19 October 2009.

Towards a World without Nuclear Arms: Can 2010 be a Yearof Hope?, Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury, Senior Research Fellow,ISAS, 9 December 2009.

The Copenhagen Climate Accord: Half May be Better thanFull, Shahid Javed Burki, Visiting Senior Research Fellow-designate,ISAS, 22 December 2009.

The Economics and Politics of China's Exchange RateAdjustment, M. Shahidul Islam, Research Associate, ISAS,28 December 2009.

India-Pakistan Relations Post-Mumbai Terrorist Attacks,Ishtiaq Ahmed, Visiting Research Professor, ISAS, 7 January 2010.

Re-organising Indian States: What is going on in Telengana?,John Harriss, Visiting Research Professor, ISAS, 29 January 2010.

South Asian Developments: Moving Towards a Détente orSowing the Seeds of Discord?, Shahid Javed Burki, VisitingSenior Research Fellow, ISAS, 24 February 2010.

ISAS Working Papers

Investment and Economic Opportunities: Urbanisation,Infrastructure and Governance in North and South India,Kala Seetharam Sridhar, Senior Research Fellow, Public AffairsCentre, Bangalore, India and A. Venugopala Reddy, ResearchOfficer, Public Affairs Centre, Bangalore, India, 2 October 2009.

Economic Integration in Asia: Trends and Policies, PradumnaBickram Rana, Senior Research Fellow, ISAS, 14 October 2009.

Non-Proliferation versus Disarmament: A DestabilisingDichotomy, Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury, Senior Research Fellow,ISAS, 21 October 2009.

India-China Trade: Explaining the Imbalance, Amitendu Palit,Visiting Research Fellow, ISAS and Shounkie Nawani,Research Scholar, Jawaharlal Nehru University New Delhi, India,26 October 2009.

Bangladesh-India Relations: Some Recent Trends, LieutenantGeneral Mohd Aminul Karim, Visiting Senior Research Fellow,Asia-Europe Institute, University of Malaya, Malaysia, 12 November2009.

Civil Aviation in India: An Exploration in the Political Economyof Promoting Competition, Rahul Mukherji, Associate Professor,Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, National University ofSingapore and Gaurav Kankanhalli, Student, United World Collegeof Southeast Asia, 18 November 2009.

The Talibanisation of Pakistan's Western Region, YasubAli Dogar, Freelance Consultant, 24 November 2009.

Buddhism and the Legitimation of Power: Democracy, PublicReligion and Minorities in Sri Lanka, Darini RajasinghamSenanayake, Visiting Research Fellow, ISAS, 26 November2009.

India and Its South Asian Neighbours, Rajeev RanjanChaturvedy, International Development Research Centre (IDRC),Canada and David M. Malone, President, IDRC, Canada,26 November 2009.

Establishing Foreign Technical Training Facilities in India:The Option of Haryana, Amitendu Palit, Visiting Research Fellow,ISAS and Sasidaran Gopalan, Research Associate, ISAS,26 November 2009.

President Barack Obama in Asia – Searching the Basis fora Partnership, Shahid Javed Burki, Visiting Senior ResearchFellow-designate, ISAS, 7 December 2009.

Vocational Education and India's Skills Deficit, Bibek Debroy,Honorary Senior Fellow, ISAS, 8 December 2009.


The Institute of South Asian Studies (ISAS) and the East Asian Institute (EAI)organised a one-day workshop titled, “China and India: Towards GreaterEngagement?”, on 19 January 2010 in Singapore. The workshop attracted morethan 100 participants from academic institutions, government agencies,diplomatic community, and the financial and business communities.

The workshop was divided into four plenary sessions, namely, Economic Cooperationand Engagement; Developmental Challenges; Domestic Political Concerns andStrategic and Foreign Policy Concerns. Priorities and concerns of China and Indiawere presented from a comparative perspective.

Distinguished speakers included Dr Zhao Hong, Visiting Senior Research Fellow,EAI; Dr Amitendu Palit, Visiting Research Fellow and Head (Development &Programmes), ISAS; Dr Zhao Litao, Research Fellow, EAI; Professor Bibek Debroy,Research Professor, Centre for Policy Research, India and Honorary Senior Fellow, ISAS; Dr Bo Zhiyue, Senior Research Fellow,EAI; Professor Robin Jeffrey, Visiting Research Professor, ISAS; Dr Chen Gang, Research Fellow, EAI; and Professor S. D. Muni,Visiting Research Professor, ISAS. The papers presented at the workshop will be jointly published by ISAS and EAI.


EventsSeminar by Y. Reddy, Emeritus Professor, University ofHyderabad, India; and former Governor, Reserve Bank ofIndia, "The Global Financial Crisis and Challenges forPublic Policy", 7 October 2009.

Seminar by Shanthie D'Souza, Associate Fellow, Institutefor Defence Studies and Analyses, India, "Afghanistan andSouth Asia: Prospects for Regional Cooperation",8 October 2009.

ISAS Public Lecture by Usha Thorat, Deputy Governor,Reserve Bank of India, "India and the Economic Crisis:Impact, Policy Responses and Future Prospects",12 October 2009.

Fifth International Conference on South Asia, “South Asia:Beyond The Global Financial Crisis”, 4 November 2009.Keynote speaker: K. Shanmugam, Minister for Law andSecond Minister for Home Affairs, Singapore.

Official Launch of South Asian Link, 4 November 2009.

Seminar by Tughral Yamin, former Senior Defense Officer,Pakistan Army; and Domain Specialist, Centre for NetcentricTechnologies, Pakistan, “The Security Situation in Pakistanand the South Asian Region”, 9 November 2009.

ISAS-Cambridge University Press Book Launch, “India’sForeign Policy: The Democracy Dimension” by S. D. Muni,Visiting Research Professor, ISAS, 15 December 2009.

EAI-ISAS Workshop: China and India – Towards Greater Engagement?

(L-R) Dr Zhao Litao, Prof John Harriss and ProfBibek Debroy at a panel discussion.

Joint Symposium by ISAS-Confederation of Indian Industry– Singapore Symposium, 16 December 2009.

ISAS Book Launch-cum-Panel Discussion, “India and theGlobal Financial Crisis: Managing Money and Finance”,8 January 2010.

Seminar by Atiur Rahman, Governor of the Bangladesh Bank,“Bangladesh's Current Economic Challenges”, 12 January2010.

Seminar by Philip Oldenburg, Adjunct Associate Professor,Political Science, Columbia University; and Research Scholar,Southern Asian Institute, Columbia University, United States,“India and Pakistan: Solving the Puzzle of DivergentPolitical Paths”, 18 January 2010.

EAI-ISAS Workshop on “China and India: Towards GreaterEngagement?”, 19 January 2010.

Conference on “Emerging Pan-Asian Integration: Linkagesbetween South Asia and East Asia”, 11 February 2010.

ADBI-ADB-ISAS Dissemination Seminar on "Infrastructurefor a Seamless Asia", 12 February 2010.

Third India-Singapore Strategic Dialogue, Singapore,18-19 February 2010.


isas newsletter 15

Documents

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indiabangladesh relations

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new constitution

new decade

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government personalities

economic growth