ประเทศสมาชิกอาเซียน

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ASEAN
Member States)
Brunei
Darussalam
Head of State : His Majesty Sultan Haji
Hassanal Bolkiah Mu'izzaddin
Waddaulah
Capital : Bandar Seri Begawan
Languages: Malay, English
Currency : B$ (Brunei Dollar)
Ministry of Foreign Affairs & Trade of
Brunei Darussalam
Land area: 2,035 sq mi (5,271 sq km);
total area: 2,228 sq mi (5,770 sq km)
Population (2012 est.): 395,027 (growth
rate: 1.7%); birth rate: 18/1000; infant
mortality rate: 11.8/1000; life expectancy:
75.9; density per sq km: 72
Capital and largest city (2009 est.):
Bandar Seri Begawan, 78,000

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Other large cities: Kuala Belait 27,800,
Seria 23,400
Geography
About the size of Delaware, Brunei is an
independent sultanate on the northwest
coast of the island of Borneo in the South
China Sea, wedged between the
Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak.
Government: Constitutional sultanate.
History
Brunei was trading with China during the
6th century, and, through allegiance to
the Javanese Majapahit kingdom (13th to
15th century), it came under Hindu
influence. In the early 15th century, with
the decline of the Majapahit kingdom and
widespread conversion to Islam, Brunei
became an independent sultanate. It was
a powerful state from the 16th to the 19th
century, ruling over the northern part of

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Borneo and adjacent island chains. But
Brunei fell into decay and lost Sarawak in
1841, becoming a British protectorate in
1888 and a British dependency in 1905.
Japan occupied Brunei during World War
II; it was liberated by Australia in 1945.
The sultan regained control over internal
affairs in 1959, but Britain retained
responsibility for the state's defense and
foreign affairs until 1984, when the
sultanate became fully independent.
Sultan Bolkiah was crowned in 1967 at
the age of 22, succeeding his father, Sir
Omar Ali Saifuddin, who had abdicated.
During his reign, exploitation of the rich
Seria oilfield had made the sultanate
wealthy. Brunei has one of the highest
per capita incomes in Asia, and the
sultan is believed to be one of the richest
men in the world. In Aug. 1998, Oxford-
educated Prince Al-Muhtadee Billah was
inaugurated as heir to the 500-year-old
monarchy.

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Sultan Bolkiah began taking cautious
steps toward democratic reform in Sept.
2004, when he reinstated Parliament for
the first time since Brunei gained
independence in 1984. He was widely
praised in May 2005 when he fired four
members of his cabinet, including the
education minister, whose plan to expand
religious education angered many
parents.
Kingom of
Cambodia
Head of State : His Majesty King
Norodom Sihamoni
Head of Government : Prime Minister
Hun Sen
Capital : Phnom Penh
Language : Khmer
Currency : Riel Ministry of Foreign Affairs
& International Cooperation of Cambodia

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Cambodia (kămbōdēə), Khmer
Kampuchea, officially Kingdom of
Cambodia, constitutional monarchy
(2005 est. pop. 13,607,000), 69,898 sq
mi (181,035 sq km), SE Asia. Cambodia
is bordered by Thailand on the west and
north, by Laos on the north, by Vietnam
on the east, and by the Gulf of Thailand
on the south. Phnom Penh is the capital
and largest city.
GEOGRAPHY
Cambodia is located on mainland
Southeast Asia between Thailand to the
west and north and Vietnam to the east.
It shares a land border with Laos in the
northeast. Cambodia has a sea coast on
the Gulf of Thailand. The Dangrek
Mountain range in the north and
Cardamom Mountains in the southwest
form natural boundaries. Principal
physical features include the Tonle Sap
lake and the Mekong and Bassac Rivers.
Cambodia remains one of the most

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heavily forested countries in the region,
although deforestation continues at an
alarming rate.
PEOPLE AND CULTURE
Ninety percent of Cambodia's population
is ethnically Cambodian. Other ethnic
groups include Chinese, Vietnamese, hill
tribes, Chams, and Laotian. Theravada
Buddhism is the religion of 95% of the
population; Islam, animism, and
Christianity also are practiced. Khmer is
the official language and is spoken by
more than 95% of the population. Some
French is still spoken in urban areas, and
English is increasingly popular as a
second language.
Angkor Wat
Over a period of 300 years, between 900
and 1200 AD, the Khmer Kingdom of
Angkor produced some of the world's
most magnificent architectural
masterpieces on the northern shore of

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the Tonle Sap, near the present town of
Siem Reap. The Angkor area stretches
15 miles east to west and 5 miles north to
south. Some 72 major temples or other
buildings dot the area. Suryavarman II
built the principal temple, Angkor Wat,
between 1112 and 1150. With walls
nearly one-half mile on each side, Angkor
Wat portrays the Hindu cosmology with
the central towers representing Mount
Meru, home of the gods; the outer walls,
the mountains enclosing the world; and
the moat, the oceans beyond. Angkor
Thom, the capital city built after the
Cham sack of 1177, is surrounded by a
300-foot wide moat. Construction of
Angkor Thom coincided with a change
from Hinduism to Buddhism. Temples
were altered to display images of the
Buddha, and Angkor Wat became a
major Buddhist shrine.
During the 15th century, nearly all of
Angkor was abandoned after Siamese
attacks. The exception was Angkor Wat,

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which remained a shrine for Buddhist
pilgrims. The great city and temples
remained largely cloaked by the forest
until the late 19th century when French
archaeologists began a long restoration
process. France established the Angkor
Conservancy in 1908 to direct restoration
of the Angkor complex. For the next 64
years, the conservancy worked to clear
away the forest, repair foundations, and
install drains to protect the buildings from
their most insidious enemy: water. After
1953, the conservancy became a joint
project of the French and Cambodian
Governments. Some temples were
carefully taken apart stone by stone and
reassembled on concrete foundations.
Tourism is now the second-largest
foreign currency earner in Cambodia's
economy, and Angkor Wat has helped
attract international tourism to the country.
Economy

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Cambodia is one of the world's
poorer nations, although its economy has
recovered significantly from the effects of
the civil war that racked the country
during the latter part of the th cent.
Conditions are ideal for the cultivation of
rice, by far the country's chief crop.
Livestock raising (cattle, buffalo, poultry,
and hogs) and extensive fishing
supplement the diet. Corn, vegetables,
cashews, tapioca, peanuts, tobacco,
cotton, and sugar palms are widely
cultivated.
Rice and rubber historically were the
principal exports of Cambodia, but
exports fell sharply after the onset (
of the civil war, which put most of the
rubber plantations out of operation. By
the s, however, rubber plantings had
been undertaken as part of a national
recovery program, and rubber and rice
were again being exported. The fishing

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industry also has revived, but some food
shortages continue.
Until recently, inadequate transportation
hampered exploitation of the country's
vast forests, but by the mid- s timber
had become a major export. Mineral
resources are not abundant, but
phosphate rock, limestone, semiprecious
stones, and salt support important local
mining operations. Garment
manufacturing for export is now an
extremely important economically; many
of the country's other industries are
based on the the processing of rubber
and agricultural, fish, and timber products.
Tourism also contributes significantly to
the economy.
Cambodia is connected by road systems
with Thailand, Laos, and Vietnam;
waterways are an important supplement
to the roads. The country has two rail
lines, one extending from Phnom Penh to

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the Thai border and the other from
Phnom Penh to Kompong Som
(Sihanoukville). Clothing, timber, rubber,
rice, fish, tobacco, and footwear are the
main exports; petroleum products,
cigarettes, gold, construction materials,
machinery, motor vehicles, and
pharmaceuticals are the main imports.
The chief trade partners are the United
States, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam,
and China.
Republic of
Indonesia
Head of State : President Susilo
Bambang Yudhoyono
Capital : Jakarta
Language : Indonesian
Currency : Rupiah
Department of Foreign Affairs of
Indonesia
PEOPLE

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Indonesia's approximately 245.5 million
people make it the world's fourth-most
populous nation. The island of Java,
roughly the size of New York State, is the
most populous island in the world (124
million, 2005 est.) and one of the most
densely populated areas in the world.
Indonesia includes numerous related but
distinct cultural and linguistic groups,
many of which are ethnically Malay.
Since independence, Bahasa Indonesia
(the national language, a form of Malay)
has spread throughout the archipelago
and has become the language of most
written communication, education,
government, business, and media. Local
languages are still important in many
areas, however. English is the most
widely spoken foreign language.
Education is compulsory for children
through grade 9. In primary school, 94%
of eligible children are enrolled whereas
57% of eligible children are enrolled in
secondary school.

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Constitutional guarantees of religious
freedom apply to the six religions
recognized by the state, namely Islam
(88%), Protestantism (5%), Catholicism
(3%), Buddhism (2%), Hinduism (1%)
and Confucianism (less than 1%). In the
resort island of Bali, over 90% of the
population practices Hinduism. In some
remote areas, animism is still practiced.
HISTORY
By the time of the Renaissance, the
islands of Java and Sumatra had already
enjoyed a 1,000-year heritage of
advanced civilization spanning two major
empires. During the 7th-14th centuries,
the Buddhist kingdom of Srivijaya
flourished on Sumatra. At its peak, the
Srivijaya Empire reached as far as West
Java and the Malay Peninsula. Also by
the 14th century, the Hindu Kingdom of
Majapahit had risen in eastern Java.

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Gadjah Mada, the empire's chief minister
from 1331 to 1364, succeeded in gaining
allegiance from most of what is now
modern Indonesia and much of the Malay
archipelago as well. Legacies from
Gadjah Mada's time include a
codification of law and an epic poem.
Islam arrived in Indonesia sometime
during the 12th century and, through
assimilation, supplanted Hinduism by the
end of the 16th century in Java and
Sumatra. Bali, however, remains
overwhelmingly Hindu. In the eastern
archipelago, both Christian and Islamic
proselytizing took place in the 16th and
17th centuries, and, currently, there are
large communities of both religions on
these islands.
Beginning in 1602, the Dutch slowly
established themselves as rulers of
present-day Indonesia, exploiting the
weakness of the small kingdoms that had
replaced that of Majapahit. The only

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exception was East Timor, which
remained under Portugal's control until
1975. During 300 years of rule, the Dutch
developed the Netherlands East Indies
into one of the world's richest colonial
possessions.
During the first decade of the 20th
century, an Indonesian independence
movement began and expanded rapidly,
particularly between the two World Wars.
Its leaders came from a small group of
young professionals and students, some
of whom had been educated in the
Netherlands. Many, including Indonesia's
first president, Soekarno (1945-67), were
imprisoned for political activities.
The Japanese occupied Indonesia for
three years during World War II (1942-
1945). On August 17, 1945, three days
after the Japanese surrender to the Allies,
a small group of Indonesians, led by
Soekarno and Mohammad Hatta,

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proclaimed independence and
established the Republic of Indonesia.
They set up a provisional government
and adopted a constitution to govern the
republic until elections could be held and
a new constitution written. Dutch efforts
to reestablish complete control met
strong resistance. After four years of
warfare and negotiations, the Dutch
transferred sovereignty to a federal
Indonesian Government. In 1950,
Indonesia became the 60th member of
the United Nations.
Shortly after hostilities with the Dutch
ended in 1949, Indonesia adopted a new
constitution, providing for a parliamentary
system of government in which the
executive was chosen by and
accountable to parliament. Parliament
was divided among many political parties
before and after the country's first
nationwide election in 1955, and stable
governmental coalitions were difficult to

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achieve. The role of Islam in Indonesia
became a divisive issue. Soekarno
defended a secular state based on
Pancasila, five principles of the state
philosophy--monotheism,
humanitarianism, national unity,
representative democracy by consensus,
and social justice--codified in the 1945
constitution, while some Muslim groups
preferred either an Islamic state or a
constitution which included a preambular
provision requiring adherents of Islam to
be subject to Islamic law. At the time of
independence, the Dutch retained control
over the western half of New Guinea
(known as Irian Jaya in the Soekarno and
Soeharto eras and as Papua since 2000)
and permitted steps toward self-
government and independence.
Negotiations with the Dutch on the
incorporation of Irian Jaya into Indonesia
failed and armed clashes broke out
between Indonesian and Dutch troops in

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1961. In August 1962, the two sides
reached an agreement and Indonesia
assumed administrative responsibility for
Irian Jaya on May 1, 1963. The
Indonesian Government conducted an
"Act of Free Choice" in Irian Jaya under
UN supervision in 1969 in which 1,025
Papuan representatives of local councils
agreed by consensus to remain a part of
Indonesia. A subsequent UN General
Assembly resolution confirmed the
transfer of sovereignty to Indonesia.
Opposition to Indonesian administration
of Papua gave rise to small-scale
guerrilla activity in the years following
Jakarta's assumption of control. In the
more open atmosphere since 1998, there
have been more explicit expressions
within Papua calling for independence
from Indonesia.
Unsuccessful rebellions on Sumatra,
Sulawesi, West Java, and other islands
beginning in 1958, plus a failure by the

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constituent assembly to develop a new
constitution, weakened the parliamentary
system. Consequently, in 1959, when
President Soekarno unilaterally revived
the provisional 1945 constitution that
gave broad presidential powers, he met
little resistance. From 1959 to 1965,
President Soekarno imposed an
authoritarian regime under the label of
"Guided Democracy." He also moved
Indonesia's foreign policy toward
nonalignment, a foreign policy stance
supported by other prominent leaders of
former colonies who rejected formal
alliances with either the West or Soviet
bloc. Under Soekarno's auspices, these
leaders gathered in Bandung, West Java
in 1955 to lay the groundwork for what
became known as the Non-Aligned
Movement. In the late 1950s and early
1960s, President Soekarno moved closer
to Asian communist states and toward
the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) in
domestic affairs. Though the PKI

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represented the largest communist party
outside the Soviet Union and China, its
mass support base never demonstrated
an ideological adherence typical of
communist parties in other countries.
By 1965, the PKI controlled many of the
mass civic and cultural organizations that
Soekarno had established to mobilize
support for his regime and, with
Soekarno's acquiescence, embarked on
a campaign to establish a "Fifth Column"
by arming its supporters. Army leaders
resisted this campaign. Under
circumstances that have never been fully
explained, on October 1, 1965, PKI
sympathizers within the military, including
elements from Soekarno's palace guard,
occupied key locations in Jakarta and
kidnapped and murdered six senior
generals. Major General Soeharto, the
commander of the Army Strategic
Reserve, rallied army troops opposed to
the PKI to reestablish control over the

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city. Violence swept throughout
Indonesia in the aftermath of the October
1 events and unsettled conditions
persisted through 1966. Right-wing
gangs killed tens of thousands of alleged
communists in rural areas. Estimates of
the number of deaths range between
160,000 and 500,000. The violence was
especially brutal in Java and Bali. During
this period, PKI members by the tens of
thousands turned in their membership
cards. The emotions and fears of
instability created by this crisis persisted
for many years as the communist party
remains banned from Indonesia.
Throughout the 1965-66 period,
President Soekarno vainly attempted to
restore his political stature and shift the
country back to its pre-October 1965
position. Although he remained President,
in March 1966, Soekarno transferred key
political and military powers to General
Soeharto, who by that time had become

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head of the armed forces. In March 1967,
the Provisional People's Consultative
Assembly (MPRS) named General
Soeharto acting President. Soekarno
ceased to be a political force and lived
under virtual house arrest until his death
in 1970.
President Soeharto proclaimed a "New
Order" in Indonesian politics and
dramatically shifted foreign and domestic
policies away from the course set in
Soekarno's final years. The New Order
established economic rehabilitation and
development as its primary goals and
pursued its policies through an
administrative structure dominated by the
military but with advice from Western-
educated economic experts. In 1968, the
People's Consultative Assembly (MPR)
formally selected Soeharto to a full five-
year term as President and he was re-
elected to successive 5-year terms in
1973, 1978, 1983, 1988, 1993, and 1998.

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In mid-1997, Indonesia suffered from the
Asian financial and economic crisis,
accompanied by the worst drought in 50
years and falling prices for oil, gas, and
other commodity exports. As the
exchange rate changed from a fixed to a
managed float to fully floating, the rupiah
depreciated in value, inflation increased
significantly, and capital flight accelerated.
Demonstrators, initially led by students,
called for Soeharto's resignation. Amid
widespread civil unrest, Soeharto
resigned on May 21, 1998, three months
after the MPR had selected him for a
seventh term. Soeharto's hand-picked
Vice President, B.J. Habibie, became
Indonesia's third President. President
Habibie reestablished International
Monetary Fund (IMF) and donor
community support for an economic
stabilization program. He released
several prominent political and labor
prisoners, initiated investigations into the

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unrest, and lifted controls on the press,
political parties, and labor unions.
In January 1999, Habibie and the
Indonesian Government agreed to a
process, with UN involvement, under
which the people of East Timor would be
allowed to choose between autonomy
and independence through a direct ballot
held on August 30, 1999. Some 98% of
registered voters cast their ballots, and
78.5% of the voters chose independence
over continued integration with Indonesia.
Many people were killed by Indonesian
military forces and military-backed
militias in a wave of violence and
destruction after the announcement of
the pro-independence vote.
Indonesia's first elections in the post-
Soeharto period were held for the
national, provincial, and sub-provincial
parliaments on June 7, 1999. Forty-eight
political parties participated in the

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elections. For the national parliament,
Partai Demokrasi Indonesia Perjuangan
(PDI-P, Indonesian Democratic Party of
Struggle led by Megawati Soekarnoputri)
won 34% of the vote; Golkar ("Functional
Groups" party) 22%; Partai Kebangkitan
Bangsa (PKB, National Awakening Party
linked to the conservative Islamic
organization Nadhlatul Ulama headed by
former President Abdurrahman Wahid)
13%; and Partai Persatuan
Pembangunan (PPP, United
Development Party led by Hamzah Haz)
11%. The MPR selected Abdurrahman
Wahid as Indonesia's fourth President in
November 1999 and replaced him with
Megawati Soekarnoputri in July 2001.
The constitution, as amended in the post-
Soeharto era, provides for the direct
election by popular vote of the president
and vice president. Under the 2004
amendment, only parties or coalitions of
parties that gained at least 3% of the

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House of Representatives (DPR) seats or
5% of the vote in national legislative
elections were eligible to nominate a
presidential and vice presidential ticket.
The 2004 legislative elections took place
on April 5 and were considered to be
generally free and fair. PDI-P lost its
plurality in the House of Representatives,
dropping to under 19% of the total vote,
while Golkar remained near 1999 levels
with 21% of the vote. Five other parties
won between 6 and 11% of the national
vote. Of the 18 other parties that
participated, nine won small numbers of
seats in the DPR. The first direct
presidential election was held on July 5,
2004, contested by five tickets. As no
candidate won at least 50% of the vote, a
runoff election was held between the top
two candidates, President Megawati
Sukarnoputri and retired General Susilo
Bambang Yudhoyono, on September 20,
2004. In this final round, Yudhoyono won
60.6% of the vote. Approximately 76.6%

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of the eligible voters participated, a total
of roughly 117 million people, making
Indonesia's presidential election the
largest single-day election in the world.
The Carter Center, which sent a
delegation of election observers, issued a
statement congratulating "the people and
leaders of Indonesia for the successful
conduct of the presidential election and
the peaceful atmosphere that has
prevailed throughout the ongoing
democratic transition."
Natural disasters have devastated many
parts of Indonesia over the past few
years. On December 26, 2004 a 9.1 to
9.3 magnitude earthquake took place in
the Indian Ocean, and the resulting
tsunami killed over 130,000 people in
Aceh and left more than 500,000
homeless. On March 26, 2005, an 8.7
magnitude earthquake struck between
Aceh and northern Sumatra, killing 905
people and displacing tens of thousands.

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After much media attention of the seismic
activity on Mt. Merapi in April and May
2006, a 6.2 magnitude earthquake
occurred 30 miles to the southwest. It
killed over 5,000 people and left an
estimated 200,000 people homeless in
the Yogyakarta region.
GOVERNMENT AND POLITICAL
CONDITIONS
Indonesia is a republic based on the
1945 constitution providing for a
separation of executive, legislative, and
judicial power. Substantial restructuring
has occurred since President Soeharto's
resignation in 1998 and the short,
transitional Habibie administration in
1998 and 1999. The Habibie government
established political reform legislation
that formally set up new rules for the
electoral system, the House of
Representatives (DPR), the People's

29
Consultative Assembly (MPR), and
political parties without changing the
1945 Indonesian constitution. After these
reforms, the constitution now limits the
president to two terms in office.
The president, elected for a five-year
term, is the top government and political
figure. The president and the vice
president were elected by popular vote
for the first time on September 20, 2004.
Previously, the MPR selected Indonesia's
president. In 1999, the MPR selected
Abdurrahman Wahid, also known as Gus
Dur, as the fourth President. The MPR
removed Gus Dur in July 2001,
immediately appointing then-Vice
President Megawati Soekarnoputri as the
fifth President. Megawati brought a
certain amount of stability to Indonesia,
yet there were concerns over progress
on combating corruption and
encouraging economic growth. In 2004,

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Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was elected
to succeed Megawati.
The president, assisted by an appointed
cabinet, has the authority to conduct the
administration of the government.
President Yudhoyono's Democratic Party
(PD), holds 55 of the 550 seats in the
House of Representatives (DPR), making
it the fourth-largest political party
represented in the legislature as of mid-
2006. Yudhoyono, however, also had the
support of other political parties that
combined to hold a majority of the seats
in the DPR. The People's Consultative
Assembly (MPR) has 678 members,
consisting of the 550 members of the
DPR and the 128 representatives of the
House of Regional Representatives
(DPD), which includes four members
from each of Indonesia's 32 provinces.
Since 2004, all seats in the DPR and
DPD have been held by legislators
elected by the citizenry. Previously, some
seats had been reserved for

31
representatives of the armed forces. The
military has been a significant political
force throughout Indonesian history.
The armed forces shaped the political
environment and provided leadership for
Soeharto's New Order from the time it
came to power in the wake of the
abortive 1965 uprising. Military officers,
especially from the army, were key
advisers to Soeharto and Habibie and
had considerable influence on policy.
Under the dual function concept
("dwifungsi"), the military asserted a
continuing role in socio-political affairs.
This concept was used to justify
placement of officers to serve in the
civilian bureaucracy at all government
levels. Although the military retains
influence and is one of the only truly
national institutions, the wide-ranging
democratic reforms instituted since 1999
abolished "dwifungsi" and ended the
armed forces' formal involvement in
government administration. The police

32
have been separated from the military,
further reducing the military's direct role
in governmental matters. Control of the
military by the democratically elected
government has been strengthened.
As a reaction to Soeharto's centralization
of power and reflecting historically
independent sentiment, Hasan di Tiro
established the Free Aceh Movement
(Gerakan Aceh Merdeka, GAM) in
December 1976 to seek independence
for Aceh. Some 15,000 died in military
conflict in Aceh over the following three
decades. Through peace talks led by
former Finnish president Martti Ahtisaari,
a peace agreement between GAM and
the Indonesian Government that provided
wide-ranging autonomy for Aceh was
signed on August 15, 2005. By
December 2005, GAM declared that they
had disbanded the military wing of their
organization, and the Indonesian
Government had withdrawn the bulk of its
security forces down to agreed levels. On

33
December 11, 2006, Aceh held
gubernatorial and district administrative
elections, the first democratic elections in
over half a century in Aceh.
Principal Government Officials
President--Susilo Bambang
Yudhoyono
Vice President--Jusuf Kalla
Minister of Foreign Affairs--Noer
Hassan Wirajuda
Ambassador to the United States--
Sudjadnan Parnohadiningrat
Ambassador to the United Nations--
Rezlan Izhar Jeni
ECONOMY
Indonesia has a market-based economy
in which the government plays a
significant role. There are 158 state-
owned enterprises and the government

34
administers prices on several basic
goods, including fuel, rice, and electricity.
In the mid-1980s, the government began
eliminating regulatory obstacles to
economic activity. The steps were aimed
primarily at the external and financial
sectors and were designed to stimulate
employment and growth in the non-oil
export sector. Annual real gross domestic
product (GDP) growth averaged nearly 7%
from 1987-97 and most analysts
recognized Indonesia as a newly
industrializing economy and emerging
major market. The Asian financial crisis
of 1997 altered the region's economic
landscape. With the depreciation of the
Thai currency, the foreign investment
community quickly re-evaluated its
investments in Asia. Foreign investors
dumped assets and investments in Asia,
leaving Indonesia the most affected in
the region. In 1998, Indonesia
experienced a negative GDP growth of
13.1% and unemployment rose to 15-

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20%. In the aftermath of the 1997-98
financial crisis, the government took
custody of a significant portion of private
sector assets via debt restructuring, but
subsequently sold most of these assets,
averaging a 29% return. Indonesia has
since recovered, albeit slower than some
of its neighbors, by recapitalizing its
banking sector, improving oversight of
capital markets, and taking steps to
stimulate growth and investment,
particularly in infrastructure. GDP growth
was 4.5% in 2003, 5.1% in 2004, and 5.6%
in 2005. Estimates for real GDP growth in
2006 are 5.5%.
Economic Policy: After he took office on
October 20, 2004, President Yudhoyono
moved quickly to implement a "pro-
growth, pro-poor, pro-employment"
economic program. He appointed a
respected group of economic ministers
who announced a "100-Day Agenda" of
short-term policy actions designed to
energize the bureaucracy. President

36
Yudhoyono also announced an ambitious
anti-corruption plan in December 2004.
The State Ministry of National
Development Planning (BAPPENAS)
released in early 2005 a Medium Term
Plan focusing on four broad objectives:
creating a safe and peaceful Indonesia;
creating a just and democratic Indonesia;
creating a prosperous Indonesia; and
establishing a stable macroeconomic
framework for development. President
Yudhoyono reshuffled his cabinet in
December 2005, appointing former
Finance Minister Boediono as
Coordinating Minister for Economic
Affairs, and moving Sri Mulyani Indrawati
from the National Development Planning
Agency to the Finance Ministry. In early
2006, the Government of Indonesia
announced new policy packages for
stimulating investment and infrastructure.
The Yudhoyono Administration has
targeted average growth of 6.6% from
2004-2009 to reduce unemployment and

37
poverty significantly. Indonesia's overall
macroeconomic picture is stable and
improving. By 2004, real GDP per capita
returned to pre-financial crisis levels. In
2005, domestic consumption continued
to account for the largest portion of GDP,
at 65.4%, followed by investment at 22%,
government consumption at 8.2%, and
net exports at 4.3%. In evidence of an
accelerating economy, investment
realization doubled in 2005. Capital
goods imports increased 35.9% in 2005,
a further indication of a strengthening
economy.
The government raised fuel prices by an
average of 126% on October 1, 2005 in
an effort to reduce Indonesia's fuel
subsidy burden, projected to reach Rp
89.2 trillion in 2005, or 3.3% of GDP. The
fuel price hikes led to a surge in inflation
as consumer price inflation reached 10.5%
for 2005 and an estimated 13.2% for
2006. The Indonesian Government
implemented a quarterly cash

38
compensation package for low-income
families and an extra range of benefits
including subsidized rice, improved
health and social services, housing
subsidies, micro credit, and family
planning programs.
Banking Sector: Indonesia currently has
130 banks, of which 11 are majority
foreign-owned and 28 are foreign joint
venture banks. The top 10 banks control
about 67% of assets in the sector. Four
state-owned banks (Bank Mandiri, BNI,
BRI, BTN) continue to dominate the
sector with approximately 40% of assets.
The Indonesian central bank, Bank
Indonesia (BI), announced plans in
January 2005 to strengthen the banking
sector by encouraging consolidation and
improving prudential banking and
supervision. BI hopes to encourage small
banks with less than Rp 100 billion
(about U.S. $11 million) in capital to
either raise more capital or merge with
healthier "anchor banks" before 2009,

39
announcing the criteria for anchor banks
in July 2005. In October 2006, BI
announced a single presence policy to
further prompt consolidation. The policy
stipulates that a single party can own a
controlling interest in only one banking
organization. Controlling interest is
defined as 25% or more of total
outstanding shares or having direct or
indirect control of the institution. BI plans
to adopt Basel II standards beginning in
2008 and to improve operations of its
credit bureau to centralize data on
borrowers. Another important banking
sector reform was the decision to
eliminate the blanket guarantee on bank
third-party liabilities. BI and the
Indonesian Government completed the
process of replacing the blanket
guarantee with a deposit insurance
scheme run by the independent
Indonesian Deposit Insurance Agency
(also known by its Indonesian acronym,
LPS) in March 2007. Sharia banking has

40
grown considerably in Indonesia in recent
years, representing 1.4% of the banking
sector, about $2.2 billion in assets at the
end of 2005.
Exports and Trade: Indonesia's exports
grew to a record $100.7 billion in 2006,
an increase of 17.6% from 2005. The
largest export commodities for 2006 were
oil and gas (21.2%), minerals (15.7%),
electrical appliances (14.7%), rubber
products (6.9%), and textiles (3.4%). The
top four destinations for exports for 2006
were Japan (15.4%), the U.S. (13.4%),
Singapore (9.8%), and China (6.9%).
Meanwhile, total imports were $61.1
billion in 2006, including: raw materials
and intermediaries ($47.2 billion), capital
goods ($9.1 billion), and consumer goods
($4.6 billion). The U.S. trade deficit with
Indonesia decreased by 16.5% in 2006 to
$7.2 billion ($4.0 billion in exports versus
$11.2 billion in imports).
Oil and Minerals Sector: Indonesia, the
only Asian member of the Organization of

41
Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC),
ranks 21st among world oil producers
(according to 2006 estimates), with about
1.8% of world production. Crude and
condensate output averaged 1.04 million
barrels per day (b/d) in 2006. In 2006, the
oil and gas sector, including refining,
contributed $23 billion, or 24% of
government revenues. U.S. companies
have invested heavily in the petroleum
sector. Due to limited refining capacity
and growing domestic demand for
petroleum fuels, Indonesia became a net
oil importer in 2004 and continued to be a
net oil importer through mid-2007.
Indonesia ranks eighth in world gas
production. In early 2007, Qatar passed
Indonesia as the world's number one
exporter of liquefied natural gas (LNG).
Despite the declining trends, Indonesia's
oil and gas trade balance remained
positive at $1.8 billion in 2005 and $2.3
billion for 2006, according to unofficial
statistics.

42
Although minerals production traditionally
centered on bauxite, silver, and tin,
Indonesia is expanding its copper, nickel,
gold, and coal output for export markets.
In mid-1993, the Energy Ministry
reopened the coal sector to foreign
investment. Total coal production
reached 159 million metric tons in 2006,
including exports of 119.8 million tons.
Two U.S. firms operate two copper/gold
mines in Indonesia, with a Canadian and
U.K. firm holding significant investments
in nickel and gold, respectively.
Indonesian gold production in 2006 was
85.4 tons, down about 50% compared
with 167 tons in 2005. Indonesia
achieved its peak output in 2001 with 180
tons. Production mainly came from
Freeport's Grasberg mine, the world's
biggest gold-producing mine. Indonesia's
share of global hard rock mining
exploration spending has dropped from 3%
to 1%. Since 1998, only three new gold
mines have opened. This decline does

43
not reflect Indonesia's mineral prospects,
which are high; rather the decline reflects
uncertainty over mining laws and
regulations, low competitiveness in the
tax and royalty system, and investor
concerns over divestment policies and
the sanctity of contracts.
The Loa People's Democratic
Republic
Head of State : President Choummaly
Sayasone
Thongsing Thammavong
Capital : Vientiane
Language : Lao
Currency : Kip
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Lao PDR
Land area: 89,112 sq mi (230,800 sq km);
total area: 91,428 sq mi (236,800 sq km)

44
Population (2012 est.): 6,586,266 (growth
rate: 1.655%); birth rate: 25.68/1000;
infant mortality rate: 57.7/1000; life
expectancy: 62.77
Vientiane, 799,000
Geography
A landlocked nation in Southeast Asia
occupying the northwest portion of the
Indochinese peninsula, Laos is
surrounded by China, Vietnam,
Cambodia, Thailand, and Burma. It is
twice the size of Pennsylvania. Laos is a
mountainous country, especially in the
north, where peaks rise above 9,000 ft
(2,800 m). Dense forests cover the
northern and eastern areas. The Mekong
River, which forms the boundary with
Burma and Thailand, flows through the
country for 932 mi (1,500 km) of its
course.
Government : Communist state.

45
History
The Lao people migrated into Laos from
southern China from the 8th century
onward. In the 14th century, the first
Laotian state was founded, the Lan Xang
kingdom, which ruled Laos until it split
into three separate kingdoms in 1713.
During the 18th century, the three
kingdoms came under Siamese (Thai)
rule and, in 1893, became a French
protectorate. With its territory
incorporated into Indochina. A strong
nationalist movement developed during
World War II, but France reestablished
control in 1946 and made the king of
Luang Prabang constitutional monarch of
all Laos. France granted semiautonomy
in 1949 and then, spurred by the Viet
Minh rebellion in Vietnam, full
independence within the French Union in
1950.
In 1951, Prince Souphanouvong
organized the Pathet Lao, a Communist
independence movement, in North

46
Vietnam. Viet Minh and Pathet Lao
forces invaded central Laos, resulting in
civil war. By the Geneva Agreements of
1954 and an armistice of 1955, two
northern provinces were given to the
Pathet Lao; the rest went to the royal
regime. Full sovereignty was given to the
kingdom by the Paris Agreements of Dec.
29, 1954. In 1957, Prince Souvanna
Phouma, the royal prime minister, and
Pathet Lao leader Prince
Souphanouvong, the prime minister's
half-brother, agreed to reestablishment of
a unified government, with Pathet Lao
participation and integration of Pathet
Lao forces into the royal army. The
agreement broke down in 1959, and
armed conflict began anew.
In 1960, the struggle became a three-
way fight as Gen. Phoumi Nosavan,
controlling the bulk of the royal army, set
up in the south a pro-Western
revolutionary government headed by

47
Prince Boun Oum. General Phoumi took
Vientiane in December, driving Souvanna
Phouma into exile in Cambodia. The
Soviet bloc supported Souvanna Phouma.
In 1961, a cease-fire was arranged and
the three princes agreed to a coalition
government headed by Souvanna
Phouma.
Malaysia
Head of Government : The Honourable
Dato' Sri Mohd Najib bin Tun Abdul
Razak
Capital : Kuala Lumpur
Language(s) : Malay, English, Chinese,
Tamil
Currency : Ringgit
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Malaysia
ASEAN-Malaysia National Secretariat

48
Land area: 126,853 sq mi (328,549 sq
km); total area: 127,316 sq mi (329,750
sq km)
Population (2013 est.): 29,628,392
(growth rate: 1.51%); birth rate:
20.41/1000; infant mortality rate:
14.12/1000; life expectancy: 74.28
Capital and largest city (2009 est.): Kuala
Lumpur, 1.493 million
Other large cities: Kelang, 1.071 million;
Johor Bharu, 958,000
Geography
Malaysia is on the Malay Peninsula in
southeast Asia. The nation also includes
Sabah and Sarawak on the island of
Borneo to the east. Its area slightly
exceeds that of New Mexico.
Most of Malaysia is covered by forest,
with a mountain range running the length
of the peninsula. Extensive forests
provide ebony, sandalwood, teak, and
other wood.

49
Government: Constitutional monarchy.
Foreign Minister--Datuk Seri Syed
Hamid Albar
Ambassador to the U.S.--Datin
Paduka Rajmah Hussein
Ambassador to the UN--Datuk
Hamidon bin Ali
History
The ancestors of the people that now
inhabit the Malaysian peninsula first
migrated to the area between 2500 and
1500 B.C. Those living in the coastal
regions had early contact with the
Chinese and Indians; seafaring traders
from India brought with them Hinduism,
which was blended with the local animist
beliefs. As Muslims conquered India,
they spread the religion of Islam to
Malaysia. In the 15th century, Islam
acquired a firm hold on the region when
the Hindu ruler of the powerful city-state
of Malacca, Parameswara Dewa Shah,
converted to Islam.

50
British and Dutch interest in the region
grew in the 1800s, with the British East
India Company's establishment of a
trading settlement on the island of
Singapore. Trade soared, with
Singapore's population growing from only
5,000 in 1820 to nearly 100,000 in just 50
years. In the 1880s, Britain formally
established protectorates in Malaysia. At
about the same time, rubber trees were
introduced from Brazil. With the mass
production of automobiles, rubber
became a valuable export, and laborers
were brought in from India to work the
rubber plantations.
Economic Reform and Growth
In the 1980s, Dr. Mohamad Mahathir
succeeded Datuk Hussein as prime
minister. Mahathir instituted economic
reforms that would transform Malaysia
into one of the so-called Asian Tigers.

51
Throughout the 1990s, Mahathir
embarked on a massive project to build a
new capital from scratch in an attempt to
bypass congested Kuala Lumpur.
Beginning in 1997 and continuing
through the next year, Malaysia suffered
from the Asian currency crisis. Instead of
following the economic prescriptions of
the International Monetary Fund and
World Bank, the prime minister opted for
fixed exchange rates and capital controls.
In late 1999, Malaysia was on the road to
economic recovery, and it appeared
Mahathir's measures were working.
PEOPLE
The early Buddhist Malay kingdom of
Srivijaya, based at what is now
Palembang, Sumatra, dominated much
of the Malay peninsula from the 9th to the
13th centuries AD. The powerful Hindu
kingdom of Majapahit, based on Java,

52
gained control of the Malay peninsula in
the 14th century. Conversion of the
Malays to Islam, beginning in the early
14th century, accelerated with the rise of
the state of Malacca under the rule of a
Muslim prince in the 15th century.
Malacca was a major regional
commercial center, where Chinese, Arab,
Malay, and Indian merchants traded
precious goods.
Drawn by this rich trade, a Portuguese
fleet conquered Malacca in 1511,
marking the beginning of European
expansion in Southeast Asia. The Dutch
ousted the Portuguese from Malacca in
1641. The British obtained the island of
Penang in 1786 and temporarily
controlled Malacca with Dutch
acquiescence from 1795 to 1818 to
prevent it from falling to the French
during the Napoleonic war. The British
gained lasting possession of Malacca
from the Dutch in 1824, through the
Anglo-Dutch treaty, in exchange for

53
territory on the island of Sumatra in what
is today Indonesia.
In 1826, the British settlements of
Malacca, Penang, and Singapore were
combined to form the Colony of the
Straits Settlements. From these
strongholds, in the 19th and early 20th
centuries the British established
protectorates over the Malay sultanates
on the peninsula. During their rule the
British developed large-scale rubber and
tin production and established a system
of public administration. British control
was interrupted by World War II and the
Japanese occupation from 1941 to 1945.
Popular sentiment for independence
swelled during and after the war. The
territories of peninsular Malaysia joined
together to form the Federation of Malaya
in 1948 and eventually negotiated
independence from the British in 1957.
Tunku Abdul Rahman became the first

54
prime minister. In 1963 the British
colonies of Singapore, Sarawak, and
Sabah joined the Federation, which was
renamed Malaysia. Singapore's
membership was short-lived, however; it
left in 1965 and became an independent
republic.
Neighboring Indonesia objected to the
formation of Malaysia and began a
program of economic, political, diplomatic,
and military "confrontation" against the
new country in 1963, which ended only
after the fall of Indonesia's President
Sukarno in 1966. Internally, local
communists, nearly all Chinese, carried
out a long, bitter insurgency both before
and after independence, prompting the
imposition of a state of emergency from
1948 to 1960. Small bands of guerrillas
remained in bases along the rugged
border with southern Thailand,
occasionally entering northern Malaysia.
These guerrillas finally signed a peace

55
accord with the Malaysian Government in
December 1989. A separate, small-scale
communist insurgency that began in the
mid-1960s in Sarawak also ended with
the signing of a peace accord in October
1990.
Republic of the Union of Myanmar
Head of State : Senior General Than
Shwe
General Thein Sein
Capital : Nay Pyi Daw
Language : Myanmar
Currency : Kyat
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Myanmar
Land area: 253,954 sq mi (657,741 sq
km); total area: 261,969 q mi (678,500 sq
km)

56
Population (2012 est.): 54,584,650
47.74/1000; life expectancy: 65.24;
density per sq km: 72
Capital: Naypyidaw
largest city (2009 est.): Rangoon
(Yangon), 4,259,000
Naypyidaw (administrative capital)
Other large cities: Mandalay, 1,009,000;
Nay Pyi Taw 992,000
Geography
Slightly smaller than Texas, Myanmar
occupies the Thailand/Cambodia portion
of the Indochinese peninsula. India lies to
the northwest and China to the northeast.
Bangladesh, Laos, and Thailand are also
neighbors. The Bay of Bengal touches
the southwest coast. The fertile delta of
the Irrawaddy River in the south contains
a network of interconnecting canals and
nine principal river mouths.
Government: Military regime.

57
History
The ethnic origins of modern Myanmar
(known historically as Burma) are a
mixture of Indo-Aryans, who began
pushing into the area around 700 B.C. ,
and the Mongolian invaders under Kublai
Khan who penetrated the region in the
13th century. Anawrahta (1044–1077)
was the first great unifier of Myanmar.
In 1612, the British East India Company
sent agents to Burma, but the Burmese
doggedly resisted efforts of British, Dutch,
and Portuguese traders to establish
posts along the Bay of Bengal. Through
the Anglo-Burmese War in 1824–1826
and two subsequent wars, the British
East India Company expanded to the
whole of Burma. By 1886, Burma was
annexed to India, then became a
separate colony in 1937.
Culture

58
A diverse range of indigenous cultures
exist in Burma, the majority culture is
primarily Buddhist and Bamar. Bamar
culture has been influenced by the
cultures of neighbouring countries. This
is manifested in its language, cuisine,
music, dance and theatre. The arts,
particularly literature, have historically
been influenced by the local form of
Theravada Buddhism. Considered the
national epic of Burma, the Yama Zatdaw,
an adaptation of India's Ramayana, has
been influenced greatly by Thai, Mon,
and Indian versions of the play.
Buddhism is practised along with nat
worship, which involves elaborate rituals

59
to propitiate one from a pantheon of 37
nats.
Mohinga, traditional Burmese rice
noodles in fish soup, is widely considered
to be Burma's national dish.
In a traditional village, the monastery is
the centre of cultural life. Monks are
venerated and supported by the lay
people. A novitiation ceremony called
shinbyu is the most important coming of
age events for a boy, during which he
enters the monastery for a short time. All
male children in Buddhist families are
encouraged to be a novice (beginner for
Buddhism) before the age of twenty and
to be a monk after the age of twenty.
Girls have ear-piercing ceremonies at the
same time. Burmese culture is most
evident in villages where local festivals
are held throughout the year, the most
important being the pagoda festival.
Many villages have a guardian nat, and
superstition and taboos are
commonplace.

60
British colonial rule introduced Western
elements of culture to Burma. Burma's
education system is modelled after that
of the United Kingdom. Colonial
architectural influences are most evident
in major cities such as Yangon.[267]
Many ethnic minorities, particularly the
Karen in the southeast and the Kachin
and Chin who populate the north and
northeast, practice Christianity.[268]
According to the The World Factbook,
the Burman population is 68% and the
ethnic groups comprise of 32%. However,
the exiled leaders and organisations
claims that ethnic population is 40%,
which is implicitly contrasted with CIA
report (official U.S. report).
Republic of the
Philippine
Head of State : President Benigno S.
Aquino III
Capital : Manila

61
Language(s) : Filipino, English, Spanish
Currency : Peso
Department of Foreign Affairs of the
Philippines
Land area: 115,124 sq mi (298,171 sq
sq km)
Population (2011 est.): 103,775,002
Manila, 1.65 million
Other large cities: Quezon 2.76 million;
Caloocan 1.49 million Davao 1.45 million;
Cebu City 866,171; Zamboanga 807,129
(2010)
The halo-halo is a dessert made of ice,
milk, various fruits, and ice cream

62
Geography
The Philippine islands are an archipelago
of over 7,000 islands lying about 500 mi
(805 km) off the southeast coast of Asia.
The overall land area is comparable to
that of Arizona. Only about 7% of the
islands are larger than one square mile,
and only one-third have names. The
largest are Luzon in the north (40,420 sq
mi; 104,687 sq km), Mindanao in the
south (36,537 sq mi; 94,631 sq km), and
Visayas (23,582 sq mi; 61,077 sq km).
The islands are of volcanic origin, with
the larger ones crossed by mountain
ranges. The highest peak is Mount Apo
(9,690 ft; 2,954 m) on Mindanao.
Government: Republic.
History
The Philippines' aboriginal inhabitants
arrived from the Asian mainland around
25,000 BC They were followed by waves
of Indonesian and Malayan settlers from
3000 BC onward. By the 14th century

63
AD , extensive trade was being
conducted with India, Indonesia, China,
and Japan.
Ferdinand Magellan, the Portuguese
navigator in the service of Spain,
explored the Philippines in 1521. Twenty-
one years later, a Spanish exploration
party named the group of islands in
honor of Prince Philip, who was later to
become Philip II of Spain. Spain retained
possession of the islands for the next 350
years.
The Philippines were ceded to the U.S. in
1899 by the Treaty of Paris after the
Spanish-American War. Meanwhile, the
Filipinos, led by Emilio Aguinaldo, had
declared their independence. They
initiated guerrilla warfare against U.S.
troops that persisted until Aguinaldo's
capture in 1901. By 1902, peace was

64
established except among the Islamic
Moros on the southern island of
Mindanao.
The first U.S. civilian governor-general
was William Howard Taft (1901–1904).
The Jones Law (1916) established a
Philippine legislature composed of an
elective Senate and House of
Representatives. The Tydings-McDuffie
Act (1934) provided for a transitional
period until 1946, at which time the
Philippines would become completely
independent. Under a constitution
approved by the people of the Philippines
in 1935, the Commonwealth of the
Philippines came into being with Manuel
Quezon y Molina as president.
On Dec. 8, 1941, the islands were
invaded by Japanese troops. Following
the fall of Gen. Douglas MacArthur's
forces at Bataan and Corregidor, Quezon
instituted a government-in-exile that he

65
headed until his death in 1944. He was
succeeded by Vice President Sergio
Osmeña. U.S. forces under MacArthur
reinvaded the Philippines in Oct. 1944
and, after the liberation of Manila in Feb.
1945, Osmeña reestablished the
government.
Politics and government
The Philippines has a democratic
government.It is a constitutional republic
with a presidential system. It is governed
as a unitary state with the exception of
the Autonomous Region in Muslim
Mindanao which is largely free from the
national government. There have been
attempts to change the government to a
federal, unicameral, or parliamentary
government since the Ramos
administration.
The President functions as both head of
state and head of government and is the
commander-in-chief of the armed forces.
The president is elected by popular vote
for a single six-year term, during which

66
he or she appoints and presides over the
cabinet. The bicameral Congress is
composed of the Senate, serving as the
upper house, with members elected to a
six-year term, and the House of
Representatives, serving as the lower
house, with members elected to a three-
year term. The senators are elected at
large while the representatives are
elected from both legislative districts and
through sectoral representation. The
judicial power is vested in the Supreme
Court, composed of a Chief Justice as its
presiding officer and fourteen associate
justices, all of whom are appointed by the
President from nominations submitted by
the Judicial and Bar Council.
Economy
The national economy of the Philippines
is the 40th largest in the world, with an
estimated 2012 gross domestic product
(nominal) of $250.436 billion. Primary
exports include semiconductors and
electronic products, transport equipment,

67
garments, copper products, petroleum
products, coconut oil, and fruits. Major
trading partners include the United States,
Japan, China, Singapore, South Korea,
the Netherlands, Hong Kong, Germany,
Taiwan, and Thailand. Its unit of currency
is the Philippine peso (₱ or PHP).
Demographics
Population in Philippines increased from
1990 to 2008 by approximately 28 million,
a 45% growth in that time frame. The first
official census in the Philippines was
carried out in 1877 and recorded a
population of 5,567,685. As of 2011, the
Philippines has become the world's 12th
most populous nation, with a population
of over 94 million. It is estimated that half
of the population resides on the island of
Luzon. The population growth rate
between 1995 to 2000 of 3.21%
decreased to an estimated 1.95% for the
2005 to 2010 period, but remains a
contentious issue. The population's
median age is 22.7 years with 60.9%

68
aged from 15 to 64 years old. Life
expectancy at birth is 71.94 years, 75.03
years for females and 68.99 years for
males.
There are about 11 million Filipinos
outside the Philippines. Since the
liberalization of United States immigration
laws in 1965, the number of people in the
United States having Filipino ancestry
has grown substantially. In 2007 there
were an estimated 3.1 million. According
to the United States Census Bureau,
immigrants from the Philippines made up
the second largest group after Mexico
that sought family reunification. Some
two million Filipinos work in the Middle
East, with nearly a million in Saudi Arabia
alone.
Culture and society
Philippine culture is a combination of
Eastern and Western cultures. The
Philippines exhibits aspects found in
other Asian countries with a Malay
heritage, yet its culture also displays a

69
significant amount of Spanish and
American influences. Traditional
festivities known as barrio fiestas (district
festivals) to commemorate the feast days
of patron saints are common. The
Moriones Festival and Sinulog Festival
are a couple of the most well-known.
These community celebrations are times
for feasting, music, and dancing. Some
traditions, however, are changing or
gradually being forgotten due to
modernization. The Bayanihan Philippine
National Folk Dance Company has been
lauded for preserving many of the various
traditional folk dances found throughout
the Philippines. They are famed for their
iconic performances of Philippine dances
such as the tinikling and singkil that both
feature the use of clashing bamboo poles.
Barasoain
Church in Malolos, Bulacanwhere the First Philippine Republic was
founded.

70
One of the most visible Hispanic legacies
is the prevalence of Spanish names and
surnames among Filipinos. However, a
Spanish name and surname does not
necessarily denote Spanish ancestry.
This peculiarity, unique among the
people of Asia, came as a result of a
colonial decree, the Clavería edict, for
the systematic distribution of family
names and implementation of the
Spanish naming system on the
population.[206] The names of many
streets, towns, and provinces are also in
Spanish. Spanish architecture has left an
imprint in the Philippines in the way many
towns were designed around a central
square or plaza mayor, but many of the
buildings bearing its influence were
demolished during World War II.[31]
Some examples remain, mainly among
the country's churches, government
buildings, and universities. Four
Philippine baroque churches are included
in the list of UNESCO World Heritage

71
Sites: the San Agustín Church in Manila,
the Paoay Church in Ilocos Norte, the
Nuestra Señora de la Asunción (Santa
María) Church in Ilocos Sur, and the
Santo Tomás de Villanueva Church in
Iloilo.[207] Vigan in Ilocos Sur is also
known for the many Hispanic-style
houses and buildings preserved there.
Republic of
Singapore
Head of State : President Tony Tan Keng
Yam
Lee Hsien Loong
Capital : Singapore
Language(s) : English, Malay, Mandarin,
Tamil
Currency : S$ (Singapore Dollar)
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Singapore

72
Land area: 241 sq mi (624 sq km); total
area: 267 sq mi (692.7 sq km)
Population (2012 est.): 5,353,494 (growth
rate: 1.993%); birth rate: 7.72/1000;
infant mortality rate: 2.65/1000; life
expectancy: 83.75
Singapore, 5,183,700.
Geography
The Republic of Singapore consists of
the main island of Singapore, off the
southern tip of the Malay Peninsula
between the South China Sea and the
Indian Ocean, and 58 nearby islands.
Government: Parliamentary republic.
History
Inhabitants of the Malaysian peninsula
and the island of Singapore first migrated
to the area between 2500 and 1500 B.C.
( see Malaysia). British and Dutch

73
interest in the region grew with the spice
trade, and the trading post of Singapore
was founded in 1819 by Sir Stamford
Raffles. It was made a separate Crown
colony of Britain in 1946, when the
former colony of the Straits Settlements
was dissolved. The other two settlements
on the peninsula—Penang and
Malacca—became part of the Union of
Malaya, and the small island of Labuan
was transferred to North Borneo. The
Cocos (or Keeling) Islands and
Christmas Island were transferred to
Australia in 1955 and in 1958,
respectively.
Singapore attained full internal self-
government in 1959, and Lee Kwan Yew,
an economic visionary with an
authoritarian streak, took the helm as
prime minister. On Sept. 16, 1963,
Singapore joined Malaya, Sabah (North
Borneo), and Sarawak in the Federation
of Malaysia. It withdrew from the

74
federation on Aug. 9, 1965, and a month
later proclaimed itself a republic.
Under Lee, Singapore developed into
one of the cleanest, safest, and most
economically prosperous cities in Asia.
However, Singapore's strict rules of civil
obedience also drew criticism from those
who said the nation's prosperity was
achieved at the expense of individual
freedoms.
S. R. Nathan was declared president
without an election when he was certified
as the only candidate eligible to run in
1999 elections. In Aug. 2004, Lee Hsien
Loong became the country's third prime
minister since Singapore gained
independence from Britain in 1965. Lee
faced his first electoral challenge in May
2006. His People's Action Party (PAP)
won 82 out of 84 seats in parliamentary
elections.

75
In Singapore's May 2011 general election,
the ruling People's Action Party was
reelected with a majority of 81 to 6, which
was the equivalent of 60% of the vote.
This percentage was viewed as
promising by the opposition, as it was
significantly less than in the two previous
elections. After the elections, prime
minister Lee Hsien Loong
uncharacteristically acknowledged
mistakes and pledged a more efficient
government in the future.
Following on the heels of the general
election, August's presidential election
saw a field of four candidates from which
the ruling party's Tony Tan emerged
victorious. Though favored to win, Tan's
triumph was not exactly a landslide--the
7,000 vote margin was the equivalent of
35.2% of the vote.

76
Government and politics
Singapore is a parliamentary republic
with a Westminster system of unicameral
parliamentary government representing
constituencies. Its constitution
establishes representative democracy as
its political system. Freedom House
ranks Singapore as "partly free" in its
Freedom in the World report, and The
Economist ranks Singapore as a "hybrid
regime", the third rank out of four, in its
"Democracy Index".Singapore is
consistently rated one of the least corrupt
countries in the world by Transparency
International.
Executive power rests with the Cabinet,
led by the Prime Minister, and the
President. The president is elected
through popular vote, and has some veto
powers for a few key decisions such as
the use of the national reserves and the
appointment of judges, but otherwise
occupies a ceremonial post.

77
The Parliament serves as the legislative
branch of government.Members of
Parliament (MPs) consist of elected, non-
constituency and nominated members.
Elected MPs are voted into parliament on
a "first-past-the-post" (plurality) basis and
represent either single-member or group-
representation constituencies.The
People's Action Party has won control of
Parliament with large majorities in every
election since self-governance was
secured in 1959.[26] However, in the
most recent parliamentary elections in
2011, the opposition, led by the Workers'
Party, made significant gains and
increased its representation in the House
to 6 elected MPs.
The legal system of Singapore is based
on English common law, albeit with
substantial local differences. Trial by jury
was entirely abolished in 1970 leaving
judicial assessment performed wholly by
judgeship. Singapore has penalties that
include judicial corporal punishment in

78
the form of caning for rape, rioting,
vandalism, and some immigration
offences.There is a mandatory death
penalty for murder, and for certain drug-
trafficking and firearms offences.
Amnesty International has said that some
legal provisions conflict with the right to
be presumed innocent until proven guilty,
and that Singapore has "possibly the
highest execution rate in the world
relative to its population".The
government has disputed Amnesty's
claims. In a 2008 survey, international
business executives believed Singapore,
along with Hong Kong, had the best
judicial system in Asia.
In 2011, the World Justice Project's Rule
of Law Index ranked Singapore in the top
countries surveyed for "Order and
Security", "Absence of Corruption", and
"Effective Criminal Justice". However, it
scored low for both "Freedom of Speech"
and "Freedom of Assembly".All public
gatherings of five or more people require

79
police permits, and protests may legally
be held only at Speakers' Corner.
Economy
Modern-day economy
The Port of Singapore, one of the world's five
busiest, with the skyline of Singapore in the
background.
Today, Singapore has a highly
developed market-based economy,
based historically on
extended entrepôt trade. Along with
Hong Kong, South Korea and Taiwan,
Singapore is one of the original Four
Asian Tigers. The Singaporean economy
is known as one of the freest, most
innovative, most competitive, and most
business-friendly. The2011 Index of
Economic Freedom ranks Singapore as
the second freest economy in the world,
behind Hong Kong. According to
the Corruption Perceptions Index,

80
Singapore is consistently ranked as one
of the least corrupt countries in the world,
along with New Zealand and the
Scandinavian countries.
Singapore is the 14th largest exporter
and the 15th largest importer in the world.
The country has the highest trade-to-
GDP ratio in the world at 407.9 percent,
signifying the importance of trade to its
economy. The country is currently the
only Asian country to have AAA credit
ratings from all three major credit rating
agencies; Standard & Poor's, Moody's,
and Fitch. Singapore attracts a large
amount of foreign direct investment as a
result of its location, corruption-free
environment, skilled workforce, low tax
rates and advanced infrastructure. There
are more than 7,000 multinational
corporations from the United States,
Japan, and Europe in Singapore. There
are also 1,500 companies from China
and 1,500 from India. Foreign firms are
found in almost all sectors of the
economy. Singapore is also the second
largest foreign investor in India. Roughly
44 percent of the Singaporean workforce
is made up of non-Singaporeans. Over

81
ten free trade agreementshave been
signed with other countries and regions.
Singapore also possesses the world's
eleventh largest foreign reserves, and is
rated top in terms of net international
investment position per capita. The
currency of Singapore is the Singapore
dollar, issued by the Monetary Authority
of Singapore. It is interchangeable with
the Brunei dollar.
In recent years, the country has been
identified as an increasingly popular tax
haven for the wealthy due to the low tax
rate on personal income, a full tax
exemption on income that is generated
outside of Singapore and legislation that
means that capital gains are also tax
exempt. Australian millionaire retailer
Brett Blundy, with an estimated personal
wealth worth AU$835 million, and multi-
billionaire Facebook co-founder Eduardo
Saverin are two examples of wealthy
individuals who have settled in Singapore
(Blundy in 2013 and Saverin in
2012). Singapore ranked sixth place on
the Tax Justice Network's 2011 Financial
Secrecy Index of the world's top tax

82
havens, scoring narrowly behind the
United States.
Employment and poverty
Singapore has the world's highest
percentage of millionaires, with one out
of every six households having at least
one million US dollars in disposable
wealth. This excludes property,
businesses, and luxury goods, which if
included would further increase the
number of millionaires, especially as
property in Singapore is among the
world's most expensive.[94] Despite its
relative economic success, Singapore
does not have a minimum wage,
believing that it would lower its
competitiveness. It also has one of the
highest income inequality levels among
developed countries, coming in just
behind Hong Kong and in front of the
United States.
Acute poverty is rare in Singapore; the
government has rejected the idea of a
generous welfare system, stating that
each generation must earn and save

83
enough for its entire life cycle. There are,
however, numerous means-tested
'assistance schemes' provided by the
Ministry of Community Development,
Youth and Sports in Singapore for the
needy, including some that pay out SGD
400 to SGD 1000 per month to each
needy household, free medical care at
government hospitals, money for
children's school fees, rental of studio
apartments for SGD 80 a month, training
grants for courses, etc.
Culture
The country has strict laws against drug
use and has one of the lowest rates of
drug use in the world. Foreigners also
make up 42% of the populationand have
a strong influence on Singaporean
culture. A.T. Kearney named Singapore
the most globalised country in the world
in 2006 in its Globalization Index. The
Economist Intelligence Unit in its
"Quality-of-Life Index" ranks Singapore
as having the best quality of life in Asia
and eleventh overall in the world.

84
Kingdom of
Thailand
Head of State : His Majesty King
Bhumibol Adulyadej
Yingluck Shinawatra
Capital : Bangkok
Language : Thai
Currency : Baht
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand
Land area: 197,595 sq mi (511,771 sq
sq km)
Population (2012 est.): 67,091,089
Capital and largest city (2010): Bangkok,
8.28 million
Geography

85
Thailand occupies the western half of the
Indochinese peninsula and the northern
two-thirds of the Malay Peninsula in
southeast Asia. Its neighbors are Burma
(Myanmar) on the north and west, Laos
on the north and northeast, Cambodia on
the east, and Malaysia on the south.
Thailand is about the size of France.
Government: Constitutional monarchy.
Politics and government
The politics of Thailand is currently
conducted within the framework of a
constitutional monarchy, whereby the
Prime Minister is the head of government
and a hereditary monarch is head of
state. The judiciary is independent of the
executive and the legislative branches.
Since the political reform of the absolute
monarchy in 1932, Thailand has had 17
constitutions and charters. Throughout
this time, the form of government has
ranged from military dictatorship to

86
electoral democracy, but all governments
have acknowledged a hereditary
monarch as the head of state
History
The Thais first began settling their
present homeland in the 6th century, and
by the end of the 13th century ruled most
of the western portion. During the next
400 years, they fought sporadically with
the Cambodians to the east and the
Burmese to the west. Formerly called
Siam, Thailand has never experienced
foreign colonization. The British gained a
colonial foothold in the region in 1824,
but by 1896 an Anglo-French accord
guaranteed the independence of
Thailand. A coup in 1932 demoted the
monarchy to titular status and
established representative government
with universal suffrage.

87
At the outbreak of World War II,
Japanese forces attacked Thailand. After
five hours of token resistance Thailand
yielded to Japan on Dec. 8, 1941,
subsequently becoming a staging area
for the Japanese campaign against
Malaya. Following the demise of a pro-
Japanese puppet government in July
1944, Thailand repudiated the
declaration of war it had been forced to
make in 1942 against Britain and the U.S.
By the late 1960s the nation's problems
largely stemmed from conflicts brewing in
neighboring Cambodia and Vietnam.
Although Thailand had received $2 billion
in U.S. economic and military aid since
1950 and had sent troops (paid by the
U.S.) to Vietnam while permitting U.S.
bomber bases on its territory, the
collapse of South Vietnam and Cambodia
in spring 1975 brought rapid changes in
the country's diplomatic posture. At the
Thai government's insistence, the U.S.

88
agreed to withdraw all 23,000 U.S.
military personnel remaining in Thailand
by March 1976.
Economy
Agriculture employs almost 50% of the
population but makes up only 10% of the
gross domestic product. Rice is by far the
leading commercial crop, followed by
rubber, corn, sugarcane, coconuts, and
soybeans. Thailand's teak, once a major
export, is still a valuable commodity.
Marine and freshwater fisheries are
important; fish provide most of the protein
in the diet, and some of the deep-sea
catches (mackerel, shark, shrimp, crab)
are exported. Thailand is also a major
exporter of farmed shrimp. Tin and
tungsten are the most valuable minerals
and major export items. Lead, zinc, and
antimony are also mined for export. Iron
ore, gold, precious and semiprecious
stones (especially saphires and rubies),

89
salt, lignite, petroleum, natural gas,
asphaltic sand, and glass sand are
exploited on a smaller scale.
Thailand has substantial hydroelectric
potential, which is being developed;
projects have been constructed on the
Ping, Mekong, Phong, and Songkhram
rivers. Industry is growing. Much industry
is focused on the processing of
agricultural products; rice milling is by far
the most important, followed by sugar
refining, textile spinning and weaving,
and the processing of rubber, tobacco,
and forest products. The manufacture of
electrical and electronic equipment,
including appliances and computers and
integrated circuits, became important in
the late 20th cent., causing a substantial
rise in the per capita gross domestic
product. Lumbering is concentrated in the
north. Other industries include steel
production, oil refining, tin smelting,
vehicle and machine assembly, and

90
vehicle parts. Small factories, many of
which are in the Bangkok area,
manufacture jewelry, furniture, plastics,
glass, and pharmaceuticals. Tourism is
the leading source of foreign exchange,
and handicraft production has a ready
market in the tourist trade. Thailand is
also a major transshipment point for illicit
heroin and has become a drug-money-
laundering center. The main exports are
textiles and footwear, fishery products,
rice, rubber, computers and electronics,
automobiles and auto parts, electrical
appliances, and jewelry. The chief
imports are capital and consumer goods,
raw materials, and fuels. The main
trading partners are Japan, the United
States, China, Malaysia, and Singapore.
Bangkok is a key point on round-the-
world air routes. It is the political,
commercial, cultural, and transportation
center of the country, with the only port
that can accommodate oceangoing

91
vessels. Thailand's railroads originate in
Bangkok and extend to Chiang Mai, the
Korat plateau, and to Cambodia, Laos,
and Malaysia; a corresponding network
of paved highways has been constructed.
Thailand's inland waterways—a complex,
interconnected system of rivers, streams,
and canals—have been important
arteries since ancient times; barges and
boats still carry well over half the cargo
moved in the central plain.
Culture
Theravada Buddhism is highly respected in Thailand.
Thai culture has been shaped by many
influences, including Indian, Lao,
Burmese, Cambodian, and Chinese. Its

92
traditions incorporate a great deal of
influence from India, China, Cambodia,
and the rest of Southeast Asia.
Thailand's national religion Theravada
Buddhism is important to modern Thai
identity. Thai Buddhism has evolved over
time to include many regional beliefs
originating from Hinduism, animism as
well as ancestor worship. The official
calendar in Thailand is based on the
Eastern version of the Buddhist Era,
which is 543 years ahead of the
Gregorian (western) calendar. For
example, the year AD 2012 is 2555 BE in
Thailand.
Several different ethnic groups, many of
which are marginalized, populate
Thailand. Some of these groups overlap
into Burma, Laos, Cambodia, and
Malaysia and have mediated change
between their traditional local culture,
national Thai and global cultural
influences. Overseas Chinese also form
a significant part of Thai society,

93
particularly in and around Bangkok. Their
successful integration into Thai society
has allowed for this group to hold
positions of economic and political power.
Thai Chinese businesses prosper as part
of the larger bamboo network, a network
of overseas Chinese businesses
operating in the markets of Southeast
Asia that share common family and
cultural ties.
Khon Show is the most stylised form of
Thai performance
The traditional Thai greeting, the wai, is
generally offered first by the younger of
the two people meeting, with their hands
pressed together, fingertips pointing
upwards as the head is bowed to touch
their face to the hands, usually coinciding

94
with the spoken word "Sawasdee khrap"
for male speakers, and "Sawasdee ka"
for females. The elder then is to respond
afterwards in the same way. Social status
and position, such as in government, will
also have an influence on who performs
the wai first. For example, although one
may be considerably older than a
provincial governor, when meeting it is
usually the visitor who pays respect first.
When children leave to go to school, they
are taught to wai to their parents to
represent their respect for them. The wai
is a sign of respect and reverence for
another, similar to the namaste greeting
of India and Nepal.
Association football, however, has
possibly overtaken Muay Thai's position
as most widely viewed and liked sport in
contemporary Thai society and it is not
uncommon to see Thais cheering their
favourite English Premier League teams
on television and walking around in
replica kits. Another widely enjoyed

95
pastime, and once a competitive sport, is
kite flying.
Thai cuisine blends five fundamental
tastes: sweet, spicy, sour, bitter and salty.
Some common ingredients used in Thai
cuisine include garlic, chillies, lime juice,
lemon grass, and fish sauce. The staple
food in Thailand is rice, particularly
jasmine variety rice (also known as Hom
Mali rice) which is included in almost
every meal. Thailand is the world's
largest exporter of rice, and Thais
domestically consume over 100 kg of
milled rice per person per year.[59] Over
5000 varieties of rice from Thailand are
preserved in the rice gene bank of the
International Rice Research Institute
(IRRI), based in the Philippines. The king
of Thailand is the official patron of IRRI
Like most Asian cultures, respect
towards ancestors is an essential part of
Thai spiritual practice. Thais have a
strong sense of hospitality and generosity,
but also a strong sense of social

96
hierarchy. Seniority is an important
concept in Thai culture. Elders have by
tradition ruled in family decisions or
ceremonies. Older siblings have duties to
younger ones.
Taboos in Thailand include touching
someone's head or pointing with the feet,
as the head is considered the most
sacred and the foot the dirtiest part of the
body. Thai society has been influenced in
recent years by its widely available multi-
language press and media. There are
some English and numerous Thai and
Chinese newspapers in circulation; most
Thai popular magazines use English
headlines as a chic glamor factor. Many
large businesses in Bangkok operate in
English as well as other languages.
Thailand is the largest newspaper market
in Southeast Asia with an estimated
circulation of over 13 million copies daily
in 2003. Even upcountry, out of Bangkok,
media flourishes. For example, according
to Thailand's Public Relations

97
Department Media Directory 2003–2004,
the nineteen provinces of Isan,
Thailand's northeastern region, hosted
116 newspapers along with radio, TV and
cable.
Socialist Republic of Vietnam
Head of State : President Truong Tan
Dang
Nguyen Tan Dung
Capital : Ha Noi
Language : Vietnamese
Currency : Dong
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Viet Nam

98
Land area: 125,622 sq mi (325,361 sq
sq km)
Population (2012 est.): 91,519,289
20.24/1000; life expectancy: 72.41;
density per sq mi: 683
Capital (2009 est.): Hanoi, 6.5 million
(metro. area), 2.6 million (city proper)
Largest cities: Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon),
7,396,446; Haiphong, 1,907,705; Da
Nang, 887,069; Hué 333,715; Nha Trang,
392,279
Pho is one of the most popular
Vietnamese dishes. It can be found in
most major cities in the world.

99
Geography
Vietnam occupies the eastern and
southern part of the Indochinese
peninsula in Southeast Asia, with the
South China Sea along its entire coast.
China is to the north and Laos and
Cambodia are to the west. Long and
narrow on a north-south axis, Vietnam is
about twice the size of Arizona. The
Mekong River delta lies in the south.
Government: Communist state.
Government and politics
The Socialist Republic of Vietnam, along
with China, Cuba, and Laos, is one of the
world's four remaining single-party
socialist states officially espousing
communism. Its current state constitution,
which replaced the 1975 constitution in
April 1992, asserts the central role of the

100
Communist Party of Vietnam in all organs
of government, politics and society. The
General Secretary of the Communist
Party performs numerous key
administrative and executive functions,
controlling the party's national
organization and state appointments, as
well as setting policy. Only political
organizations affiliated with or endorsed
by the Communist Party are permitted to
contest elections in Vietnam. These
include the Vietnamese Fatherland Front
and worker and trade unionist parties.
Although the state remains officially
committed to socialism as its defining
creed, its economic policies have grown
increasingly capitalist,[88] with The
Economist characterizing its leadership
as "ardently capitalist communists".[89]
The President of Vietnam is the titular
head of state and the nominal
commander-in-chief of the military,
serving as the Chairman of the Council of
Supreme Defense and Security. The

101
Prime Minister of Vietnam is the head of
government, presiding over a council of
ministers composed of three deputy
prime ministers and the heads of 26
ministries and commissions.
The National Assembly of Vietnam is the
unicameral legislature of the state,
composed of 498 members. Headed by a
Chairman, it is superior to both the
executive and judicial branches, with all
government ministers being appointed
from members of the National Assembly.
The Supreme People's Court of Vietnam,
headed by a Chief Justice, is the
country's highest court of appeal, though
it is also answerable to the National
Assembly. Beneath the Supreme
People's Court stand the provincial
municipal courts and numerous local
courts. Military courts possess special
jurisdiction in matters of national security.
History
The Vietnamese are descendants of
nomadic Mongols from China and

102
migrants from Indonesia. According to
mythology, the first ruler of Vietnam was
Hung Vuong, who founded the nation in
2879 B.C. China ruled the nation then
known as Nam Viet as a vassal state
from 111 B.C. until the 15th century, an
era of nationalistic expansion, when
Cambodians were pushed out of the
southern area of what is now Vietnam.
A century later, the Portuguese were the
first Europeans to enter the area. France
established its influence early in the 19th
century, and within 80 years it conquered
the three regions into which the country
was then divided—Cochin-China in the
south, Annam in the central region, and
Tonkin in the north.
France first unified Vietnam in 1887,
when a single governor-generalship was
created, followed by the first physical
links between north and south—a rail and
road system. Even at the beginning of

103
World War II, however, there were
internal differences among the three
regions. Japan took over military bases in
Vietnam in 1940, and a pro-Vichy French
administration remained until 1945.
Veteran Communist leader Ho Chi Minh
organized an independence movement
known as the Vietminh to exploit the
confusion surrounding France's
weakened influence in the region. At the
end of the war, Ho's followers seized
Hanoi and declared a short-lived republic,
which ended with the arrival of French
forces in 1946.
Paris proposed a unified government
within the French Union under the former
Annamite emperor, Bao Dai. Cochin-
China and Annam accepted the proposal,
and Bao Dai was proclaimed emperor of
all Vietnam in 1949. Ho and the Vietminh
withheld support, and the revolution in
China gave them the outside help
needed for a war of resistance against

104
French and Vietnamese troops armed
largely by a United States worried about
cold war Communist expansion.
Economy
Agriculture still employs a majority of the
population (though it produces a smaller
share of the GDP than industry and
services), and rice is by far the leading
crop. The Mekong and Red river deltas
are among the world's greatest rice-
growing regions, the former benefiting
from heavy rainfall and rich alluvial soil
and the latter notable for its elaborate
network (c.2,700 mi/4,350 km) of dikes,
dams, canals, and locks that provide
irrigation and flood control. Soybeans,
peanuts, bananas, corn, and sweet
potatoes are secondary food crops, and
coffee, cotton, tea, pepper, cashews, and
sugarcane are among the cash crops.
Fishing and aquaculture comprise an
important industry, and marine products
are a major export, especially shrimp.
Rubber is also important. Timber

105
resources are still substantial, particularly
in the north, but deforestation resulting
from highland resettlement, shifting
cultivation, and commercial cutting is an
increasingly serious problem.
Most of the country's mineral resources
are in the north. Vietnam produces large
amounts of coal as well as having sizable
deposits of phosphates, manganese,
bauxite, chromate, and other metal ores.
Substantial offshore oil and gas deposits
exist in southern waters, and crude oil is
an important export. Vietnam's industrial
development was hampered by more
than three decades of war, but as a result
of economic reforms that began in the
late 20th cent. and accelerated in the
early 21st cent., there has been
considerable industrial development.
Important industries include food
processing; machine building; mining;
and the manufacture of clothing, steel,
chemical fertilizers, glass, tires, and

106
paper. The tourism industry is also
significant. The major exports are crude
oil, marine products, rice, coffee, rubber,
tea, garments, and shoes. The main
imports are machinery and equipment,
petroleum products, fertilizer, steel,
cotton, grain, and motorcycles. Vietnam's
main trading partners are China,
Singapore, the United States, Japan, and
South Korea.
Culture
Vietnam's culture has developed over the
centuries from indigenous ancient Dong
Son culture with wet rice agriculture as its
economic base. Some elements of the
national culture have Chinese origins,
drawing on elements of Confucianism
and Taoism in its traditional political
system and philosophy. Vietnamese
society is structured around làng
(ancestral villages); all Vietnamese mark
a common ancestral anniversary on the
tenth day of the third lunar month. The

107
influences of immigrant peoples – such
as the Cantonese, Hakka, Hokkien and
Hainan cultures – can also be seen, while
the national religion of Buddhism is
strongly entwined with popular culture. In
recent centuries, the influences of
Western cultures, most notably France
and the United States, have become
evident in Vietnam.
The traditional focuses of Vietnamese
culture are humanity (nhân nghĩa) and
harmony (hòa); family and community
values are highly regarded. Vietnam
reveres a number of key cultural symbols,
such as the Vietnamese dragon, which is
derived from crocodile and snake
imagery; Vietnam's National Father, Lạc
Long Quân, is depicted as a holy dragon.
The lạc – a holy bird representing
Vietnam's National Mother, Âu Cơ – is
another prominent symbol, while turtle
and horse images are also revered.
In the modern era, the cultural life of
Vietnam has been deeply influenced by

108
government-controlled media and cultural
programs. For many decades, foreign
cultural influences – especially those of
Western origin – were shunned. However,
since the 1990s, Vietnam has seen a
greater exposure to Southeast Asian,
European and American culture and
media.
The Municipal Theatre in Ho Chi Minh City

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