The Future of Southeast Asia

On Monday March 19 (2018), I attended a GIP event about the future of Southeast Asia. The event included 2 different panels featuring different experts on Southeast Asia. The first panel included 2 consuls from Southeast Asian countries and an American businessman, while the other panel included author Reza Aslan and professor George Dutton. 

Before coming to this event, I rarely heard about some of the problems faced by the different ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) countries. As a result, this event altered some of my preconceived notions and made me more aware dilemmas in these countries. That being said, I feel that the first panel could have delved more deeply into the nitty-gritty truth behind some of the problems in Southeast Asia. Although the diplomats covered a range of serious topics like trans-national human trafficking, plastic waste in the ocean, and terrorism, the consuls' answers did not seem 100% honest to me. They constantly painted a picture of cooperation and peaceful relations between nations by discussing "bridging the gap" between neighboring countries. While "bridging the gap" is an admirable and great message to have and send, I wish the consuls were more candid about some of the challenges they face while working with other countries because I am sure that they face different issues (regarding a country's self-interest, etc.) all the time. Although I learned a lot, I believe a clearer, more accurate image of the events in Southeast Asia could have been painted if we were presented with all the different sides of the problems going on there (not just the good things the ASEAN governments want to accomplish). 

A group of Rohingya refugees crossing the Bangladesh-Myanmar border.

During the second panel, Reza Aslan and George Dutton mainly discussed the Rohingya genocide, an enormous crisis that I had no knowledge of. Throughout their entire panel, I was shocked about how little I was aware of this deadly crisis and of how little attention is on it here in America. Normally, I hear things on the news, or I learn about situations from my parents discussing them in front of me. But when it comes to several problems faced in Southeast Asia, even issues as deadly as the Rohingya genocide, I hear of either very little or nothing at all. I became infuriated by my lack of knowledge on such a grave subject. That being said, the speakers were very talented at clarifying some of the reasons this crisis was going on, and they made different connections to America, which the audience could relate to. By addressing the fact that the muslim minority in Myanmar had been there for 500 years and yet had no rights whatsoever, I could not help but think about how the British treated Native Americans when they first colonized the United States, and how Americans continue to treat Native Americans today. Although it's easy to point out the flaws and issues of other countries, this panel really emphasized how the U.S. has its own fair share of problems that it still needs to address.

The Future of Southeast Asia GIP event brought a range of issues to my attention, taught me more about the world around me, and caused me to reflect more on issues in the U.S. (how Americans treat Muslim and Mexican immigrants, how we should define ourselves as a nation, etc.). I am truly grateful for this experience and the opportunity to learn new things.