Skip to main content
The Interpreter

Interpreter - Menu Links

  • Articles
  • Debates
  • Contributors
  • About

Published daily by the Lowy Institute

  • 1 Feb 2023
    • Indonesia
    • Malaysia
    • Taiwan

    Indonesia gets the ball rolling on domestic worker rights

    Ratih Kabinawa , Pamungkas A. Dewanto
    Jakarta’s call to legislate its informal workforce should be a model for all countries that receive migrant workers.
  • 22 Dec 2022
    • Malaysia
    • Philippines
    • Defence & Security
    • Nuclear Weapons
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • Administration

    The Interpreter 2022: Your most-read articles

    The Interpreter
    Russia’s invasion of Ukraine dominated the year. But readers also wanted to know all about Southeast Asia’s elections.  
  • 1 Dec 2022
    • Malaysia

    Anwar’s victory not the only Malaysian shockwave

    Amy Chew
    A dramatic rise in the Islamist vote in the Muslim-majority country is the biggest outcome of the election.
  • 15 Nov 2022
    • Malaysia

    Malaysian Chinese community to shape national poll

    Qi Siang Ng
    Electoral mathematics means politicians are faced with a choice between communal politics and multiculturalism.
  • 15 Nov 2022
    • Malaysia
    • Myanmar
    • Human rights
    • Migration
    • United Nations

    Refugees may become victims of Malaysia’s electoral politics

    Max Walden
    The plight of Myanmar Rohingyas exposes Southeast Asia’s disjointed policies and fragile human rights protections.
  • 4 Aug 2022
    • Asean
    • Indonesia
    • Malaysia

    Does ASEAN really need an official “second language”?

    Muhammad Ersan Pamungkas
    Privileging one voice over another in Southeast Asia would be a mistake.
  • 27 Jul 2022
    • Malaysia
    • Australia
    • Defence & Security
    • Review

    Semut: Australia’s secret war against the Japanese in Borneo

    Henry Storey
    A reconstruction of incomplete archives reveals one of Australia’s most audacious independent special forces operations.
  • 26 Jul 2022
    • South China Sea
    • Singapore
    • China
    • Malaysia
    • Australia
    • Defence & Security
    • United Kingdom

    Answering China’s South China Sea flying safety challenge

    Peter Layton
    A regional response can best manage risks, and the Five Power Defence Arrangement offers just the mechanism.
  • 6 Jun 2022
    • Thailand
    • Malaysia
    • China – Belt and Road Initiative

    Proceed with caution: high-speed rail for Bangkok and Kuala Lumpur

    Wu Shang-Su
    The potential connectivity benefits for two of Asia’s big cities are huge. The obstacles are many.
  • 12 Apr 2022
    • Maritime Security
    • China
    • Vietnam
    • Philippines
    • Malaysia

    China’s nine-dash line proves stranger than fiction

    Bec Strating
    How Beijing’s claims to the South China Sea have crept imperceptibly into global popular culture.
  • 25 Mar 2022
    • South China Sea
    • Asean
    • China
    • Indonesia
    • Vietnam
    • Philippines
    • Malaysia

    Stiffening the ASEAN spine in the South China Sea

    Arrizal Jaknanihan
    Any “minilateral” grouping among Southeast Asian nations must be mindful of its internal contradictions.
  • 9 Jun 2021
    • Asean
    • China
    • Malaysia

    Malaysia – and no Southeast Asian nation – should be bullied by China

    Jason Lim
    An incursion by Chinese aircraft into Malaysian airspace is yet another reminder of Beijing’s belligerence.
  • 23 Apr 2021
    • Malaysia

    Malaysia’s political turmoil has an economic cost

    Alyssa Leng , Roland Rajah
    With parliament suspended and a pandemic-induced shock, necessary and serious reform seems a long way off.
  • 22 Mar 2021
    • Diplomacy
    • United States
    • North Korea
    • Malaysia

    North Korea and Malaysia’s predictable diplomatic divorce

    James Chin
    Pyongyang is sending a message in typically overbearing style. But the target is as much the US as it is Malaysia.
  • 18 Jan 2021
    • Malaysia
    • Coronavirus

    Resisting uncertainty, Malaysia is finding itself

    Shankaran Nambiar
    Covid-19 has turbocharged Malaysia’s already fractious politics – and that’s flowing into the country’s economy.
  • 9 Dec 2020
    • Malaysia
    • Review

    Favourites of 2020: Minister of Finance Incorporated

    Alyssa Leng
    To grasp Malaysia’s infamous 1MDB scandal means understanding the elaborate ecosystem of government-linked companies.
  • 20 Aug 2020
    • Malaysia
    • Technology
    • Coronavirus

    In Malaysia’s Covid “infodemic”, crime is all too easy

    Harris Zainul
    A crackdown on the spreading of false information is unfair if people don’t have the means to spot it.
  • 19 Aug 2020
    • Multilateral Institutions
    • China
    • Pakistan
    • Saudi Arabia
    • Turkey
    • Malaysia

    As Pakistan and Saudi Arabia drift apart, China moves in

    Syed Fazl-e-Haider
    A growing schism between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan points to new alliances in the Muslim world.
  • 4 Aug 2020
    • Malaysia

    The Najib verdict and the test of Malaysia’s institutions

    Alyssa Leng
    Tough punishment will be a deterrent only if paired with a credible threat of prosecution and impartial judgement.
  • 27 May 2020
    • Asylum Seekers
    • Myanmar
    • Migration
    • Malaysia
    • Human rights

    Rohingya in Malaysia, doubly trapped

    JJ Rose
    Panics have a way of seeking out victims, and the Rohingya in Malaysia have been easy targets during the pandemic.
  • 8 May 2020
    • Malaysia

    Malaysia needs a shadow cabinet to check an amateurish government

    Chin-Huat Wong
    Covid-19 has exposed Malaysian politics as a scramble for self-interest. There is a better way.
  • 5 Mar 2020
    • Malaysia

    Malaysia is now in uncharted waters

    Amy Chew
    With an Islamist party now in government agitating for social curbs, the way of life in a secular nation is at stake.
  • 28 Jan 2020
    • South China Sea
    • Asean
    • China
    • Vietnam
    • Malaysia

    Forging consensus in the South China Sea

    Michael Nguyen
    By backing each other’s claims, a united Southeast Asian front would be difficult for Beijing to divide and conquer.
  • 4 Dec 2019
    • South China Sea
    • Asean
    • Myanmar
    • Malaysia

    In conversation: Malaysia’s Foreign Minister on great power rivalry

    Ben Bland
    From the South China Sea to the Rohingya crisis, Saifuddin Abdullah speaks to Lowy’s Ben Bland on Asia’s big challenges.
  • 22 Nov 2019
    • Malaysia

    Ultimate Game of Thrones in Malaysia

    James Chin
    However the latest political scramble unfolds, Anwar Ibrahim will not get a chance to be PM and real change is in doubt.
  • 30 Oct 2019
    • Asia
    • United States
    • China
    • Malaysia

    Towards a peaceful and inclusive Asia

    Chin Tong Liew
    Resurrecting the idea of “Asia” can help give smaller states agency to guide China as a responsible and benign giant.
  • 29 Oct 2019
    • Malaysia

    Messy is the new order: Succession time in Malaysia

    Ooi Kok Hin
    Rather than a personality rivalry between Mahathir and Anwar, a wider decentralisation of political power is underway.
  • 25 Sep 2019
    • Malaysia

    Malaysia’s dangerous racial and religious trajectory

    Amy Chew
    <p>Identity politics has turned&nbsp;inflammatory as Malaysia’s former ruling party tries to claw back support.</p>
  • 6 Sep 2019
    • India
    • Malaysia

    A fugitive preacher ignites controversy in Malaysia

    Max Walden
    The government’s shielding of Zakir Naik tests PM Mahathir Mohamad’s commitment to equal rights and democratic values.
  • 22 Aug 2019
    • Malaysia

    In Malaysia, flipping over the script

    Ooi Kok Hin
    Proposed changes to a school textbook have sparked a public debate that goes to the heart of national identity.
  • 29 Jul 2019
    • Malaysia

    Malaysia’s Mahathir has no interest in building a dynasty

    Amy Chew
    <p>Speculation Mukhriz Mahathir could take over&nbsp;from his father is just that –&nbsp;Anwar Ibrahim is anointed.</p>
  • 19 Jul 2019
    • Malaysia

    Mahathir holds all the cards, again

    James Chin
    A bitter rift over sex claims between would-be successors has again shown the ugly side of Malaysia’s politics.
  • 18 Jul 2019
    • Asia
    • Indonesia
    • Thailand
    • Philippines
    • Malaysia
    • Southeast Asia

    After the voting, personality beats policy in Southeast Asia

    Greg Earl
    Malaysia is not the only country consumed by speculation about who takes over from a conspicuous and captivating leader.
  • 28 Jun 2019
    • Malaysia

    Why Mahathir is unlikely to make Anwar his successor

    Qi Siang Ng
    Few thought the then 92-year-old return PM would be anything but a charismatic seat-warmer – except the man himself.
  • 7 Jun 2019
    • Malaysia

    Mahathir’s tilt to China smooths the way for Beijing in Southeast Asia

    Shankaran Nambiar
    Always known as a fiercely non-aligned leader, Malaysia’s Prime Minister has changed his tune on the Belt and Road.
  • 10 Apr 2019
    • North Korea
    • Malaysia

    Making a murderer: the assassination of Kim Jong-nam

    Fiona Broom
    Has justice been subsumed after a very public attack dragged Southeast Asian nations into North Korea’s power feuds?
  • 9 Apr 2019
    • Malaysia

    Domestic politics drive Malaysia’s abrupt global court U-turn

    Renee Jeffery
    Politicking to protect rights of Malaysia’s hereditary rulers has dashed plans to join the International Criminal Court.
  • 5 Mar 2019
    • Malaysia

    Malaysia joins the International Criminal Court

    Renee Jeffery
    Why now, after resisting membership for more than 20 years, has Malaysia decided to ratify the Rome Statute?
  • 20 Feb 2019
    • Malaysia

    Courting change in Malaysia

    Fiona Broom
    A combination of progress and hesitation is evident under Malaysia’s new rule, amid fear political turmoil will drag on.
  • 14 Feb 2019
    • Malaysia
    • Singapore

    Spats in the straits between Malaysia and Singapore

    Bec Strating
    The diplomatic tit-for-tat between the two neighbours for the territorial claim of the waterway has a long history.
  • 1 Feb 2019
    • China
    • Malaysia

    Malaysia and China: breaking up is hard to do

    Ben Bland
    Mahathir’s promise to scrap or renegotiate “unequal” infrastructure deals with Beijing – a plan easier said than done.
  • 23 Nov 2018
    • Asean
    • Malaysia

    From the high horse: Malaysia’s problematic track record

    Rob Edens
    Mahathir’s portrait of racial harmony in Malaysia is inspiring – except, of course, for being demonstrably false.
  • 18 Oct 2018
    • China
    • Turkey
    • Malaysia

    Mahathir: Uighurs “have done nothing wrong”

    Elliot Brennan
    Countries are struggling to navigate the issues – trying to please Beijing, the Uighurs, and respect human rights.
  • 24 Sep 2018
    • Malaysia

    Malaysia: allowing students to find voice

    Max Walden
    After years of official limits, a healthy democracy in Malaysia needs to give students the space to discuss politics.
  • 6 Sep 2018
    • Malaysia

    Mahathir redux: the past guides the future

    Francis E. Hutchinson
    The legacy of his first stint as prime minister is shaping his second – history suggests Mahathir will remain a player.
  • 30 Aug 2018
    • Australia
    • Indonesia
    • Malaysia

    Economic diplomacy: Indonesia, trade deals and TPP

    Greg Earl
    After a breakthrough with Jakarta, will Aussie-trained Indonesian workers be welcomed into Australia to improve skills?
  • 20 Aug 2018
    • Malaysia

    Decoding the Mahathir Doctrine

    Cheng-Chwee Kuik , Chin Tong Liew
    How the new Malaysia is responding to the changing internal and external environment amid US–China uncertainty.
  • 8 Aug 2018
    • Malaysia

    Malaysia: Mahathir navigates the region

    Mina Erika Pollmann
    How much has Mahathir changed in his orientation towards the West in the last 15 years?
  • 26 Jul 2018
    • Philippines
    • Malaysia

    The Sabah question

    Malcolm Cook
    <p>The Philippines and Malaysia are sparring over territory as Manila looks at a change to country’s constitution.</p>
  • 22 Jun 2018
    • Malaysia

    The big clean-up in Malaysia

    James Chin
    Political confusion might appear on the surface, yet the new government cannot act without the right people in place.
Pagination
  • Previous page ‹ Previous
  • Current page 1
  • Page 2
  • Next page ››

Stay informed with the latest commentary and analysis on international events from experts at the Lowy Institute and around the world.

Register

The Interpreter features in-depth analysis & expert commentary on the latest international events, published daily by the Lowy Institute

© Copyright 2023 Lowy Institute

  • Debates
  • Contributors
  • Articles
  • About
  • Comments Policy
  • My Bookmarks
  • Terms of Use
  • Site map
  • My Admin
  • Log In