Kyoto Review of Southeast Asia

Thai Cosmic Politics: Locating Power in a Diverse Kingdom

The cosmos is political. Galileo Galilei learned this at his own expense. The Italian polymath, famous for redesigning the telescope, upset the order of the cosmos by upholding heliocentrism – the theory, proposed by Copernicus, that the world rotates around the sun, and not vice versa. As the removal of the earth from the center of the cosmos was thought to challenge some creationist myths contained in the Bible, Galileo was tried by the Catholic Inquisition, and sentenced to indefinite [...]

In the Name of the People: Magic and the Enigma of Health Governance in Thailand

In September of 2014, General Prayuth, the head of a recent military coup, announced at a high-level government meeting that he had been the victim of a magical attack by forces opposed to military rule. A local newspaper reported that he attributed a sore throat and pain in his neck to “black magic” – sayasaat – but that those attending [...]

Land and Lordship: Royal Devotion, Spirit Cults and the Geo-body

Over grilled pork, on the bank of the Mekong River, Kai and I were talking about nagas [phaya nak – mythical water dragons] and other guardian spirits. As some of our dinner companions got up to refill their plates with meat, Kai leaned over to me across the smoking barbeque grill. “There is one province that the [Thai] king [Bhumibol Adulyadej] has never visited. Can you guess where it is? [...]

“Raya Kita”: Malay Muslims of Southern Thailand and the King

In 2011, a Children’s Day Fair was held in La Mengschool in the Raman district of Yala province. The fair consisted of a variety of activities including games, shows, gift drawing lots, eateries and goodies giveaways, and an award granting ceremony. In addition to a “mountain of gifts” from several state agencies and the military, what was special about that year’s fair was a schoolchildren’s [...]

A Christmas Mourning: Catholicism in Post-Bhumibol Thailand

At the Holy Mercy parish in Bangkok downtown, last Christmas was unlike any other Thai Catholics had celebrated. Instead of the plethora of Christmas decorations that used to pop up everywhere, the church was covered with sober, black-and-white mourning bunting. The Christmas tree normally exposed at the front entrance of the church as a sparkling symbol of joy was moved into a hidden corner within the courtyard, not [...]

Good, Clean Mourning in Thailand’s Cosmopolitan Cosmos

Between 22-26 September 2016, an exhibition was held in the small plot of commercial space that lies between Paragon department store and Discovery Centre in downtown Bangkok. The display featured products from the Royal Projects – development initiatives promoted by King Bhumibol over the course of his seventy-year reign. Inside the large white tent, cooled by portable air conditioners, bag-laden [...]

The Staying Power of Dynastic Politicians in the Philippines

… And How We Might Think About Reforms that Could Undermine Their Entrenchment. Elections in the Philippines are a family affair. Family dynasties control the political landscape, fielding candidates at all levels of government. The current makeup of the Philippine Senate is illustrative: a third of current Filipino Senators are either related to one of the last six Presidents or to former members of the Senate. But where political families are most prevalent is at the local level. What explains [...]

REVIEW— The End of UMNO?: Essays on Malaysia’s Dominant Party

Book Reviews

Title: The End of UMNO?: Essays on Malaysia’s Dominant Party Author: Bridget Welsh (ed.) Petaling Jaya, Malaysia: Strategic Information and Research Development Centre (SIRD), 2016. UMNO (United Malays National Organisation) has been in power for almost 60 […]

INTRODUCING VIETNAMESE TRANSLATIONS FOR THE FIRST TIME

DAENA FUNAHASHI

ANDREW ALAN JOHNSON

ANUSORN UNNO

GIUSEPPE BOLOTTA

Matthew Phillips

The Blooming Years

YOUNG ACADEMICS