CAIRO ― Last year’s events in Egypt and Tunisia drew the curtain on a tottering old order and delivered much of the Arab world into a long-awaited new era. But what that new era will look like remains very much an open question, given the many challenges that the region’s countries still face.The old order that has begun to vanish extends beyond the former regimes. The region’s entire value system ― a political culture forged by autocracy ― is being transformed. Arab men and women have shed the

Viewpoints Jan. 30, 2012

There seem to be as many political solutions to education problems in South Korea as there are people thinking about them. Thus, there is endless controversy about which policies should be implemented. A major reason for the controversy is the biggest difference between political and market-based polices: In politics, a situation that captures public attention is seen a problem or crisis; in the market, such situations are seen as opportunities.Some of the world’s greatest, boldest and most aggr

Viewpoints Jan. 29, 2012

Singapore’s prime minister, Lee Hsien Loong, isn’t often taken publicly to task. But when you make S$3.1 million ($2.4 million) annually to run a country, people tend to expect results. When they don’t get them, the aggrieved masses turn to that lowest-of-common-denominator gripes: Hey, how much are we paying this guy? Lots compared with, say, Barack Obama, who as U.S. president gets $400,000 a year. Lee’s compensation will fall 36 percent, and that of Singapore’s president will drop 51 percent,

Viewpoints Jan. 29, 2012

As the April general election draws near, political parties are competitively pouring out corporate reform plans. The sudden impetus toward corporate reform could be seen as the customary practice of political parties bashing chaebol before a major election. But this time, there seems to be more to it. Their attack on the chaebol is gaining traction amid a growing perception that the incumbent government’s corporate policy has only benefited chaebol at the expense of small and medium-sized enter

Editorial Jan. 27, 2012

The ruling Grand National Party has decided to change its name next week. The party’s emergency leadership council announced on Thursday that the party would hold polls on potential names among party members from Friday to Sunday and adopt a new name on Monday. The plan reflects the scandal-ridden party’s desperate attempt to project a new image before the April general election. In recent years, the party has suffered a series of unsavory scandals that tarnished its image irreparably. Hence, a

Editorial Jan. 27, 2012

It’s a rare economic story that involves Facebook Inc., God and credit ratings. Leave it to Indonesia to serve up a saga that speaks volumes about the obstacles facing Southeast Asia’s biggest economy. Although Indonesia doesn’t often make global headlines, one event last week should have received more ink: Moody’s Investors Service returned the country to investment grade for the first time since the Asian financial crisis. It was an overdue recognition of how far Indonesia has progressed in th

Viewpoints Jan. 27, 2012

As disturbing as the controversy over why Salman Rushdie was misled into believing that his life, and the literature festival, would be endangered if he turned up at Jaipur is the manner in which the home ministry opted out of taking the lead role in a security-related situation. It may be technically correct that law and order is a state subject, but when the larger issue of the nation’s global prestige is at stake, and when more than one state government is involved (Maharashtra and Rajasthan

Viewpoints Jan. 27, 2012

An underwater tug-of-war is intensifying among countries such as China, Russia and the United States in the seas around Japan.Vietnamese Defence Minister Phung Quang Thanh, who comes from Vietnam’s army, requested an inspection of a Maritime Self-Defence Force submarine when he visited Japan in October.He visited the Makishio, a main submarine of the MSDF Submarine Flotilla 1, in the city of Kure, Hiroshima Prefecture. Made in Japan, the state-of-the-art submarine boasts a displacement capacity

Viewpoints Jan. 27, 2012

“Where there is sugar, there are ants,” is perhaps the appropriate phrase to visualize the ongoing and increasing struggle among the major powers over influence in Asia ― the continent with the world’s fastest growth and abundant natural resources. Along with these colliding interests, comes the race to exercise control and to tap the continent’s resources and huge potential.The struggle among nations, particularly superpowers like the United States and the rapidly emerging power China, to gain

Viewpoints Jan. 27, 2012