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Reciprocal trade agreements (RTAs) have proliferated rapidly in Asia in recent years, an unprecedented phenomenon in a region in which state-led institution-building efforts were largely unsuccessful during the Cold War years. In this article, we investigate the qualitative provisions of RTAs in Asia, focusing on agreements that are professedly geared toward trade liberalization through reciprocal exchanges of trade concessions. We build on the concept of credible commitment--that states "tie their hands" through international agreements and thus signal strong commitment to trade liberalization. We argue that a broad range of agreement provisions will affect an RTA's ability to achieve its primary objective: trade liberalization. We present a coding scheme that measures the strength of a wide variety of provisions in the legal texts of RTAs. Using quantitative analysis, we analyze the impact of various components of Asia's RTAs on participants' trade flows. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Comments on an article about technology diffusion. Concept of technology diffusion; Political and economic relevance of technology; Perspective on Asian agricultural development.

This Special Issue highlights the most recent socio-legal research related to the mitigation, if not the elimination, of the threat of anthropogenic disasters in Asia and beyond. The drafts of these papers were originally presented at the Presidential Session on "The Anthropocene and the Law in Asia" at the Fourth Asian Law and Society Association (ALSA) Conference held in the vibrant city of Osaka, Japan in December 2019. The timing of this particular session, the first of its kind to be held at an ALSA Conference, turned out to be somewhat prophetic, in that two anthropogenic catastrophes—the historic zoonotic pandemic and the cataclysmic wild bushfires—had just begun to strike in December in Wuhan, China and in New South Wales, Australia, respectively. The novel coronavirus pandemic would kill more than 1 million people in the following months, after infecting more than 40 million across the globe. The Australian wild bushfires killed and displaced more than 3 billion animals, becoming the worst wildfire ever recorded in the world. Since that last ALSA Conference in December 2019, multiple anthropogenic disasters have hit various regions in Asia and across the world. The papers in this Special Issue examine various impacts of anthropogenic disasters and propose innovative socio-legal strategies to mitigate them. Included are arguments for the proposal of new legal education curricula and innovative pedagogy on environmental law and the exploration of an international multidisciplinary teaching framework in reconsidering and reshaping human-centric legal education. Also proposed is the development of a robust Earth Jurisprudence based on the adoption of the Rights of Nature principles, while moving away from the Euro-American exploitive view of nature as commodified properties. Additionally proposed is the establishment of a land-based, topological jurisprudence that incorporates the nuanced narratives of indigenous voices in dealing with the threat of human-induced ecological and environmental disasters in the years ahead. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Principles of Asian Contract Law (PACL) are the most recent addition to the series of uniform laws regarding transnational commercial contracts. This time, the harmonization initiative must address the problem of a great variety of legal traditions, all of which are quite difficult to reconcile. The author focuses on the object and objectives of the PACL by reconsidering the notion of "Asian law" and the alleged cultural neutrality of contract law as a legal discipline. The paper argues that the PACL project lacks clarity. Its ambitious objectives, while apparently intelligible, fail to produce the desired results in their entirety: the Asian regional harmonization of contract law turns out to resemble its occidental forerunners. The study goes beyond the traditional comparative law. It explores the model law (in the making) in a broader context of legal policy, parallel regional private-law-making efforts in the field of contract law as well as in the context of legal globalization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2003, Norway implemented an 'Introduction Programme' that aimed to increase labour market inclusion among newly arrived immigrants. Its main objectives were to facilitate free courses in Norwegian language training and social studies, and education or on-the-job training. The participants were given an allowance to attend the programme. This paper uses administrative register data to evaluate the effect of the Norwegian introduction programme on female immigrants' employment and earnings prospects. The sample consists of female immigrants from Asia or Africa who immigrated to Norway 18 months before or after the implementation of the introduction programme. The study measures their probability of being employed and their mean earnings 4–6 and 7–9 years after immigration. The results show that the Norwegian introduction programme had a small but significant effect on women's employment, but not on their earnings. This article suggests that the small effect of the programme on employment and non-effect on earnings may imply a displacement effect rather than an improvement in language skills and labour market skills. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper compares Japanese and Chinese infrastructure development strategies in post-Soviet Central Asia (CA) by analyzing the similarities and differences in the approaches of the two Asian economic powers. This paper develops several arguments with respect to the Japanese and Chinese approaches to infrastructure development in CA. This paper argues that the discourse of mutually exclusive interests in China and Japan's development of various infrastructure-related projects in CA is empirically unproven. Most of the Chinese engagements emphasize the creation of energy and transportation infrastructure (construction), while Japan's main areas of focus are the maintenance, modernization, and rehabilitation of current infrastructure. Thus, this paper suggests that China positions itself as CA's leading economic partner, while Japan is CA's leading assistance provider. These two roles have different implications. Furthermore, the current infrastructure engagements of Japan (from assistance to partnership) and China (from exploitation to contribution to the region) in CA demonstrate both countries’ attempts to adjust and search for new opportunities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the results of research at Volchia Griva, the largest site in Asia containing mammoth fauna in situ. It is situated in the south of the West Siberian Plain in the Baraba forest-steppe zone, and occupies an area of several hectares. Analysis of sediments and taphonomy of the site allows us to suggest that thousands of megafaunal remains were buried here in mud pits and erosional depressions. The favorable geochemical landscape of Volchia Griva attracted animals during periods of mineral starvation. This is reflected in the high mortality in two intervals, ca. 20-18 14C ka BP and ca. 17-11 14C ka BP. The results of palynological analysis of samples from the upper part of the Volchia Griva section made it possible to reconstruct the history of landscape changes of the Baraba Lowland during the MIS 2. Forb-mesophytic meadows were common at the beginning of this period, with taiga type forests. At ca. 20 14C ka BP, an abrupt and significant aridization of the climate occurred, which led to the degradation of forests. The mammoth steppe was widely developed, dominated by forb-grass association and with areas of alkali meadows and soils. Such conditions existed probably until the mid-Holocene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

AbstractThis paper is one of the few attempts made by social scientists to measure social capital via psychometric approach, and is the only one of such kind to base its evidence on the AsiaBarometer survey data. After first reviewing the history of social capital, including its conceptual emergence and recent literatures, we expose the issue of difficulty in the measurement of social capital despite its topical popularity. We tackle this measurement issue by applying psychometric procedures to the AsiaBarometer survey data of 2004, 2005, and 2006, focusing on questions pertaining to social capital of ordinary individuals residing in the 29 survey societies. This paper is significant in two aspects. First, using simple statistical procedures, it extracts various dimensions of social capital without first knowing what dimensions to extract. In short, it does not try to measure social capital using some kind of pre-defined concepts such as those outlined in the historical review of our predecessors. Rather, it succeeds in manifesting key factors of social capital ? altruism, utilitarianism, communitarianism, and concordance with prevailing regime ? by mechanically processing collective responses by individual respondents towards survey questions oriented with social capital. Though the paper does not aim to establish its methodology as a widely held consensus on how to measure social capital, it does give credence and recognition to psychometric approaches as effectives means to measure social capital, which, by its very definition, calls for ?objective? approaches using collective data to measure ?subjective? notions of individual actions within networks. Second, this paper is the first systematic empirical analysis of social capital in all the subregions of Asia, i.e. East, Southeast, South, and Central. It builds on our earlier works, including the 2006 paper on social capital in Central and South Asia, and gives empirical credence to important concepts on Asian political culture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous studies of East Asian welfare regimes focus on similarities between social security schemes. In contrast, this paper explores cross-national variations in public–private pension mixes in six welfare states: China, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan. Our research echoes the pension policy analysis of international organisations but takes a step forward with emphasis on the historical and institutional characteristics of the respective pension systems. The analysis identifies three institutional patterns. First, the statist pension system (Taiwan and China) primarily relies on public pensions to provide old-age security, with private pensions playing a rather minor role. Second, in the dualist pension system (Japan and Korea) both public and private pensions work in parallel to ensure retirement income, though a clear security gap exists between workers in the formal and informal economies. Finally, the individualist pension system (Hong Kong and Singapore) is characterised by genuine fully funded individual accounts, emphasising citizens' own responsibilities for ensuring old-age security. These three types of pension systems demonstrate distinct institutional characteristics and policy outcomes, illustrated by the juxtaposition of their institutional structures as well as by the comparison of key indicators collected from government reports and Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development statistics. The paper concludes with a theoretical reflection of East Asian pension policies and a diagnosis of the distinct challenges confronted by each of the various pension patterns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Held in December 1955, the Baling talks represented a unique attempt to end the Malayan emergency through a negotiated peace between the British colonial government and the Malayan Communist Party, but it also marked the beginning of the Cold War in Asia. This paper focuses on Mark Teh's long-term investigations, as a researcher and theatre director for the Five Arts Centre in Kuala Lumpur, into this historically significant Cold War event and its representation. Teh's performance Baling is examined as an exemplary collaborative project that expands Western definitions of the documentary theatre, while highlighting the continuing efforts of South East Asian artists to contest cultural regionalism and colonial knowledge systems. Drawing on Brechtian aesthetics and postcolonial theory, Teh appropriates diverse forms of politically engaged art in order to question the role of history and the archive in the solidification of nationalist ideologies and identity binaries in the post-war era. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: This paper aims to clarify how the Project for Strengthening the ASEAN Regional Capacity on Disaster Health Management (ARCH Project) strengthened regional collaboration mechanisms on disaster health management (DHM) in ASEAN. Methods: The political process and the relevant documents of the ARCH Project were reviewed. Results: The ARCH Project established the Regional Coordination Committee as a coordination platform for providing strategic direction to the project and strengthening the regional coordination of DHM. Also, the Project Working Groups and Sub-Working Groups were set up as implementation bodies for the project activities with representatives of ASEAN Member States (AMS). With support from DHM experts of Japan and Thailand, a series of discussions were conducted for the development of a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for the Coordination of International Emergency Medical Teams (I-EMTs), regional tools, and collective measures supporting AMS to overcome challenges, and thereby meeting the minimum requirements set by the WHO EMT Initiative. The progress and outputs of the ARCH Project are subsequently elevated to the ASEAN Health Sector for endorsement, the updates are further shared to the Joint Task Force to Promote Synergy with Other Relevant ASEAN Bodies on Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (JTF-HADR) for the implementation of the ASEAN Declaration on One ASEAN One Response. The initiation of the ARCH Project in July 2016 has resulted in the development of the ASEAN regional collaboration framework, including the establishment of the Regional Coordination Committee on Disaster Health Management (RCCDHM), the SOP for ASEAN I-EMT coordination, and regional tools, such as forms for Medical Record for Emergency and Disaster and Health Needs Assessment. Moreover, further discussions on ASEAN Collective Measures that aim to support AMS to meet the WHO EMT minimum standards and strengthening I-EMT coordination capacity were also conducted. As adopted by the ASEAN Health Ministers Meeting (AHMM) in 2019, the RCCDHM was established as one of the mechanisms to operationalize the Plan of Action to implement the ASEAN Leaders' Declaration on DHM. Conclusion: The contribution of the ARCH Project to strengthen the ASEAN regional capacity in DHM has enhanced the regional coordination platform, with a formalization of RCCDHM as ASEAN's official regional mechanism, and of the on-going integration process of the SOP for EMT coordination into the ASEAN SASOP. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses the preliminary performance analysis result of the Asia-Pacific Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) Test Bed. Currently, seven Asia-Pacific economies are participating in the Test Bed project, namely Australia, Chinese Taipei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam. The Test Bed was commissioned in May 2006. The discussion topics in this paper include Test Bed system architecture and preliminary analysis of the system performance. As presented in this paper, while current Satellite-Based Augmentation System (SBAS) algorithms can improve the accuracy performance of GPS positioning results, it cannot fulfill the integrity performance required by civil aviation community. This paper analyzes the limitation of the algorithm and proposes future research topics related to the limitation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Policy decisions and the practice of public health nutrition need to be based on solid evidence, developed through rigorous research studies where objective measures are used and results that run counter to dogma are not dismissed but investigated. In recent years, enhancements in study designs, and methodologies for systematic reviews and meta-analysis, have improved the evidence-base for nutrition policy and practice. However, these still rely on a full appreciation of the strengths and limitations of the measures on which conclusions are drawn and on the thorough investigation of outcomes that do not fit expectations or prevailing convictions. The importance of 'hard facts' and 'misfits' in research designed to advance knowledge and improve public health nutrition is illustrated in this paper through a selection of studies from different stages in my research career, focused on the nutritional requirements of resource-poor populations in Africa and Asia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Low socio-economic status (SES) is often associated with various health-related problems. Therefore, the present paper aims to review the available literature to identify the prevalence of malnutrition, prevalence of poor diet quality and its associated risk factors among older adults with low SES. A literature search was performed using four databases, namely PubMed, Google Scholar, Springer and Science Direct. The search terms used were 'diet quality', 'nutritional status', 'dietary intake', 'overweight', 'obesity', 'underweight', 'older people' and 'low socioeconomic status (SES)'. The overall prevalence of undernutrition among older adults with low SES worldwide was in the range of 28·9 to 48 %, while overnutrition was reported to be between 8·1 to 28·2 %. In Asia, the prevalence of undernourished older adults ranged from 3 to 64·9 %, while 2·5 to 32·8 % were overnourished. Most of the studies (60 %) included in the present review used BMI as the tool to identify malnutrition, but none of the nutritional screening tools were considered to be the 'gold standard'. For dietary assessment, FFQ and multiple 24 h dietary recall improved the estimation of individual dietary intake. Risk factors for poor diet quality included financial hardship, functional limitation, sex, place of residence, smoking and oral health. Poor nutritional status, especially lack of good-quality diet, and thinness are prevalent among older adults with low SES. Hence, it is important to establish nutrition-related programmes and intervention studies among this group of individuals for improving their health status and quality of life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper considers the support networks of older people in populations with a preponderance of multigenerational households and examines the most vulnerable network types in terms of loneliness and isolation. Current common typologies of support networks may not be sensitive to differences within and between different cultures. This paper uses cross-sectional data drawn from 590 elders (Gujaratis, Punjabis and Sylhetis) living in the United Kingdom and South Asia. Six variables were used in K-means cluster analysis to establish a new network typology. Two logistic regression models using loneliness and isolation as dependent variables assessed the contribution of the new network type to wellbeing. Four support networks were identified: ‘Multigenerational Households: Older Integrated Networks’, ‘Multigenerational Households: Younger Family Networks’, ‘Family and Friends Integrated Networks’ and ‘Non-kin Restricted Networks’. Older South Asians with ‘Non-kin Restricted Networks’ were more likely to be lonely and isolated compared to others. Using network typologies developed with individualistically oriented cultures, distributions are skewed towards more robust network types and could underestimate the support needs of older people from familistic cultures, who may be isolated and lonely and with limited informal sources of help. The new typology identifies different network types within multigenerational households, identifies a greater proportion of older people with vulnerable networks and could positively contribute to service planning. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In this paper we empirically examine the determinants on utilization of the Korea–ASEAN Free Trade Agreement (KAFTA) by employing a database provided by the Korea Customs and Trade Development Institute. We find that, although three effects, namely preferential margin (margin effect), rules of origin restrictiveness (ROO effect), and average export volume (scale effect), contribute to determining the utilization of the FTA, the scale effect has the greatest impact. Our results suggest that, since firms with relatively small volumes of trade are usually small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs), policy assistance for reducing administrative costs should be geared toward SMEs. Our results further indicate that policymakers should also try to negotiate more extensive tariff reductions on products not only where MFN rates are high but also where shipments are large. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

One of the recurring problems that emerged during the height of European expansion into Southeast Asia was the encroachment of European enterprises into indigenous lands. In most cases, problems existed especially in the manner that landholdings were understood by the natives vis-à-vis the new land laws introduced by the colonial powers. This often led to disputes which resulted in the natives being deprived of their rights. This paper looks into a case where the Dusun in Papar, North Borneo — an indigenous people — took the European colonial government to court over land rights which involved land encroachments by European enterprises and railways. The event took place barely 30 years after the first contact with European civilisation took place. The paper will examine the nature of the case and also investigate the role played by the Dusun and their fight against the government. The paper will also investigate the role of an English lawyer retained by the Dusun for the case, and that of the Roman Catholic Mission in championing the affairs of the indigenous people. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Vitamin D deficiency (25-hydroxyvitamin D; 25(OH)D) is at epidemic proportions in western dwelling South Asian populations, including severe deficiency (<12⋅5 nmol/l) in 27-60% of individuals, depending on season. The paper aimed to review the literature concerning vitamin D concentrations in this population group. Research from the UK and Europe suggests a high prevalence of South Asians with 25(OH)D concentration <25 nmol/l, with most having a 25(OH)D concentration of <50 nmol/l. In Canada, South Asians appear to have a slightly higher 25(OH)D concentration. There are few studies from the United States, South Africa and Australasia. Reasons for vitamin D deficiency include low vitamin D intake, relatively high adiposity, sun exposure avoidance and wearing of a covered dress style for cultural reasons. Possible health effects of deficiency include bone diseases such as rickets and hypocalcaemia in children and osteomalacia in adults. Vitamin D deficiency may also increase the risk of other chronic diseases. Increased fortification of food items relevant to South Asian groups (e.g. chapatti flour), as well as increased use of vitamin D supplements may help reduce this epidemic. Introducing culturally acceptable ways of increasing skin exposure to the sun in South Asian women may also be beneficial but further research is needed to assess the effectiveness of different approaches. There may be a need for a South Asian specific vitamin D dietary intake guideline in western countries. To conclude, vitamin D deficiency is epidemic in South Asians living in western countries and there is a clear need for urgent public health action. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Production, transport and deposition of aeolian dust from land to sea closely interact with regional environment and global climate. This Special Issue addresses transport of aeolian dust from the Asian inland to the Loess Plateau and North Pacific Ocean and their possible links to oceanic ecosystem, global climate and even human activity, over various timescales. The papers in this volume are multidisciplinary in nature and include sedimentology, mineralogy, geochemistry, environmental magnetism and climate modelling on multi-timescales from interannual, glacial–interglacial to tectonic timescales. Based on modern observation, geological records and modelling, this Special Issue offers new insights especially into aeolian provenance, dynamics controls on dust production, a novel marine aeolian proxy, as well as long-term aeolian input to the marginal basins of NE Asia and its influence on oceanic productivity. This issue provides a good example for future comprehensive studies of source-to-sink processes of Asian dust from land to sea. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The dust cycle plays an important role in the long-term evolution of the climate and environment. In this paper, an improved climate model including aerosol processes was used to carry out a set of sensitivity experiments and comparative analyses of the effects of high-latitude ice-sheet extent and abnormal dust erosion, as well as Earth's orbital parameters and atmospheric greenhouse gas content, on dust activities during the last glacial maximum. The comparative analysis found that incorporating the abnormal surface erosion factor alone could increase dust emissions by 2.77-fold and 3.77-fold of the present-day global and Asian dust emissions, respectively. The high-latitude ice-sheet factor caused global dust emissions to increase by 1.25-fold that of the present day. Sensitivity experiments showed that increased surface erosion in Asia during the last glacial maximum made the greatest contribution to the increased dust emissions in Asia, followed by the high-latitude ice-sheet factor, while the contributions of the greenhouse gas content and orbital parameters were relatively weak. Strong dust emissions during the glacial period were therefore not only dependent on the development of the high-latitude ice sheets but were strongly associated with the underlying surface characteristics of local dust source regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper tests the hypotheses that the tide of globalization undermines or reinforces the traditional types of social capital. Using the 2006 AsiaBarometer Survey data and applying two-level logit regression analysis, this paper found that social capital related to sense of trust or human nature and interpersonal relations can be augmented by globalization, while social capital regarding familialism and mindfulness can be weakened. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the exception of northern India, there are few, if any, consistent data records relating to avalanche activity in the high mountains of Asia. However, records do exist of avalanche fatalities in the region, contained in mountaineering expedition reports. In this paper, I review and analyze statistics of avalanche fatalities (both snow and ice) in the high mountains of Asia (Himalaya, Karakoram, Pamir, Hindu Kush, Tien Shan, Dazu Shan) from 1895 to 2014. The data are stratified according to accident cause, geographical region (Nepal-Tibet (Xizang), Pakistan, India, China, Central Asia), mountain range, personnel (hired or expedition members) and terrain. The character of the accidents is compared with data from North America and Europe. The data show that the important risk components are the temporal and spatial exposure probabilities. It is shown that human actions and decisions govern the pattern of fatal avalanches in the high mountains of Asia. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

By severely constraining the political personhood of temporary migrant workers, states’ use of deportation laws seeks to curb agitation among these workers. Despite this, various episodes of unrest have been witnessed in both liberal and illiberal regimes across Asia. Drawing on a case study of Bangladeshi migrant construction workers in Singapore, this paper examines the development of migrant labour politics as deportation laws, and their enforcement, construct these workers as “use-and-discard” economic subjects. Data for the paper are drawn from multi-level sources—government, industry, media, and non-governmental organization (NGO) reports; interviews with key actors; and a participant observation stint in a construction firm—collected between 2010 and 2014. The paper argues that, rather than solely constraining, deportability serves as a constituent of certain forms of tactical worker contestations in the workplace. Specifically, under different workplace conditions, deportability can translate into differing forms of worker tactics, ranging from accommodation to confrontation and desertion. The outcomes of these strategies, in turn, have significant repercussions for the ways in which civil society groups and state-actors, respectively, challenge and reconfigure the political personhood of temporary migrant workers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

'Hidden hunger' is a term used to describe human deficiencies of key vitamins and minerals, also known as micronutrients. While global in scale, the prevalence of micronutrient deficiencies is particularly high in South Asia despite recent successes in economic growth, agricultural output and health care. The present paper reviews the most recent evidence on patterns and trends of hidden hunger across the region, with a focus on the most significant deficiencies - iodine, Fe, vitamin A and Zn - and interprets these in terms of health and economic consequences. The challenge for South Asian policy makers is to invest in actions that can cost-effectively resolve chronic nutrient gaps facing millions of households. Appropriate solutions are available today, so governments should build on evidence-based successes that combine targeted health system delivery of quality services with carefully designed multisector actions that help promote healthier diets, reduce poverty and ensure social protection simultaneously. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Fortification of food-grade (edible) salt with iodine is recommended as a safe, cost-effective and sustainable strategy for the prevention of iodine-deficiency disorders. The present paper examines the legislative framework for salt iodization in Asian countries.Design: We reviewed salt iodization legislation in thirty-six countries in Asia and the Pacific. We obtained copies of existing and draft legislation for salt iodization from UNICEF country offices and the WHO's Global Database of Implementation of Nutrition Actions. We compiled legislation details by country and report on commonalities and gaps using a standardized form. The association between type of legislation and availability of iodized salt in households was assessed.Results: We identified twenty-one countries with existing salt iodization legislation, of which eighteen were mandatory. A further nine countries have draft legislation. The majority of countries with draft and existing legislation used a mandatory standard or technical regulation for iodized salt under their Food Act/Law. The remainder have developed a 'stand-alone' Law/Act. Available national surveys indicate that the proportion of households consuming adequately iodized salt was lowest in countries with no, draft or voluntary legislation, and highest in those where the legislation was based on mandatory regulations under Food Acts/Laws.Conclusions: Legislation for salt iodization, particularly mandatory legislation under the national food law, facilitates universal salt iodization. However, additional important factors for implementation of salt iodization and maintenance of achievements include the salt industry's structure and capacity to adequately fortify, and official commitment and capacity to enforce national legislation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hand grip strength (HGS) is an important diagnostic tool for sarcopenia and a reliable predictor for age-related chronic diseases and mortality. Interventions in nutrition have been shown as a low-cost strategy to maintain muscular strength and mass. However, there are limited data on the effect of diet on HGS in Southeast Asian populations. This study aims to investigate the association of diet quality with HGS weakness and asymmetry in a multi-ethnic population in Singapore. This cross-sectional study used data from the Singapore Multi-Ethnic Cohort (n = 1547). Dietary data were collected using a validated semi-quantitative FFQ and summarised as the Dietary Quality Index – International (DQI-I). HGS was calculated as the maximum value of six measurements from both hands. HGS weakness and asymmetry were defined using well-recognised criteria. Multivariable linear regression and logistic regression were utilised for continuous and binary outcomes, respectively, adjusting for age, sex, ethnicity, physical activity and smoking status. It was found that the highest quartile of DQI-I was significantly associated with higher HGS (β = 1·11; 95 % CI 0·41, 1·82; P for trend < 0·001) and lower odds of HGS asymmetry (OR = 0·71; 95 % CI 0·53, 0·94; P for trend = 0·035) and both HGS weakness and asymmetry (OR = 0·50; 95 % CI 0·32, 0·76; P for trend = 0·004). Among the different components of DQI-I, only dietary adequacy was significantly associated with higher HGS (P for trend < 0·001) and lower odds for both HGS weakness and asymmetry (P for trend = 0·006). Our findings support that DQI-I, an indicator of overall diet quality, can be used to provide dietary guidelines for prevention and management of muscle wasting, sarcopenia and frailty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When the Burmese military junta implemented a repressive economy that nationalised trade and industry during the socialist period (1962–88), a black market economy sprang up and predominated. Despite regime change in 1988 and the subsequent adoption of a market-oriented economy, the underground trade has nevertheless continued and thrived. The Yunnanese Chinese merchants of Burma have played a significant role in the contraband economy over the span of regimes. Based on a non-state-centred perspective, this paper aims to look into the everyday politics of the underground trade conducted by the Yunnanese Chinese moving between Burma, Thailand and Yunnan and analyses the country's politico-economic landscape since 1962. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Linguistic diversity poses a significant but not insuperable obstacle to transnational flows of popular music in East Asia. This paper reviews strategies that are used to overcome language barriers, especially the use of English by mainstream artists. Although this strategy has met with some success, it can be problematic in that it involves the negotiation of new artist identities with audiences. This negotiation of identities is illustrated by an analysis of YouTube comments on two English-language music videos by established Asian-language singers – Tata Young's ‘Sexy, Naughty, Bitchy’ and Utada Hikaru's ‘Easy Breezy’, which indicates that language, ethnic and gender identities are all problematised when these singers choose to sing in English. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper analyses Chinese sub-national governments' implementation strategies to meet national energy efficiency targets in the 11th Five-Year Plan (2006-2010). Previous research has focused on the ways governance practices and decision-making structures shape implementation outcomes, yet very little attention has been given to what strategies local leaders actually employ to bridge national priorities with local interests. To illustrate how local leaders work politically, this paper highlights specific implementation methods officials use to strengthen formal incentives and create effective informal incentives to comply with energy efficiency mandates. The analysis is drawn from 53 interviews conducted in June and July of 2010 in Shanxi, a major coal-producing and energy-intensive province. Findings suggest that local government leaders conform to national directives by "bundling" the energy efficiency policy with policies of more pressing local importance or by "bundling" their energy efficiency objectives with the interests of groups with significant political influence. Ultimately, sub-national government officials frame policies in ways that give them legitimacy at the local level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper readdresses the assertion found in much secondary literature that Greek medicine was adopted in Tibet in the seventh and eighth centuries. I discuss some of the traces of Galenic medical knowledge in early Tibetan medicine, and raise the question of why Tibetan medical histories who mention Galen give Galenic medicine a much more significant place than is evidenced in the Tibetan medical literature itself. I discuss some historiographical considerations and argue that the centrality given to Galenic medicine is more indicative of the period in which these sources are written than of the period which they presumably describe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By the nineteenth century, with the advance of British colonial activities, British corporate laws had been transplanted to maritime Asia with varying degrees of vigour. In British Hong Kong, these laws often clashed with native customs. Through a reconstruction of the legal disputes found in urban Hong Kong, this paper discusses how British and Chinese business traditions interacted with each other during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Before assessing the historical implications and consequences of these legal decisions, this paper will also explore whether the Chinese institution of tong is compatible with British law in urban Hong Kong. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACTThis paper evaluates the effectiveness of the Program for Pollution Control Evaluation and Rating (PROPER) in Indonesia. PROPER, the first major public disclosure program in the developing world, was launched in June 1995; though it collapsed in 1998 with the Asian financial crisis, it is currently being revived. There have been claims of success for this pioneering scheme, yet little formal and conclusive analysis has been undertaken. We analyze changes in emissions concentrations (mg/L) using panel data techniques with plant-level data for participating firms and a control group. The results show that there was indeed a positive response to PROPER, especially among firms with poor environmental compliance records. The response was immediate, and firms pursued further emissions reductions in the following months. The total estimated reductions in biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) and chemical oxygen demand (COD) were approximately 32 per cent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydropower dams are back in the spotlight owing to a shifting preference for low carbon energy generation and their possible contribution to mitigating climate change. At the forefront of the renaissance of large hydropower dams are Chinese companies, as the builders of the world's largest dams at home and abroad, opening up opportunities for low- and middle-income countries. However, large hydropower dams, despite their possible developmental and carbon reduction contributions, are accompanied by huge economic costs, profound negative environmental changes and social impacts. Using fieldwork data from four hydropower projects in Ghana, Nigeria, Cambodia and Malaysia, this paper evaluates the behaviour of Chinese stakeholders engaged in large hydropower projects in Asia and Africa. We do this by first exploring the interests of the different Chinese stakeholders and then by investigating the wider implications of these Chinese dams on the local, national and international contexts. The paper concludes that hydropower dams will continue to play a prominent role in future efforts to increase energy security and reduce energy poverty worldwide, therefore the planning, building and mitigation strategies need to be implemented in a more sustainable way that takes into account national development priorities, the needs of local people and the impacts on natural habitats. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Arabic has a long history of contact with languages outside the Middle East (Lapidus, 2015; Beg, 1979). In Asia, the spread of Arabic began with the trade network that connected the Middle East with South Asia, South-East, East Asia and East Africa from the fifth century. It intensified with the rise of Islam from the seventh century onwards (Morgan & Reid, 2010; Azirah & Leitner, 2016). In this paper we investigate the impact of Arabic on today's English in the context of Asian Englishes. More specifically we ask if the contact of Arabic with English in Asia has led to the creation of an Arabic-Islamic layer of English in countries that have a majority or a significant minority of Muslims. Would such a layer add a new dimension to the texture of English and be integrative across national Englishes? Or would it be divisive inside individual countries? In order to explore such issues we created a corpus of Arabic loanwords in Asian Englishes. Such a database will contribute to a better coverage of the impact of Arabic in dictionaries and to the study of English as a (multiple) national, regional and global language. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper specifies the conditions for conflict in Central Asia. Given Russian preponderance this should be an easy case for neorealism. But we demonstrate that the consequences of Russia's superior power will depend on the nature of its regime and domestic stability in Central Asia. The type of nationalism, the robustness of political institutions, and the success or failure of economic reform will be critical conditions for Central Asian stability. The paper also evaluates the prospects for conflict resolution and prevention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite a noticeable shift in recent years, indigenous peoples in Asia continue to experience many forms of human rights violations, with the most serious perhaps being the loss of traditional lands and territories. The purpose of this paper is to examine indigenous peoples’ land rights and its application in Southeast Asia. To that end, the paper will provide an overview of the development of indigenous peoples’ land rights internationally; offer regional perspectives from the Inter-American Court of Human Rights and the African Commission for Human and Peoples’ Rights; analyze the concept of indigenous peoples in Asia, juxtaposing it with concurrent difficulties being experienced on the African continent; examine three countries (Cambodia, the Philippines, and Malaysia) that recognize indigenous peoples’ land rights to some extent, whether through constitutional amendments, legislative reform, or domestic jurisprudence; and highlight the implementation gap between the rights of indigenous peoples in law and practice. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Is an imagined democracy more important than actual democracy for nation-building purposes? After 20 years of independence, Central Asian countries present a mixed bag of strong and weak states, consolidated and fragmented nations. The equation of nation and state and the construction of genuine nation states remains an elusive goal in all of post-Soviet Central Asia. This paper examines the role that electoral politics has played in nation-state formation. We argue that electoral processes have been central to attempted nation-state building processes as part of efforts to legitimize authoritarian regimes; paradoxically in those few countries where (for brief periods) partial democratization actually occurred, elections contributed, at least in the short term, to nation-state fragmentation. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) is one of the most important staple crops for small farmers in the tropics, feeding about 800 million people worldwide. It is currently cultivated in South and Central America, Africa and Asia. The genus Vatiga is widespread throughout the Neotropical region. Its species are sympatric and feed exclusively on cassava. The main objectives of this paper are: (1) to assess the potential distribution of Vatiga, one of the most relevant pests of cassava; (2) to project the resulting models onto the world; (3) to recognize areas with suitable and optimal climates (and thus, high probability) for future colonization, and (4) to compare this model with the harvested area of cassava analyzing the climatic variables required by both the host and the pest species. Species distribution models were built using Maxent (v3.3.3k) with bioclimatic variables from the WorldClim database in 2.5 arc min resolution across the globe. Our model shows that Vatiga has the potential to expand its current distribution into other suitable areas, and could invade other regions where cassava is already cultivated, e.g., Central Africa and Asia. Considering the results and the high host specificity of Vatiga, its recent appearance in Réunion Island (Africa) poses a serious threat, as nearby areas are potentially suitable for invasion and could serve as dispersal routes enabling Vatiga to reach the continent. The present work may help prevention or early detection of Vatiga spp. in areas where cassava is grown. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Asian welfare capitalisms as well as advanced economies face the risks associated with globalization. In order to understand how Asian welfare capitalisms respond to globalization, it is essential to describe the institutional diversity of Asian welfare capitalisms and the welfare-risk nexus. This paper defines four types of Asian welfare capitalisms based on social spending data and investigates the welfare-risk nexus by focusing on globalization risks, such as a globalized production process, trade openness, and financial integration. The empirical results based on multiple factor analysis and cluster analysis clearly show that Asian welfare capitalisms are heterogeneous and that four clusters can be found in the welfare-risk nexus based on the dimensions present in Asian economies in the 2000s. This analysis stresses that globalization has different effects on these types of Asian welfare capitalisms according to their welfare-risk nexuses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the relation between trade, political openness, and agricultural trade policy in developing countries. It argues that trade openness and democracy contribute to lower taxes and control programs in the agricultural sectors. Examining the politics of agricultural trade policy in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand, it was found that trade expansion and democratic regimes lead to fewer taxes and control programs imposed on agriculture. The results indicate that elected governments in industrializing countries are less likely to impose more tax and control programs on agriculture in order to encourage exports and in order to appeal to farmers, who are a major voting bloc in these countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

From both a geographical and geopolitical perspective, Southeast Asia is a particularly interesting case-study for maritime delimitation. Despite the existence of significant obstacles to maritime boundary-making, including a complex coastal geography and a multitude of territorial and jurisdictional disputes, Southeast Asia has been described as the “scene of very active and innovative ocean boundary diplomacy”. The objective of this paper is to examine Southeast Asian approaches to maritime boundaries. First, it seeks to identify whether there are common trends and practices in Southeast Asian practice which have contributed to the high number of maritime boundaries concluded by Southeast Asian states. Second, the paper will explore the extent to which Southeast Asian practice has contributed to the normative development of international law on maritime delimitation. Third, the paper will discuss whether there are any lessons to be learned from Southeast Asian practice that can be used to settle unresolved maritime boundary issues in the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In May 1949 the Chinese Communist Party seized Shanghai. Rather than being elated at the prospect of harnessing the economic power of China's largest city to complete the revolution, the Communists approached it cautiously. How would the Chinese Communist Party set about transforming this free-wheeling port city with a ‘semi-colonial’ past into an orderly and socialist city? How would it balance ideology and pragmatism in reshaping Shanghai? This paper uses the takeover of two British companies as case studies to explore these issues at the ground level. It is argued that the means by which these companies were transformed tell us much about the Party and its state-building policies. When cadres entered foreign companies, their priority was not radical change and anti-imperialism, but rather fostering a sense of stability and unity to avoid disrupting production. Their gradual approach was due in large part to the Party's awareness of its own limited skills, resources and manpower, but also to its leaders and cadres recognizing that before they could remake Shanghai anew they had first to deal with the material and human legacies of the past. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Women's involvement in the Malayan Communist Party (MCP) since its establishment in 1930 until they laid down their arms in 1989 contributed much to the strength of the party. Women in the MCP have been presented largely as nurses, cooks, seamstresses, couriers, and wireless/radio operators, but they went through hardship and danger and fought the same battles as the male guerrillas. A few even climbed to the top party posts through hard work, intelligence and personal sacrifice. This paper recovers the role of women in the Malayan communist movement during the Second World War, the Emergency and after by tracing the careers and lives of party heroines / female role models as well as some ordinary cadres. Major questions include the motivations of women who joined the MCP and the challenges they faced in their roles as propagandists, comrades, guerrilla fighters and in the communist villages. This investigation provides more insight into how the revolutionary struggle transformed these Malayan women. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Energy security is one of the major global challenges of the twenty-first century. Intensifying competition for ever scarcer forms of conventional energy resources is causing significant tensions in the international system. East Asia will have a more profound impact on global energy security than any other region as its burgeoning demand for energy fuels, spurred principally by China, is expected to continue growing at over twice the world average in the next few decades. This paper examines the reasons why we may expect the energy diplomacies of East Asian states to become an increasingly salient feature of East Asian states’ foreign policy and international relations in the foreseeable future, and thereby significantly shape the nature of the region's international political economy. It presents a framework of energy diplomacy analysis in order to better understand how East Asian states are formulating their energy diplomacy strategies and actions. The four prime elements of this framework comprise: empirical perspectives and generic task-oriented terms; agential influences on the formation and organization of energy diplomacy practice; the energy–development nexus; and transaction mechanisms of energy diplomacy. The main conclusions are first, mercantilist approaches to energy diplomacy will persist but continue to gradually give way to market institutionalism; second, energy diplomacy will become increasingly linked to other forms of diplomacy, such as trade, environment and development assistance; third, we may expect East Asian states to afford greater priority to multilateral energy co-operation both regionally and in a wider international or global sense as energy security interdependencies deepen; and fourth, East Asia's growing reliance on sourcing energy fuels from outside the region will make it more dependent on stable international energy markets—these markets are becoming increasingly internationalized and globalized, which will broaden the future options of East Asian states developing new international energy partnerships. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The Golden Window above the Golden Door of Caukoṭ Darbār, a building on the western side of the (former) Royal Palace complex, is a major attraction in the city of Patan (Nepal). The gilt window panel features a representation of Avalokiteśvara in his form as Sṛṣṭikartā (“creator”) emanating Hindu divinities from his body. The sides, base and tympanum of the window likewise display Hindu divinities. The construction of the window has been ascribed to different kings of the late Malla period (1483–1768) and is said to illustrate their support for the Buddhist practices of their subjects, while providing a Hindu interpretative framework for such practices. In this paper I identify the divinities on the window and examine textual and visual sources that shed light on the date of the window's construction, including the inscriptions above and at the sides of the Golden Door. I show that there is no evidence for such an early dating of the window and that the Golden Window was probably constructed sometime in the nineteenth century in either the Śāh period (1769–1846) or, more likely, the Rāṇā period (1846–1951). I conclude with some thoughts on the possible significance of the peculiar configuration of divinities surrounding the Bodhisattva on the window. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Networks of travel and trade have often been viewed as central to understanding interactions among Muslims across South and Southeast Asia. In this paper I suggest that we consider language and literature as an additional type of network, one that provided a powerful site of contact and exchange facilitated by, and drawing on, citation. I draw on textual sources written in Javanese, Malay, and Tamil between the sixteenth and early twentieth centuries to argue that among Muslim communities in South and Southeast Asia, practices of reading, learning, translating, adapting, and transmitting contributed to the shaping of a cosmopolitan sphere that was both closely connected with the broader, universal Muslim community and rooted in local identities. I consider a series of ‘citation sites’ in an attempt to explore one among many modes of inter-Asian connections, highlighting how citations, simple or brief as they may often seem, are sites of shared memories, history, and narrative traditions and, in the case of Islamic literature, also sites of a common bond to a cosmopolitan and sanctified Arabic. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper discusses the political opportunity structures which facilitated the creation of sites of interaction and protest against the Asian Development Bank during the Bank's Annual General Meeting in Chiang Mai, Thailand, in 2000. The factors which facilitated the coming together of Thai social movements and their regional and international counterparts are mainly their shared critique of the neo-liberal paradigm and its adverse effects on their respective countries. The strategies they used to highlight these effects enhanced their sites of engagement and confrontation with the Bank and included dialogue with Bank officials, demonstrations, and the use of the media to highlight their concerns. Importance was also placed on the manner in which they were able to mobilize resources for the anti-Asian Development Bank campaigns and the process by which they framed their issues to gain the sympathy and support of the public. The 1997 Asian financial crisis, which highlighted the shortcomings of the Bank's development paradigm, as well as the ongoing democratization process in Thailand during that period, provided the impetus in fostering the anti-globalization alliances of local and transnational social movements in a common venue. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Although Asian regionalism has commanded much attention from academics and policymakers, it has largely been restricted to the trade and financial realms. This paper focuses specifically on the scope and limits of ‘investment regionalism’ involving Asia. A combination of regional foreign direct investment (FDI) stakes and international socialization patterns has led Asian actors to mark investments as a key issue in their regionalism strategy overall. As elsewhere, they too have moved toward a mode of governance favoring the formal legalization of investments in terms of the precision, obligation, and delegation of rules. Already the endeavors of both the middle and dominant economies in the region have shifted from just concluding Bilateral Investment Treaties (BITs) and investment-related chapters in Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) to designing region-wide investment agreements and initiatives by-and-for Asian countries. Although the legal effectiveness of this rule-making change will play out in the long run in and across Asian societies, the more immediate policy implication relates to its potential impact on the evolution of Asian regionalism as a whole. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This article examines whether democracy affects quality of life. Scholars have conducted surveys to investigate whether democracy is likely to lead to good quality of life. There are two contested views to the relationship: some suggest that democracy has a positive causal effect on quality of life, whereas others contend that democracy does not play such a role. Previous findings are supported by cross-national statistical analysis with aggregated survey data. However, aggregated survey data may cause ecological fallacy. Also, in order to ascertain the extant research, it would be beneficial to test the hypothesis by incorporating both individual- and country-level variables. Therefore, this paper applied hierarchical modeling to investigate the regularity. Both individual-level perception of democracy and country-level political regime data were incorporated in our empirical model. Our findings suggest that individual-level satisfaction with democracy has positive causal effect on one's quality of life, whereas the country-level characteristic of the political regime has no effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]