New Cambodia

Rights activists constantly bombard Burma and its communist one-party state neighbors Vietnam and Laos for their stubborn refusal to embrace meaningful political reforms.

But shouldn't the more prosperous Southeast Asian nations—especially the founders of the ASEAN grouping—also take the flack for dragging their feet on expanding political liberties for their peoples?

The recent election in Singapore, in which the ruling People's Action Party (PAP) suffered its worst performance, has thrown the spotlight on lagging reforms not only in the island state but also in other more developed economies in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), such as Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines.

The PAP's share of the popular vote slipped to an all-time low of 60 percent despite the island state's strong economic growth in the last five years, including a record 14.5 percent expansion in 2010.

Khmer News

Deep-seated cultural ties to the grasslands and traditional nomadic ways lie behind recent protests across Inner Mongolia, experts say.

While the protests were sparked by the death of a herdsman from the Shiliin-Gol (in Chinese, Xilin Meng) area, overseas rights groups believe they reflect a deep and widespread anger over continuing exploitation of the region's grasslands, the heartland of Mongol culture.

"This is no external propaganda; it really is the reason, in my view," said Temtselt Shobshuud (in Chinese, Xi Haiming), exiled rights activist and chairman of the Inner Mongolian People's Party.

"On the face of it, it looks like a clash over a mining operation, but really, the much deeper reason is that the livelihood and culture of the Mongolian people [in China] is in crisis.