David Chew - The Japan Times

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David Chew

For David Chew's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:

COMMENTARY / World

Sep 13, 2002

Malaysia's security law loses some of its Draconian bite

KUALA LUMPUR -- The focus of attention surrounding a controversial Malaysian security law has shifted to Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi after the country's highest court allowed an appeal of five opposition detainees in a dramatic decision last Friday. The legislation allows detention of suspects, without trial, for long periods.

COMMENTARY / World

Aug 16, 2002

Ethnic Chinese dilemma

SINGAPORE -- In a new twist to an ongoing controversy surrounding a proposal to change Malaysia's education policy, the two main Chinese components of the ruling National Front (NF) coalition government, have found themselves taking the same position as the opposition parties. This places the Malaysian Chinese at loggerheads with their key ally, the United Malays National Organization (UMNO).

COMMENTARY / World

Jul 12, 2002

By-elections give Abdullah chance to prove his mettle

SINGAPORE -- For Malaysia's deputy prime minister, Abdullah Badawi, the sequence of two fast-moving events late last month could not have been more timely -- and dramatic.

COMMENTARY / World

May 10, 2002

Splintered blocs in Malaysia unite on draconian law

SINGAPORE -- Malaysia's disparate opposition groups have launched a new campaign against a draconian security law in an attempt to prevent Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad from further splitting their ranks.

COMMENTARY / World

Mar 1, 2002

Tempest over headscarves ruffles Singapore's multiracial calm

SINGAPORE -- As the controversy over the prohibition of wearing the Muslim headscarf, the tudung, in public schools in Singapore moves on to the next stage, a cardinal doctrine of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations -- noninterference in the domestic affairs of member countries -- looks set to be breached.

COMMENTARY / World

Jan 25, 2002

Heightened fear of radicals gives Mahathir a big win

KANGAR, Malaysia -- Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad has cleverly manipulated the Sept. 11 Islamic terrorist attacks in the United States and their aftermath to crush his political rivals in a crucial by-election in the north Malaysian state of Perlis over the weekend.

COMMENTARY / World

Dec 21, 2001

A dormant Islamic state concept

SINGAPORE -- Malaysia's ruling National Front coalition government has withdrawn from circulation a booklet "Malaysia Is an Islamic Country" to allay growing fears among the significant non-Muslim minority that the multiracial country which tolerates many faiths would be turned into an Islamic state.

COMMENTARY / World

Aug 24, 2001

Mahathir goes all out to remove thorn in his side

SINGAPORE -- After months of futile attempts at various kinds of measures, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad may have hit upon the right combination to effectively deal with a formidable political opponent -- the fundamentalist Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS).

COMMENTARY / World

Jul 6, 2001

Mahathir digs deep into old roots

KUALA LUMPUR -- Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad took two hours to deliver a 21-page address at the opening ceremony of the United Malays National Organization (UMNO) assembly on June 21. During the assembly's closing session two days later, he took another two hours to elaborate on the key points of his earlier speech before 2,000 party delegates.

COMMENTARY / World

Jun 15, 2001

Backers of Chinese press in Malaysia mobilize to defend its freedom

KUALA LUMPUR -- Despite stringent mass media laws, Chinese newspapers in Malaysia have built a reputation for objective, balanced and accurate political reporting and analyses. This widely-held perception among all ethnic groups in multiracial Malaysia -- Malays, Chinese and Indians -- often stands in contrast with how English and Malay media have been traditionally regarded: as having a proestablishment slant.

COMMENTARY / World

May 25, 2001

Racial quotas widen social gaps, not rectify them

SINGAPORE -- When some 600 ethnic Chinese students who passed a string of examinations with distinction failed to gain admission to public universities in Malaysia recently, a controversy erupted in the media over a major flaw in university entrance criteria.

COMMENTARY / World

May 11, 2001

Draconian arrests boost Malaysian opposition's message of change

PENANG, Malaysia -- A second-echelon leadership has emerged within Malaysia's prominent opposition party, Keadilan, to pursue its fight for justice after eight top party leaders were detained by police.

COMMENTARY / World

Mar 16, 2001

Failed experiment haunts Jakarta

SINGAPORE -- As Indonesia assesses the carnage from the recent ethnic violence in its province of Kalimantan, a poignant legacy of the failure of its transmigration policy slowly but surely emerges.

COMMENTARY / World

Nov 24, 2000

Ethnic Chinese see school plan as ploy to erode their identity

SINGAPORE -- Chinese education authorities in multiracial Malaysia have rejected a government pilot project to merge the country's three different kinds of vernacular schools -- Malay, Chinese and Tamil -- into a single national institution, dubbed "Vision Schools," that would embody Malaysian identity.

COMMENTARY / World

Oct 6, 2000

Singapore media monopolies break into rival's turf

SINGAPORE -- Competition in Singapore's expanding media industry is growing more intense as the two rival main players prepare to slug it out, having pumped in millions of dollars to upgrade existing projects and invest in new ones.

COMMENTARY / World

Sep 22, 2000

Sabah -- unfinished business between Malaysia and the Philippines

SINGAPORE -- The kidnap-for-ransom hostage crisis triggered by the Abu Sayyaf rebels in a remote corner of the South China Sea has attracted worldwide attention. But of even greater significance, it has further strained ties between the Philippines and Malaysia, as each country blames the other for allowing the crisis to drag on, making them both appear inept in the eyes of the world.

COMMENTARY / World

Aug 25, 2000

Wahid battered but still kicking

SINGAPORE -- The threat of impeachment from angry legislators stared Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid grimly in the face on Aug 7., when the 695-member People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) convened in Jakarta to review Indonesia's progress.

COMMENTARY / World

Jul 14, 2000

Growing Islamic tide in region heightens Singapore's vulnerability

SINGAPORE -- A red dot in a sea of green. That was how former Indonesian President B.J. Habibie, talking to a Singapore minister who was paying a courtesy call, once described Singapore's position among its bigger neighbors in Southeast Asia.

COMMENTARY / World

Jun 16, 2000

Plan will shear Malaysia's Islamic Party of its spirit and charisma

KUALA TRENGGANU, Malaysia -- The Malaysian government's move to separate religion from politics has touched a raw nerve in the leading opposition party in Malaysia. It has incensed the theocratic Islamic Party (PAS), whose cardinal principle is Islam, to the last man.

COMMENTARY / World

May 19, 2000

Populist bloc sends UMNO strong message

KUALA LUMPUR-- Delegates to the recently-concluded triennial elections of Malaysia's top political party have voted according to their conscience, sending a strong signal to party president, Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, that they prefer their leaders who can reach out to the grassroots of the politically-dominant Malay community, even as they continue to support his agenda for a strong, elitist-based government.

From easily navigable train stations to the helpfulness of its municipal staff, Tokyo has earned high praise for its commitment to accessibility for disabled travelers.

[Rebroadcast] Japan is doing better on accessibility than you may think

Historically, kabuki was considered the entertainment of the merchant and peasant classes, a far cry from how it is regarded today.

For Japan's oldest kabuki theater, the show must go on

By Lance Henderstein

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

A young restaurant leads the way in Karuizawa

A young restaurant leads the way in Karuizawa

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