Southeast Asia. COVID-19 in Southeast Asia: Insights for a post-pandemic world Edited by Hyun Bang Shin, Murray Mckenzie and Do Young Oh London: LSE Press, 2022. Pp. 318. Maps, Plates, Notes, Bibliography, Index.

Abstract

Catherine Renshaw examines regional dynamics and the role of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), but does not focus on the implications of the rise of China, leaving a partial gap in the book’s analytical contributions. Regarding the problem of perceptions and reputations (p. 4), and the tensions surrounding East Timor and Papua indirectly linked to neocolonialism, the editors could have added the truth and justice campaigns (or interventions, depending on where one sits) involving numerous Australian academics and organisations with concerns about the legacy of the 1965–66 mass violence in Indonesia. This is where aspects of the cultural divide examined by McCarthy in chapter 3 really come into focus, and relates to another branch of research (not included in this edited volume) about the military and politics carried out by Jess Melvin, who completed her PhD at Melbourne and is now based at the University of Sydney. The latest Lowy Institute polling data reaffirms the public opinion and perception trends examined by Dave McRae and Diane Zhang in chapter 5, providing another indicator of the quality, durability and broad appeal of the analysis found in Strangers next door. As summarised by Evi Fitriani in chapter 4, Australia–Indonesia relations are influenced by leaders in office, particularly those in Jakarta, because the Indonesian public takes little notice of Australian prime ministers. This is indicative of the power shift observed by the editors in chapter 1. Whereas former Indonesian president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (2004–14) was regarded as a ‘best friend’ to Australia, President Joko Widodo’s first term in office got off to a rocky start after the execution of two Australian drug traffickers in Bali in 2015, resulting in his rating as one of the ‘least admired’ foreign leaders by a sample of the Australian public (p. 31). It is telling that Indonesia’s pragmatic president pays little attention to this negative press, and hints at a continued shift in the balance of power; in this context the challenge for Australian diplomats and leaders to show why they ‘matter’ (p. 1) to Indonesia will continue to grow in significance and urgency in the coming years.