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Bulletin of Indonesian Economic Studies

ISSN: 0007-4918 (Print) 1472-7234 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/cbie20

ASEAN Regionalism: Cooperation, Values and

Institutionalisation

Ditya Agung Nurdianto

To cite this article: Ditya Agung Nurdianto (2013) ASEAN Regionalism: Cooperation, Values and Institutionalisation, Bulletin of Indonesian Economic Studies, 49:2, 248-249, DOI: 10.1080/00074918.2013.809850

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Published online: 26 Jul 2013.

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248 Book reviews

First, problems of ‘too big to fail’ illustrate that several inancial institu -tions have become large enough to wield market power internationally and domestically. Policy responses to limit such power are often warranted

economically. Second, eficient inancial markets are an important public good, and so the mismanagement of inancial risk by large irms can hurt many. Thus,

governments have strong incentives to minimise the extent of such negative externalities. It is less clear, however, whether government intervention usually alleviates or exacerbates these problems.

Moreover, large inancial institutions are often politically astute and success

-ful at lobbying for support or lax regulation, whether warranted or not. I ind it

surprising that these chapters generally ignore how politicians (in East Asia and

elsewhere) are often inluenced by irms that lobby effectively in a variety of polit

-ical settings. In short, these analyses could have beneited from more emphasis on how political power often emanates from large irms, both private and

state-owned, and not from governments.

Eric D. Ramstetter

International Centre for the Study of East Asian Development, and Kyushu University

Christopher B. Roberts (2012) ASEAN Regionalism: Cooperation, Values and Institutionalisation, Routledge Security in Asia Paciic

Series, Routledge, Abingdon, pp. xviii + 257. Cloth: £95.00.

In the four decades since its formation, in 1967, ASEAN has expanded rapidly: from its membership, to its economic growth, to its engagement with foreign pow-ers. Born of a mutual desire for regime survival in the face of common challenges, both domestic and transnational, ASEAN has sought to increase domestic stabil-ity in Southeast Asia through economic development and regional cooperation.

The ‘ASEAN way’ – the association’s ideals of non-interference, consultation, consensus and the non-use of force – has contributed to its durability and longev-ity. Yet its cohesion has been tried on many occasions, by, among others, territorial disputes among its members and with its neighbours (in the South China Sea, for

example), terrorism and insurgency, and inancial crises. Given these considera -tions, a growing proportion of the region’s political elites have viewed it neces-sary to grant ASEAN the power to respond not only to economic shocks but also to both traditional and non-traditional threats to security.

Christopher B. Roberts’s comprehensive and informative book draws on various components of major international-relations paradigms – particularly constructivism – to provide a theoretical perspective on ASEAN’s complex inte-gration process. It begins by setting a framework for understanding the variables, processes and complications in ASEAN’s realising its regionalist goals, and then focuses on concrete historical settings. Perhaps of most interest to BIES readers is the book’s argument that Indonesia has seen ASEAN as an opportunity for regional reconciliation, as a chance to exercise regional leadership, and as a way of reducing the ability of external powers to interfere in regional affairs.

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Book reviews 249

Since the collapse of Indonesia’s New Order regime, in 1998, democracy has contributed to the country’s new regional outlook, in which it has resisted pres-sures from its ASEAN colleagues to undertake meapres-sures that it has deemed undemocratic. The government’s quick response to the 2004 tsunami and the

peaceful resolution of the Aceh conlict have given Indonesia an increased inter -national stature and respect. Meanwhile, democratic Indonesia’s status as one of the strongest economies in ASEAN reinforces the Asian-values argument. By pro-posing to establish a security community within the association, Indonesia has attempted a far higher level of norm-setting than have any of its peers. Under-standably, this proposal has met with considerable resistance from ASEAN’s more authoritarian members.

This book is a good starting point for those seeking an overview of ASEAN. Nevertheless, Southeast Asia, as a very dynamic region, constantly develops, and, in some cases, deteriorates, which makes the book feel dated on more current issues. The democratic transition in Myanmar in the last few years certainly sug-gests a brighter future than that presented in chapter 6, and ASEAN’s latest vision for beyond the Bali Concord II, aptly coined the Bali Concord III, is especially prominent in its absence.

In spite of these limitations, the book provides an excellent and in-depth his-tory and analysis of ASEAN from its inception until the turn of the last decade. Additional reading is recommended for an understanding of the latest issues and state of affairs in ASEAN and in Southeast Asia in general.

Ditya Agung Nurdianto

ANU

Hui Yew-Foong (ed.) (2012) Encountering Islam: The Politics of Religious Identities in Southeast Asia, Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, Singapore, pp. x + 401. Paper: $32.90.

Culture wars are not the monopoly of the West; they also happen in modern Mus-lim societies, including Indonesia, where, as they do in the West, they pit

con-servatives against liberals. Religion – or, more speciically, Islam – animates all of

these battles, but the ideological line divides not so much Islam and secularism as it does their strict conservative and more liberal interpretations.

Encountering Islam: The Politics of Religious Identities in Southeast Asia, edited by Hui Yew-Foong, may not frame the culture-wars debate among Muslims in the region, but the book’s three chapters on Islam in Indonesia can be more eas-ily understood if read from the differing perspectives of the conservative–liberal political spectrum.

Sukarno was the liberal Muslim while Mohammad Natsir espoused a more con-servative brand of Islam, as they engaged in long-running intellectual discourses about Islam’s place in the emerging independent nation (chapter 8). Muslim con-servatives in contemporary Indonesia are pushing for a ban on Ahmadiyah, while their more liberal brothers seek to defend its rights as guaranteed by the constitution