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This week our top story outlines the politics driving a mass protest by Indian farmers – and the government’s response. We also have an interview with Samir Puri, a former official in the British Foreign Office and a senior fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, about how the impact of imperialism still shapes modern-day geopolitics.
The Diplomat Brief
January 20, 2021thediplomat.com
Welcome to the latest issue of Diplomat Brief. This week our top story outlines the politics driving a mass protest by Indian farmers – and the government’s response. We also have an interview with Samir Puri, a former official in the British Foreign Office and a senior fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, about how the impact of imperialism still shapes modern-day geopolitics.
Story of the week
India’s Protesting Farmers Aren’t Going Anywhere

POLITICS

India’s Protesting Farmers Aren’t Going Anywhere

What Happened: For over two months, tens of thousands of Indian farmers have been protesting on highways outside of Delhi, demanding the repeal of agricultural reform laws they say will devastate marginal farmers. Nine rounds of talk have made no progress, with the farmers unwilling to accept anything less than full repeal while the Modi government continues to defend the reforms.

Our Focus: “The only way out of the impasse is for the government to allay the anxieties of the farmers,” writes analyst Sudha Ramachandran for The Diplomat. “The Modi government would need to reach out meaningfully to the protestors, to listen to them and engage with them. But it has little experience in this regard.”

What Comes Next: The farmers are planning a demonstration on January 26, India’s National Day. That stands to be a flashpoint, as the government looks to avoid embarrassment during its annual parade and celebration.

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Behind the News

INTERVIEW

Samir Puri

Samir Puri, author of “The Great Imperial Hangover: How Empires Have Shaped the World” on the legacy of Chinese imperialism: “What the CCP achieved – if we take the long view of history – was to bring to 20th/21st century standards to the vast landmass and polity that occupies the space of the old Chinese empire.”

Read the interview
This Week in Asia

Northeast Asia

How Will North Korea Welcome President Biden?

North Korea has a long history of forcibly getting the attention of new U.S. presidents (think nuclear and missile tests). In the wake of fiery rhetoric and a military parade in Pyongyang last week, what signals will Kim Jong Un send to set the tone of interactions with the Biden administration?

Find out more

South Asia

India Debates a Controversial WhatsApp Transcript

A transcript of WhatsApp conversations between a firebrand television news anchor, Arnab Goswami, and a former head of a ratings agency, circulating on Indian social media has once again spotlighted links between the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and sections of the Indian media. While the proximate cause of the ongoing controversy is Goswami's seeming foreknowledge of the 2019 Balakot strike by the Indian military, India's opposition parties are likely to draw political mileage from the larger questions the purported transcript raises.

Find out more

Southeast Asia

Natural Disasters Take Their Toll in Indonesia

Indonesia’s government continues to grapple with a series of disasters both natural and manmade, including floods in Kalimantan, an earthquake in Sulawesi, and the aftermath of the Sriwijaya Air crash on January 9. Then, of course, there is COVID-19, which continues to spread almost unchecked, even as the nation’s ambitious national vaccination drive gets underway.

Find out more

Central Asia

Uncertainty Surrounds U.S. Afghanistan Plans

U.S. troop levels are down to 2,500 in Afghanistan but the resumed intra-Afghan talks are making scant progress. The big question on everyone's mind is what the Biden administration plans to do about Afghanistan: Follow Trump's exit plan or forge a different way ahead?

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Visualizing APAC
Dhanushkodi Fisherfolk: 50 Years of Life on the Edge

SOCIETY

Dhanushkodi Fisherfolk: 50 Years of Life on the Edge

In 1964, a cyclone nearly wiped Dhanushkodi off the map. A small group of fisherfolk, however, refused to abandon their homes and cling to life on India’s extreme southern coast, where the Bay of Bengal meets the Indian Ocean.

See the full picture
Word of the Week

POLITICS

攬炒

Laam chau: lit. “embrace the frying” in Hong Kong Cantonese; figuratively meaning “scorched earth” or “mutual destruction.” The phrase became a mantra of the 2019 Hong Kong anti-extradition bill protest movement.

Find out more
The Diplomat Brief
The Asia-Pacific in 2021: What to Expect

The Diplomat Magazine | January 2021

The Asia-Pacific in 2021: What to Expect

As is our tradition in January, our multi-author cover story previews the trends and events to keep an eye on in the new year throughout the Asia-Pacific region. We also untangle the complexities of U.S.-India digital cooperation (and clashes), scrutinize the possibilities for Vietnam’s upcoming leadership transition, and game out how North Korea would use its conventional military in a war scenario. And, of course, we offer a range of reporting, analysis, and opinion from across the region.

Read the Magazine
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