Postconflict heritage in Asia: Shifting geographies of aid

Abstract

In a number of postconfl ict situations in Asia, the dynamics of aid and development have shifted signifi cantly in recent years. The economic and political ascendency of China and regional organizations such as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have been catalysts for a new era of intraregional assistance and support between neighbors. In many cases, international aid and soft loans are supplanting previous arrangements with governmental and nongovernmental bodies located outside the region. Countries such as Cambodia, Laos, Indonesia and Myanmar, which previously relied heavily on ‘Western’ forms of aid and ‘civil society’ organizations originating from Europe and North America, now tie their development more closely to Asia’s economic powers such as China, Japan and Korea. In response to this trend, much attention has been given to the waning infl uence of the West in the region (Dent and Dosch 2012) and what implications China’s noninterference or ‘no strings attached’ approach, as it is often referred to by Western analysts, holds for issues such as human rights and governance reforms (Davis and Galligan 2011).