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The Ambiguities of Semicolonial Power in Thailand

Peter A. Jackson

in The Ambiguous Allure of the West: Traces of the Colonial in Thailand

This chapter examines the history of Siamese/Thai attitudes to the West in relation to the situation of both colonized and other nominally independent societies. Drawing on postcolonial ... More

This chapter examines the history of Siamese/Thai attitudes to the West in relation to the situation of both colonized and other nominally independent societies. Drawing on postcolonial understandings of power, culture, and knowledge, it argues that while Siam/Thailand occupied a subordinate position in the Western-dominated world order, it was never a direct colony. The chapter also argues that the notion of semicolonialism provides an avenue to open a dialogue with postcolonial studies while recognizing the ambiguities of Western power in the Thai context.Less

Possible Patterns of German Collapse: (September 21, 1943)

Franz Neumann, Herbert Marcuse, and Felix Gilbert

in Secret Reports on Nazi Germany: The Frankfurt School Contribution to the War Effort

This chapter considers the prospects facing Nazi Germany amid World War II by reviewing the patterns of German collapse in 1918. The breakdown of resistance in World War I was in the first instance a ... More

This chapter considers the prospects facing Nazi Germany amid World War II by reviewing the patterns of German collapse in 1918. The breakdown of resistance in World War I was in the first instance a military phenomenon, though its course and outcome were determined by the social, economic, and political structure of the German nation as a whole. The high command recognized as early as August 13 that the war was definitely lost. Before discussing possible patterns of German collapse in 1944, the chapter examines the differences between 1918 and today. It then describes alternative courses that will remain open if the United Nations remain united—that is, if Germany's political warfare aimed at splitting them and at concluding a negotiated peace with either Russia or the Western Powers is unsuccessful. One scenario when the United Nations are split is for the Nazis to establish a shadow government to deal with Russia.Less

“A Gleam of Light in Asia”

Geoffrey B. Robinson

in The Killing Season: A History of the Indonesian Massacres, 1965-66

This chapter argues that in the crucial six months after the alleged coup of October 1, 1965, Western powers encouraged the army to move forcefully against the Left, facilitated widespread violence ... More

This chapter argues that in the crucial six months after the alleged coup of October 1, 1965, Western powers encouraged the army to move forcefully against the Left, facilitated widespread violence including mass killings, and helped to consolidate the political power of the army. In doing so, they helped to bring about the political and physical destruction of the PKI and its affiliates, the removal of Sukarno and his closest associates from political power, their replacement by an army elite led by General Suharto, and a seismic shift in Indonesia's foreign policy toward the West and the capitalist model it advocated. The concerted campaign by foreign powers had three principal elements. The first was a pattern of secret assurances to the army leadership of political support and noninterference in Indonesia's internal affairs. The second was a sophisticated psychological warfare campaign designed to tarnish the PKI and Sukarno, and stir up opposition to them both inside Indonesia and abroad. The third element of the campaign was a carefully calibrated program of material assistance to the army, thereby facilitating and effectively rewarding the army's campaign against the PKI and Sukarno.Less

Introduction

Daniel F. Harrington

in Berlin on the Brink: The Blockade, the Airlift, and the Early Cold War

The introduction outlines differences between standard accounts of the Berlin blockade and the interpretation offered here. Earlier accounts fail to explain why wartime planners created Western ... More

The introduction outlines differences between standard accounts of the Berlin blockade and the interpretation offered here. Earlier accounts fail to explain why wartime planners created Western sectors in Berlin, surrounded by the Soviet zone, without well-defined access rights to them, or why the Western powers failed to deter Soviet pressure on the city. Most accounts contend that the West quickly settled on an airlift to counter the blockade, while noting that leaders believed Berlin could not be supplied by air. In other words, governments chose the airlift as their response expecting it would fail. That does not make sense. Depictions of life in the city tend to be undifferentiated, while accounts of Western diplomacy ignore serious disagreements over tactics. Stalin’s decision to lift the blockade probably came later that traditional accounts suggest.Less

The Making of Soviet Foreign Policy

Oleg Troyanovsky

in Nikita Khrushchev

This chapter focuses on Khrushchev's foreign policy. It addresses the much-debated question of why Khrushchev declared a Berlin ultimatum in November 1958, thus transforming his hitherto measured ... More

This chapter focuses on Khrushchev's foreign policy. It addresses the much-debated question of why Khrushchev declared a Berlin ultimatum in November 1958, thus transforming his hitherto measured efforts to ease East–West tensions in the Berlin crisis, which lasted until 1961 and beyond. The reason is that after the West had snubbed Soviet peace overtures for five years, Khrushchev resolved to force Western powers to accept them.Less

The Argument by Human Suffering

Arvind Sharma

in Are Human Rights Western?: A Contribution to the Dialogue of Civilizations

This chapter examines the argument that human rights are Western in the way in which it construes human suffering. The emphasis on civil rights and the neglect of social and economic rights seem ... More

This chapter examines the argument that human rights are Western in the way in which it construes human suffering. The emphasis on civil rights and the neglect of social and economic rights seem capable of being woven into the fabric of this argument. It also influences the perception of whose rights are to be empowered to reduce human suffering. When the theatre of such suffering is outside the West, whose inhabitants are insufficiently human, their suffering was to be ameliorated to those who were sufficiently human. So it was not the victims who were to be empowered but their interests politically. In the theatres of the West the victims were to be empowered by those professionally qualified to do so. Such an analysis enables one to view the tendency to deny the right of self-determination in the Third World on the part of Western powers. Upendra Baxi makes a point where he distinguishes between two reactions to human suffering in terms of human rights discourse. One is the non-recognition of it and the other is the horrified expression of it.Less

The Costs of Compromise

Thomas K. Robb and David James Gill

in Divided Allies: Strategic Cooperation against the Communist Threat in the Asia-Pacific during the Early Cold War

This chapter studies the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO). After almost a decade since the end of World War II, the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand once again ... More

This chapter studies the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO). After almost a decade since the end of World War II, the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand once again enjoyed a formal strategic alliance in the Asia-Pacific. The eventual creation of the SEATO in early 1955 complemented the short-term ambitions of all four Western powers in the region. Nevertheless, diplomatic bargaining preceding signature and ratification led to compromises that diluted the usefulness of the security alliance. The United States continued to limit commitments to joint planning after the implementation of the treaty. SEATO was therefore smaller, weaker, and less integrated than originally envisaged. The organization also lacked the necessary military and economic infrastructure to be effective, which helped encourage Australia and New Zealand to focus on regional rather than British Commonwealth interests, shifting focus away from the Middle East and Mediterranean and toward the “near north.”Less

Introduction

Thomas K. Robb and David James Gill

in Divided Allies: Strategic Cooperation against the Communist Threat in the Asia-Pacific during the Early Cold War

This introductory chapter provides an overview of post-World War II relations among the four Western powers: the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand. In contrast to the broad ... More

This introductory chapter provides an overview of post-World War II relations among the four Western powers: the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand. In contrast to the broad strategic cooperation that emerged in Europe after World War II, no formal alliances between Western powers existed throughout the Asia-Pacific until the 1950s. Even when established, these security agreements remained limited in terms of military planning and scope of membership, despite the rising threat posed by the Soviet Union and the People's Republic of China. To be sure, the Western powers that exerted most influence on security pacts in the region continued to enjoy close relations in many quarters and each held serious concerns about the Communist threat. All four states shared the ties of ancestry, language, and democratic institutions and maintained close economic and security relationships around the world. Yet, however close these four powers might have been to one another, they remained separate, sovereign states with their own interests. Although the pressures created by the Cold War could unite Western powers on an ad hoc basis, long-term strategic cooperation in the Asia-Pacific remained curiously limited. Thus, the purpose of this book is to examine why strategic cooperation among these four powers was so challenging in the Asia-Pacific during the early Cold War.Less

“Occidentaiists”: Engaging the Western “Other,” Medieval Perceptions, and Modern Realities

in Jews, Christians, and the Abode of Islam: Modern Scholarship, Medieval Realities

This chapter covers the manner in which orientalist scholarship has been used to further the political aims of Western powers and their surrogates. Orientalists were regarded as complicit in ... More

This chapter covers the manner in which orientalist scholarship has been used to further the political aims of Western powers and their surrogates. Orientalists were regarded as complicit in colonizing foreign territory and time-honored cultures. Occidentalist referred to Muslims and Muslims alone. William Lane was an early British traveler to Egypt. He embraced the study of the Arabic language with great passion and energy. He also undertook an English translation of the Thousand and One Nights and a massive Arabic-English dictionary. All orientalists, whether Christian or Jewish, combined their acquired prowess in Islamic languages with textual skills inherited from their Renaissance forebears. As in the past, Muslims did not study history to interrogate and reshape their understanding and expectations of human action, but to reaffirm the tried and true.Less

The Rise of “Western” Musketry, 1841–1860

D. Colin Jaundrill

in Samurai to Soldier: Remaking Military Service in Nineteenth-Century Japan

This chapter describes the final three decades of the Tokugawa period, during which the world of Japan's warriors began to change rapidly and irreparably. For over two hundred years, hereditary ... More

This chapter describes the final three decades of the Tokugawa period, during which the world of Japan's warriors began to change rapidly and irreparably. For over two hundred years, hereditary warriors (bushi)—known popularly, if imprecisely, as samurai—had served as the military arm of the shogunate and the nearly three hundred domains over which it maintained administrative and military hegemony. But beginning in the early nineteenth century, Tokugawa military institutions faced new pressure in the form of encroachment by Western powers. In their efforts to cope with this new set of challenges, both national and regional authorities turned to those who claimed to possess authoritative knowledge of how the West fought.Less

The World War I Experience

Thomas W. Burkman

in Japan and the League of Nations: Empire and World Order, 1914-1938

This chapter examines the effects of the First World War to Japanese diplomacy. The Great War created circumstances—economic hardship in Europe and an aggressive mentality in America—that would turn ... More

This chapter examines the effects of the First World War to Japanese diplomacy. The Great War created circumstances—economic hardship in Europe and an aggressive mentality in America—that would turn East Asia into a field for ruthless exploitation by the Western powers once the fighting in the West stopped. In short, heightened competition and aggression, not peace, would follow in the wake of the war. In the face of this threat, Japan stood in diplomatic and racial isolation with no spiritual ally but China to withstand a potential coalition of white powers. The Great War thus offered Japan an unprecedented yet temporary opportunity to strengthen itself and secure the friendship of the peoples of Asia.Less

Pathos Versus Pestilence

Józef Mackiewicz

in The Triumph of Provocation

This chapter discusses the damages caused by communism. It describes the errors committed by the Western powers in relation to international communism and offers arguments against those who ... More

This chapter discusses the damages caused by communism. It describes the errors committed by the Western powers in relation to international communism and offers arguments against those who questioned the correctness of the thesis that communism in the 1960s constituted a threat to the free world and that it was only a slogan that served as a screen for other goals. It also argues that the death of half the human race in an atomic war is not the greatest catastrophe and that the real catastrophe would be for all mankind to be living under the rule of the communist system.Less

Wielding the Moral Club

Ian Buruma

in A Matter of Principle: Humanitarian Arguments for War in Iraq

This chapter discusses the different opinions and criticisms, mostly apathetic, made by media personalities on the war in Iraq. Those who opposed it have perfectly valid reasons to be critical of US ... More

This chapter discusses the different opinions and criticisms, mostly apathetic, made by media personalities on the war in Iraq. Those who opposed it have perfectly valid reasons to be critical of US foreign policy, especially the neoconservative revolutionary mission. Those men who backed the decision of Bush know what it is like to live under the cosh. In an article published just before the Iraq war started, Ramos-Horta remembers how the Western powers “redeemed themselves” by freeing East Timor from its oppressors with armed force and asked why the Iraqis should not be liberated too. He has stated a case that must be answered. Unless, of course, one really believes that the problems of faraway peoples are for them to solve alone, and that we have no business intervening on their behalf against tyrants, and that any attempt to do so has to be, by definition, racist, or colonialist, or venal.Less

The Impact of Colonialism and Nationalism in the Archaeology of Thailand

Rasmi Shoocongdej

in Selective Remembrances: Archaeology in the Construction, Commemoration, and Consecration of National Pasts

This chapter examines how the dynamics of nationalism affect the nature of archaeological research in Southeast Asia, focusing on Thailand. It argues that the Thai state was caught between expanding ... More

This chapter examines how the dynamics of nationalism affect the nature of archaeological research in Southeast Asia, focusing on Thailand. It argues that the Thai state was caught between expanding French and English empires and maintained its independence through the careful nurturing of national unity. This chapter also argues that the concerted effort to present a strong and fluid Thai identity in the face of Western imperial power came at the expense of denying Thailand's diverse ethnic and cultural pasts.Less

Blind Spot

M. A. Thomas

in Govern Like Us: U.S. Expectations of Poor Countries

This chapter discusses the problem of governance in poor countries, as well as the tendency for Western powers to impose an ideal, ostensibly Westernized form of governance upon these countries. One ... More

This chapter discusses the problem of governance in poor countries, as well as the tendency for Western powers to impose an ideal, ostensibly Westernized form of governance upon these countries. One such case is that of Afghanistan and the concerted efforts of various nations into establishing a more democratized form of government on Afghan soil. These reforms are evocative of the still broader ideals for eradicating terrorism and lifting the poor out of their poverty; yet such reforms often fail to meet the demands imposed upon the governments of poor countries, as the latter often cannot afford to exercise the liberal, democratic ideals employed by the richer countries. To address this dilemma, foreign policy must adapt to the realities of poor governments in order to successfully engage them and effect change.Less

Ethnic Harmony, Colonial Reality: Manchus, Manchoukuo, and the ROC

Dan Shao

in Remote Homeland, Recovered Borderland: Manchus, Manchoukuo, and Manchuria, 1907-1985

This chapter studies the status of the Manchus in the formation, dissemination, and reception of the “ethnic harmony” rhetoric in Manchoukuo in comparison to similar ethnic rhetoric in the ROC during ... More

This chapter studies the status of the Manchus in the formation, dissemination, and reception of the “ethnic harmony” rhetoric in Manchoukuo in comparison to similar ethnic rhetoric in the ROC during the Sino-Japanese fight over Manchuria. To the Japanese colonial authority, the rhetoric of ethnic harmony helped to suppress the locals' suspicion of the Japanese presence and negate the restoration efforts of Qing loyalists. This rhetoric of ethnic relations in Manchoukuo contrasted with the assimilation strategy employed in the Japanese colonies in Korea and Taiwan and with the racial demarcation between the colonizers and the colonized in the colonies of the Western powers.Less

The Germans: Complaints, Criticism, and Demands?

Peter Speiser

in The British Army of the Rhine: Turning Nazi Enemies into Cold War Partners

This chapter focuses on the German perspective of relations with the BAOR. It studies the changing expectations of and demands by the German civilian population, as well as federal and Land (state) ... More

This chapter focuses on the German perspective of relations with the BAOR. It studies the changing expectations of and demands by the German civilian population, as well as federal and Land (state) administrations during a period of fundamental changes in Anglo-German relations. The chapter looks at attempts to use the BAOR in order to undermine German cooperation with the West, as well as German efforts to counter these threats, all within economic, political, and social contexts. When considering the occupation forces of the Western powers, the problems created by the presence of American troops have been highlighted by John Willoughby. His work focuses on the threat to US authority in Germany posed by the disorderly behavior of American troops and the resulting initiatives that prevented a deterioration of relations in the period between 1945 and 1948.Less