World & ASEAN Briefing (14 March): International Criminal Court Launches Investigations into Russia; the Debate of Vietnam's Anti-Corruption Campaign
We also have the story on the movie censorship in Malaysia
Welcome to Tuesday, the hardest day of the week, but also the day with generally the least news volume.
For readers in ASEAN who are afraid of the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank. Let us assure you that nothing major has affected the region yet. Startup funding, especially from the US side, will slow down, but we are fine for now until the stories unfold more. We will do a Quick Context on this on Friday.
Table of Content and Our Thoughts:
Russia Investigated by the International Criminal Court. Real Impacts Remain Unclear
On the international news, we have the launch of war crime cases against Russia by the International Criminal Court (ICC). The cases are about Russia’s alleged child kidnapping and targeted destruction of infrastructure during the Russia-Ukraine War.
Some of the less pessimistic folks like myself may find the concept of international justice ineffective and even redundant because it is never swift. Nevertheless, we hope the ICC will bring information to the public about stories we don’t often hear about like this.
Vietnam’s Anti-Corruption Campaign that Somehow Scares People and Investors Despite Outing Former President
Is cleaning up corruption always good? Not in the eyes of some officials and investors in Vietnam in fear of an unstable political and business climate. We have written briefly about this before, but it is amazing that reducing corruption can be controversial.
Malaysia Movie Censorship Raises Questions on Whether We Let the Audience Censor Themselves on What’s Appropriate for Them or the Government
We do love censorship stories. It is understandable in some form to want to protect their citizens from undesirable values and stories projected on a big screen.
On the other hand, it can feel insulting and patronizing that a government does not trust its citizens enough to use critical thinking to judge and debate what is good, bad, or gray.
Russia Investigated by the International Criminal Court. Real Impacts Remain Unclear
What’s Going On?
The International Criminal Court (ICC) plans to open two war crimes cases related to the Russian invasion of Ukraine and will ask for arrest warrants for several people
Russia would be accused of kidnapping Ukrainian children and attacking civilian infrastructure on purpose.
The cases are the first international charges that have been brought since the conflict began.
Deeper Context into the Cases
The accusation is that Russia kidnapped Ukrainian children and teenagers and sent them to re-education camps in Russia.
They also say that the Kremlin aimed at civilian infrastructure on purpose.
The Kremlin has denied accusations of war crimes, but international and Ukrainian investigators have found strong evidence of a wide range of atrocities.
Maria Lvova-Belova, who is Russia's commissioner for children's rights and the public face of the program, started sending children to Russia just a few weeks after the invasion started in February 2022. She has also been on TV a lot to promote adoptions.
Illegal transfers of children to Russia or to occupied parts of Ukraine are a top priority for his team.
Yale University and the Conflict Observatory program released a report that said at least 6,000 Ukrainian children were being held in 43 camps in Russia.
In the second case, the I.C.C. chief prosecutor is expected to talk about Russia's constant attacks on civilian infrastructure, such as water supplies, gas and power plants, that are far from the fighting and are not considered legitimate military targets.
What can the International Criminal Court (ICC) Do?
From a global justice perspective, the ICC serves as an important mechanism to hold perpetrators of the most serious international crimes accountable.
Being charged by the ICC can lead to loss of freedom and liberty, imprisonment, reputational damage, public scrutiny, and financial consequences.
It can also have broader implications for international justice and accountability, sending a strong message that serious international crimes will not be tolerated and that those responsible will be held accountable.
Limitations and Challenges of the ICC
Limited jurisdiction: The ICC can only investigate and prosecute crimes committed in states that are parties to the Rome Statute or by their nationals. This means that crimes committed in non-party states or by individuals who are not nationals of a party state are outside the ICC's jurisdiction.
Political nature: The ICC operates in a political environment, and its decisions and actions can be influenced by political considerations. For example, the ICC's investigations and prosecutions may be influenced by the interests of powerful states or by the political situation in the countries where crimes have been committed.
Limited resources: The ICC has limited resources, and its operations are often constrained by budgetary and logistical challenges. This can limit the number of cases that the ICC can investigate and prosecute and the speed at which it can deliver justice.
The government of Ukraine is now holding its own trials for war crimes, and many other international groups are also looking into the situation.
In the past few weeks, a group of governments and international organizations have talked more about the need for a separate international court that could try Russia for the crime of aggression, which the I.C.C. does not have the power to do.
In this case, the ICC can only hold people responsible for war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide, even if they are leaders.
Vietnam’s Anti-Corruption Campaign that Somehow Scares People and Investors Despite Outing Former President
What’s Going On?
Vietnam's "Blazing Furnace" anti-corruption campaign draws attention to its political stalemate and economic instability.
The fight at the top is happening as Vietnam fights inflation and investors worry about debt bubbles in its real estate market.
Vietnam's former president Nguyen Xuan Phuc lost his job because of corruption linked to a COVID-19 test kit tender.
Now that the anti-corruption crackdown is spreading across the country, experts say it is going beyond party politics and hurting confidence in the economy.
This is because technocrats are being pushed aside and officials are afraid to sign off on new projects because they might also be looked at.
Impacts of the Anti-Corruption Campaign
Former President Resigned: Phuc quit after the party accused him of "violations and wrongdoing" because of his messy family ties to the Viet A Technology Corporation, which won a US$175 million procurement order for test kits at the height of the pandemic, which allegedly led to the embezzlement of millions of dollars of state money.
Stability Disrupted: Experts say that Vietnam's Communist Party is proud of how stable it seems, which has helped the country's economy grow for decades with the country surpassing Thailand in foreign investment.
Arrest on the Private Sector: High-profile real estate executives were arrested and the rules were changed to make it harder for over-leveraged real estate firms to borrow money.
This year, real estate companies have to pay back billions of dollars in bonds. This is causing people to worry about the companies' ability to stay in business and a possible spread of the problem to the rest of the economy.
Project Halted: The renewable energy company put $65 million into a wind farm that has been stuck in red tape and unable to move forward for months, and could face bankruptcy.
Some Welcome, and Some Say It’s All Political: Some say the crackdown should reduce real corruption in Vietnam. However, the critics say that the anti-corruption drive is simply a smokescreen to weed out political opponents.
Malaysia Movie Censorship Raises Questions on Whether We Let the Audience Censor Themselves on What’s Appropriate for Them or the Government
Mentega Terbang is the latest move where religious conservatives are angry with Malaysian filmmakers.
Mentega Terbang is 31-year-old Khairi's first full-length film as a director.
It was recently taken down from the Hong Kong-based streaming platform Viu after conservatives in Malaysia said it insults Islam.
Malaysian police also called Khairi in on Friday to talk to him about the movie.
A late backlash against the 2021 movie "Mentega Terbang" on the grounds that it tries to get schoolchildren to leave Islam has sparked a discussion about the effects of censorship.
Conservatives want the state to censor streaming services as well, and the Malaysian film industry is worried about its future.
Malaysia Movie Censorship
Some Malaysian filmmakers have been afraid to push boundaries or make content that challenges social norms because they are very aware of the loud, conservative part of the population and the rise of reactionary politics.
Some filmmakers now make movies only for streaming services, where censorship rules don't apply.
Recent box office numbers show that directors who want to make a hit are more likely to use old ideas, which are not competitive globally.
Risky but Worth It Argument: They want local content to be able to compete with international platforms, and they say the only way to move Malaysian film forward is to invest in, support, and encourage movies that push the limits.
Original Malaysian Movies Can Still Thrive: Imaginur, a non-linear science fiction drama about memory and dementia, recently beat the odds by making more than 3 million ringgit (US$663,300) in just a few days, as its production company, Lumatic Films, bragged on Twitter.
Never Ending Debate
Arguments for censorship:
Protection of cultural and religious values: Censorship can help protect cultural and religious values by preventing the promotion of content that goes against these norms.
Maintenance of public order: Censorship can help prevent the dissemination of content that may incite violence or disorder.
Some may say that it is useful to prevent protests, self-radicalisation. But some may say that the extreme restrictions can also be a path to radicalisation. We did a video on self-radicalisation
Promotion of public morality: Censorship can help protect public morality by preventing the distribution of content that may be considered obscene or offensive.
Cater to Voters: More than 60 percent of the people who vote are Malay Muslims, making it favourable for politicians to not push any religious boundaries in the creative industry
The film industry is angry that the censors are being hypocritical by picking and choosing the values of Malaysians. "A Malaysian stamp shows a movie that literally celebrates rape and encourages rape victims to marry their rapists," tweeted filmmaker Zara Kahan.
Arguments against censorship:
Limitation of freedom of expression: Censorship can limit the freedom of expression and creativity, preventing artists and filmmakers from exploring certain topics and expressing their opinions freely.
Limitation of access to information: Censorship can prevent the public from accessing information and ideas that may be important or relevant to them.
Potential for abuse of power: Censorship can be used to suppress dissenting opinions or to promote certain political or ideological agendas, leading to a potential abuse of power.
Stifling of innovation: By limiting the free flow of ideas and creativity, censorship may also stifle innovation and prevent the development of new and groundbreaking content.