CHAPTER 21 Southeast Asia

 Large as the continental US  Population centers around rivers  More than half the population lives on islands  Part of the “Ring of Fire”  earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and tsunamis are common  Life is regulated by the climate- monsoons to droughts  Developing into an economic power, but poverty and political instability cause issue  Divided into two major sub regions  Indochina  Malay archipelago

I. Indochina  Named for dominant powers on either side: China and India  Exert strong influence on the culture, politics and economy of the region  Made up of:  Myanmar  Thailand  Laos  Cambodia  Vietnam

Myanmar  Formerly known as Burma  Changed in 1989 by ruling military junta, still contested  UN and others recognize Myanmar, US still uses Burma  Largest country in Indochina- slightly smaller than Texas  Most people live along the rain forest  Capital: Yangon  Irrawaddy River- runs from uplands to the Andaman Sea, main river in Myanmar  89% are Buddhists, only 4% profess Christianity  Was once the richest country in the southeast, but adopted socialist economic practices that held them back

Thailand  Known as Siam until 1939  Only country in Southeast Asia to never be controlled by a European power  Strongest economy in Indochina  Bangkok: capital city  Much of the territory is on the Malay Peninsula- almost 1000 miles long-control central portion  Constitutional monarchy- prime minister is head of government, but have a traditional king  94% Buddhists  Elephants are the national symbol pg 527

Laos  Only landlocked country in Southeast Asia  Undeveloped, mountainous, lack of arable land  60% Buddhist, 40% animist or other native religion  Mekong River borders with Thailand  Capital: Vientiane- still shows French influence  In 1975, Pathet Lao, a communist organization, took over and modeled it after Vietnam  Recently tried to move back to a free market economy—but lack of infrastructure is hindering  No railroads, little telecommunications, poor road system, only urban areas have electricity

Buddhism  Pg. 526  Off shoot of Hinduism  Based on teaching of Siddhartha Gautama Buddha  Dharma- saving truth- balance between self indulgence and self torture  4 Noble Truths and 8 Fold Path of Moral Principles  1. Right View 2. Right Intention 3. Right Speech 4. Right Action 5. Right Livelihood 6. Right Effort 7. Right Mindfulness 8. Right Concentration  Nirvana- state of happiness and rest  Seek the “non self”

Cambodia  Has great potential, but never took advantage of it  Low, flat plains, much of the land is arable  Gained independence from France in 1953  The communist Khmer Rouge took over in 1975 and tried to erase memories of colonial rule and return to a rural, agricultural lifestyle  Tried to rid of all opposition, killed 1.5 million Cambodians  Communists in Vietnam were appalled, they invaded in 1978  Khmer Rouge finally surrendered in 99 and were put on trial by the UN  Today, country has a king and a bicameral legislature  Future is bright, GDP is equally divided by agriculture, industry and service and 50% of the population is 20 years old and under

Vietnam  Capital: Hanoi  Southern coast along the South China Sea  Largest city in the south: Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon)  Communist Ho Chi Minh led rebels against the French to gain independence  Not all Vietnamese wanted Communism, South voted to remain free  UN split the country at the 17 th parallel, North and South Vietnam  Afraid of the Domino Theory (once one country falls to communism, more will follow) the US went in to help the South fight off the Viet Cong  Too divisive of a battle, US left, South fell, people fled the country  Working on expanding economy, still has Communist government  Culture is a mix of Western and Oriental influences  80% profess no religion at all

II. The Malay Archipelago  Largest group of islands in the world  Most islands are volcanic, dominated by mountains

Malaysia  Part on the Malay Peninsula, rest is on the island of Borneo  Major leader among developing countries  Capital: Kuala Lumpur- on the peninsula  60% are Muslim  Official language: Bahasa Melayu, but English and Chinese are common  In the 70s became a major electronics manufacturer  Batik- hand crafted cloth, part of traditional clothing

Singapore  Only about 3x the size of D.C., but very influential  Singapore—name of island, country and capital  Has the busiest seaport by volume in the world  77% Chinese population, religiously Buddhist and Muslim  Financial and high-tech hub of Southeast Asia

Brunei  On the island of Borneo, wedged between two states of Malaysia  Gained independence from Britain in 1984  Government: Constitutional Sultanate  Legal system based on British law, but Islamic sharia supersedes it in some areas  Sultan and prime minister- hereditary positions, no elections  Islam is official religion  Capital: Bandar Seri Begawan

Indonesia  Largest country of Southeast Asia  Nation made up of 17,508 islands!  Only 6600 are populated, Stretch across 3000 miles  4 th largest population in the world  Largest Islamic nation in the world  Big Islands of Indonesia  Java- hub of activity, capital Jakarta is here  Sumatra- second most densely populated island  Borneo- 3 rd largest island in the world  New Guinea- 2 nd largest island in the world

The Philippines  Chain of 7,107 islands that run 1000 miles  Only about 900 islands are inhabited  Two big islands on either end: Luzon and Mindanao  Luzon  Largest and most populous island  Capital: Manila  Discovered by Ferdinand Magellan and was a Spanish colony until 1898, full independence after WWII  80% Roman Catholic