Human Security in Southeast Asia (Routledge Security in Asia Pacific Series)

There is a growing interest in human security in Southeast Asia. This book firstly explores the theoretical and conceptual basis of human security, before focusing on the region itself. It shows how human security has been taken up as a central part of security policy in individual states in Southeast Asia, as well as in the regional security policy within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). The book discusses domestic challenges for human security including the insurgencies in southern Thailand, the Philippines and Indonesia. Transnational security issues such as terrorism, drugs, human trafficking and the situation in Burma are explored by the author, and the ‘ASEAN’ way of contrasting the values and approaches of Southeast Asian countries with those in the West is assessed. By focusing on the ongoing changes and efforts to achieve human security in Southeast Asia, this book contributes to theoretical debates on human security as well as regional studies on Southeast Asia.

Yukiko Nishikawa is Associate Professor at Nagoya University, Japan. She was previously a lecturer in the Office of Human Rights and Social Development, Thailand. Among her research interests is conflict and peace in the Asia Pacific region, and her recent publications include "The ASEAN Way and Asian Regional Security" in Politics and Policy, Blackwell Publishing (2007) and Japan’s Changing Role in Humanitarian Crises, Routledge (2005).