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The resurgence of ‘old’ Mahathir against the Najib coalition has been matched with the ‘new’, the cheap smartphone.

A new book on West Sumatran 'angkot' reveals the complex tensions between tradition and modernity in contemporary Minangkabau society

As Malaysia rushes to its GE14 on 9 May, the new anti-fake news law is primed against the state's critics, emboldening speech vigilantism by outsourced censors linked to the ruling UMNO party.

With Malaysia's Parliament now dissolved in the official rush to GE14's polling day, Sabah and Sarawak are again crucial states determining the winning coalition.

Bringing New Mandala readers fresh perspectives on the causes and consequences of populist rule in the Philippines.

The New Books in Southeast Asian Studies podcast explores the idea that elections can be instrumentalised by dictators to reinforce their rule.

The threat to eliminate all ‘fake news’ isn’t merely an assault on the freedom of speech, it’s also an affront to its beauty, efficacy, recall, and its very existence.

SOEs are expected to do ever more for Jokowi's infrastructure push, but politics dictates they forgo revenue to offer subsidised goods. Who ends up with the bill?

Closer scrutiny of Malaysian elections since the era of Najib Razak's father can sharpen the contrasts over winning—and losing—legitimacy.

The fall of great premodern Southeast Asian settlements offers hints about what climate change has in store for today's megacities.

The Najib government needs to win new legitimacy at GE14 if it's to juggle Malay, Islamic, and royal claims, amid a restive East Malaysia.

Nien Yuan Cheng reflects on the film screening and lecture, "Gender, Crossdressing and Androgyny in Balinese Dance", conducted by ethnomusicologist Edward Herbst under the aegis of the Bali 1928 repatriation project.