Inside ASEAN: Breaking the region’s stereotypes
“Singaporeans are too strict”, “Malaysians are too soft”, “Filipinos are too noisy” and "Thais are too easygoing.” For all the talk of ASEAN unity, many Southeast Asians still rank, compare and stereotype one another.
“Singaporeans are too strict”, “Malaysians are too soft”, “Filipinos are too noisy” and "Thais are too easygoing.”
The region may preach “one community,” but on the streets, in classrooms and online, the divides often run deeper than the slogans suggest. As ASEAN leaders gather in Kuala Lumpur this week for the 47th ASEAN Summit where Timor-Leste’s formal admission will mark the bloc’s continued unity and expansion, the question of how well Southeast Asians truly understand one another lingers quietly in the background.
When Luo Chen Jun, a former civil servant from Singapore, joins regional exchanges, he often notices how people see his country first.
Author's summary: ASEAN unity is still a work in progress.