1. Clearly explain each of the following. Give examples as appropriate.
a.
Shatterbelt and Buffer Zone
Shatter belt is a region caught between stronger, colliding external culturalpolitical forces, under persistent stress, and often fragmented by aggressive
rivals. For example, Eastern Europe and Southeast Asia are shatter belts. They
both exhibit cultural diversity with hundreds of cultures, numerous languages and
dialects, and several major religions.
Buffer zone is a set of countries separating ideological or powerful political
adversaries. For example, in southern Asia, Afghanistan, Nepal, and Bhutan
were parts of a buffer zone between British and Russian-Chinese imperial
spheres. Thailand was a buffer state between British and French colonial
domains in mainland Southeast Asia.
b. Indochina
Indochina was the name given by the French to their empire that they ruled and
exploited in a crucial quadrant of Southeast Asia.
The ‘Indo’ part of Indochina refers to cultural imprints from South Asia, viz, the
Hindu presence, the importance of Buddhism that arrived in Southeast Asia via
Sri Lanka (Ceylon) and its seafaring merchants, the influences of Indian
architecture and art, especially sculpture, writing and literature, and social
structures and patterns. The Indians came from west by way of sea through
trading ships. Indian settlers found colonies on Southeast Asian shores in Malay
Peninsula, on lower Mekong Plain, on Jawa and Bali, and on Borneo. They also
brought their faiths of Hinduism and Buddhism. Islam was brought by Arab
traders and became dominant in Indonesia. Myanmar, Thailand, and Cambodia
embraced Buddhism. Malaysians worshipped Allah, Chinese hung to Buddhism,
and some Malaysians clung to Hinduism.
The ‘China’ in the name Indochina signifies the role of the Chinese here.
Chinese emperors coveted Southeast Asian lands, and China’s power reached
deep into the realm. Social and political upheavals in China sent millions of
Sinicized people southward. Chinese traders, pilgrims, seafarers, fishermen, and
others sailed from southeastern China to the coasts of Southeast Asia and
established settlements there. Over period of time, more Chinese arrived, and
Chinese influence grew in this realm. However, strained or even violent relations
exist between Chinese settlers and earlier inhabitants of Southeast Asia.
Indochina has thus become a name for the rest of the realm as well because it
depicts two leading Asian influences for past 2000 years.
c. State Territorial Morphology
State territorial morphology is defined as a state’s territorial geographical shape,
which can have adhesive impact on its spatial cohesion and political feasibility. A
compact shape is most desirable. Other possibilities are elongated, fragmented,
perforated and protruded states.
The territorial morphology of a state affects its condition and survival. For
example, Vietnam’s extreme elongated shape has influenced its existence.
Indonesia’s many islands depict its territorial morphology.
Five different shapes signify a state’s territorial morphology :
Compact states : Compact states have territories shaped somewhere between
round and rectangular, without major indentations. They enclose a maximum
amount of territory within a minimum length of boundary. For example,
Cambodia in Southeast Asia is a compact state.
Protruded states : Protruded states are also known as extended states. They
have a substantial compact territory with a peninsular corridor extension that may
be landlocked or coastal. For example, Thailand and Myanmar in Southeast
Asia are compact states.
Elongated states : Elongated states are also called attenuated states. They
have territorial dimensions in which the length is at least six times the average
width, creating a state that lies astride environmental or cultural transitions. For
example, Vietnam in Southeast Asia is an elongated state.
Fragmented states : Fragmented states consist of two or more territorial units
separated by foreign territory or by water. Subtypes are mainland-mainland,
mainland-island, and island-island. For example, Malaysia, Indonesia, and
Philippines in Southeast Asia are fragmented states.
Perforated states : Perforated states completely surround the territory of other
states, so that they have a “hole” in them. No Southeast Asian country is a
perforated state. However, South Africa, perforated by Lesotho, can be cited as
an example of a perforated state.
d. Compact State
A compact state is a politico-geographical term to describe a state that
possesses a roughly circular, oval, or rectangular shaped territory in which the
distance from the geometric center to any point on the boundary exhibits little
variance. For example, Poland in Europe, and Cambodia in Southeast Asia are
compact states.
e. Fragmented State
Fragmented state is a state whose territory consists of several separated parts
instead of a contiguous whole. The individual parts may be isolated from each
other by land area of other states or by international waters. For example, U.S.A.
in North America and Indonesia in Southeast Asia are fragmented states.
f. Protruded State :
Protruded state is a state whose territorial shape exhibits a narrow, elongated
land extension, or protrusion, leading away from the main body of the state’s
territory. For example, Thailand in Southeast Asia is a protruded state.
g. Domino Theory
Domino Theory assumes that political destabilization in one state can result in
the collapse of order in a neighboring state, triggering a chain of events that, in
turn, can affect a series of continuous states. This theory gets its name from
dominoes, when one country after another fell like dominoes to the ravages of
wars.
For example, during the Indochina War from 1964-1975, U.S. policy to contain
communist expansion by supporting efforts of government of South Vietnam to
defeat communist insurgents led to one thing after another. Soon, the war
engulfed North Vietnam as U.S. bombers attacked targets north of the border
between North and South. Further, the conflict spilled over into Laos and
Cambodia. U.S. warplanes also used bases in Thailand.
Further example can be given of Rwanda in Equatorial Africa, where the collapse
of order in Rwanda spilled over into The Congo, previously Zaire, and affected
Burundi, Congo, and Angola.
h. Organic Theory
Organic theory is Friedrich Ratzel’s theory of state development that
conceptualized the state as a biological organism whose life – from birth through
maturation to eventual senility and collapse, mirrors that of any living thing. This
theory proposes that nations, being aggregates of human beings, would over the
long term live and die as their citizens did.
For example, the geopolitics of eastern Eurasia exhibit organic theory.
i. Brunei
Brunei is an oil exporting Islamic sultanate located on the north coast of Borneo
between Malaysian Sarawak and Sabah. Formerly under British regime, it was a
much larger Islamic kingdom that controlled all of Borneo and areas beyond,
once upon a time. Brunei achieved full independence in 1984. With a mere
2225 square miles, i.e. 5700 square kilometers, and inhabited by 345,000
people, Brunei is dwarfed b other political entities of Southeast Asia. The
discovery of oil since 1929, and natural gas since 1965, uplifted Brunei’s
economy. Today, it is one of the largest oil producers, and recent offshore
discoveries suggest that production will increase. This oil and natural gas boom
has attracted immigrants from Malay (64%), and China (20%). Its population is
growing rapidly, and this Islamic Sultanate of Brunei enjoys one of the highest
standards of living in Southeast Asia. Its GNP is over $25,000. Most of its
inhabitants live close to oilfields in the western part of Brunei, and also in the east
– Bandar Seri Begawan. Proof of a development boom can be seen in modern
apartment houses, shopping centers, and hotels, that are in sharp contrast to
many other towns in Borneo. However, Brunei’s interior remains an area of
subsistence agriculture and rural isolation without any rippling effects of the
coastal zone’s economic boom. Also, its territory is small and fragmented. A
sliver of Malaysian land separates the larger west from the east. Brunei Bay
provides a water link between the two parts. Proposal for Brunei’s purchase of
this separating corridor from Malaysians has met no active response yet.
j. Archipelago
Archipelago is a set of islands that are grouped closely together and usually
elongated into a chain. The term archipelago means fragmentation.
For example, Indonesia is the most expansive archipelagic state in the world.
Indonesia’s territory comprises of 17000 islands, with its 219 million people living
separated by water and clustered on islands large as well as small.
k. Exclusive Economic Zone
Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) is an oceanic zone extending up to 200 nautical
miles from a shoreline, within which the coastal state can control fishing, mineral
exploration, and additional activities by all other countries. Resources such as
fish, oil, minerals, etc, in an EEZ belong to the coastal state that controls it. It
can either exploit them, or lease, sell, or share them, as it deems fit.
This EEZ is in addition to the 12-mile territorial sea for all countries.
For example, American Samoa has a huge Pacific-Ocean EEZ, one of the richest
fishing grounds in the whole realm, and seafood exports rank ahead of tourism
as the leading source of external income for the territory. Another island, Tuvalu,
is a low-island territory whose EEZ has been leased to Japanese fishing fleets,
which do their processing on board and employ no local people, only foreigners.
l. Melanesia
Melanesia is one of the 3 regions that constitute the Pacific Realm. Melanesia
comprises of Irian Jaya, i.e. West Papua, belonging to Indonesia, Papua New
Guinea, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, New Caledonia, belonging to France, and
Fiji. Melanesia depicts a complex human mosaic, both ethnically and culturally.
Melanesia is the most populous region in Pacific Realm, and centrifugal forces of
many kinds are affecting it.
New Guinea is a large island at western end of Pacific region with 7.2 million
inhabitants, most of whom are Papuans, and a large minority is Melanesian. On
the whole, there are 700 communities speaking different languages in this realm.
Papuans live in densely forested highland interiors and in south, while
Melanesians inhabit the north and east.
Papua New Guinea became a sovereign state in 1975. Its coastal areas
generate economy, while interiors are in an economic slumber. 4/5ths of its
population exists on self-sufficient subsistence economy, growing root crops and
hunting wildlife, raising pigs, and gathering forest products. Illiteracy ranks high,
with little English in coastal zones, amidst low levels of urbanization. Oil and gold
are its prime export earners, while copper, silver, timber, coffee, and cocoa
reflect its environmental diversity. Australia and Japan gobble up PNG’s exports.
New Caledonia is a French possession, with 45% Melanesian, 37% of French
ancestry, amidst a population of 230,000 people. Nickel mines are its prime
export earners. Locals are demanding an end to French colonialism amidst
violent protests.
Fiji comprises of 2 big and 100 small islands with a population of 800,000 people,
51% are Melanesians and 44% are South Asians, including Indians. Fiji became
free from British colonialists in 1970. Trouble has been brewing in Fiji amidst
politically and commercially prominent Indians, and native Fijians for ruling the
country. Fiji’s foggy future has disappointed many of its foreign trading partners.
m. Micronesia
Micronesia is one of the three regions that constitute the Pacific realm.
Micronesia comprises of Palau, Federated States of Micronesia, Northern
Mariana Islands, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Nauru, western Kiribati, and
Guam (U.S.).
Micronesia lies to the north of Melanesia and east of Philippines. Micro means
small. 2000 plus islands of Micronesia are not only tiny (most have a size of only
around 1 kms), but they are also much lower-lying than those of Melanesia.
Islands with volcanoes are called high islands, but most islands are coral islands
and are called low islands. These coral islands are barely above sea level and
often experience periods of submergence underwater during high water,
becoming surf bathed again in low water. Guam is Micronesia’s largest island
with 210 square miles.
Agricultural diversity exists on high islands, and more people live on high islands
than on low islands where fishing and coconut palm are mainstays for life.
Marshall Islands was used by U.S.A. to test nuclear weapons.
Mariana Islands are a commonwealth, in political union with U.S.A.. It is said that
U.S.A. provides billions of dollars in assistance to these countries, in return for
their commitment to avoid foreign policy actions that are against U.S. interests.
Palau had to commit policies to grant the U.S. rights to existing military bases for
50 years, even after its independence.
Guam shows no signs of independence from U.S. occupation. U.S. military
installations and tourism, presumably mostly American tourists, provide the bulk
of income for the territory of Guam.
The Republic of Nauru, with a population of 10,000 clustered over 8 square miles
of territory, got rich by selling its phosphate deposits to Australia and New
Zealand, where they are used as a fertilizer. Per-capita income in Nauru rose to
U.S.$10,000, making Nauru one of the Pacific Realm’s high-income societies.
However, in due time, the phosphate deposits in Nauru diminished, and
economic crisis loomed ahead with a foggy future.
Life in Micronesia is a daily challenge for its people, while its visitors relax and
laze around. Most people subsist on farming or fishing, and all countries depend
on foreign aid to survive. The natural economic complementarity between the
high-island farming cultures and the low-island fishing communities is often
negated by the spatial and cultural distance between these many islands.
n. Polynesia
Polynesia is one of the three regions that constitute the Pacific realm. Polynesia
comprises of Hawaiian Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Kiribati, Tahiti, and Samoa.
Polynesia lies to the east of Micronesia and Melanesia. Poly means many.
Polynesia is a region of many islands. Many of these islands have luxuriant
tropical forests with 100 inches rainfall per year. Polynesians are lighter colored
in skin with wavier hair than other peoples of Pacific Realm. They have an
excellent physique. Polynesian culture is quite consistent and uniform from one
island to the next. Polynesians are uniquely adapted to their marine
environment, and Polynesian seafarers had learned to navigate their wide
expanses of ocean in huge double canoes 150 feet long, even before Europeans
arrived in Polynesia. However, severe storms have claimed the lives of many
Polynesians who went out to sea for their daily bread on their boats. Families
were ripped apart by accident as well as migration, hunger and starvation
afflicted the inhabitants of smaller islands, and the island communities were often
embroiled in violent conflicts and cruel retributions.
Polynesia exhibits a complex political geography. Hawaiian Islands became the
50th state to join U.S.A. in 1959. Hawaii’s population is currently standing at 1.2
million, with 80% living in island of Oahu. In Oahu, cultures are superimposed on
one another. The panorama of Honolulu’s skyscrapers against the famous
extinct volcano at nearby Diamond Head reflects such superimposition.
The Kingdom of Tonga became free from British colonialist rule in 1970, Ellice
Islands became free from British colonialist rule in 1978 and were renamed
Tuvalu, Gilbert Islands to the north became free from British colonialist rule in
1978 and were renamed Kiribati.
Marquesas Islands and Tahiti are French territories. Rarotonga belongs to New
Zealand. Some other islands are waving British, U.S., and Chilean flags.
Politico-geographical fragmentation introduced by the Americans has given a
severe blow to the rich cultural heritage of Polynesia. Land developers, hotel
builders, and tourist dollars have set Tahiti on a course same as that of Hawaii.
Americanization of eastern Samoa has created new society from the old.
Polynesia has lost much of its ancient cultural consistency. Today, the bleak and
barren aspects of modern culture pale in sharp contrast to the rich and shining
cultural heritage of its past. Foreign intervention in Polynesia has ruined its
ancient charm. China and U.S.A. are locking horns with each other for their
share of the economic pie in the Pacific Realm, without a thought for preservation
of natural and cultural heritage of these ancient islands of paradise.
2. Describe the colonial spheres in Southeast Asia.
The colonial spheres in Southeast Asia comprise the following :
French sphere, British sphere, Area yielded by Thailand, Netherlands sphere,
and the Spanish sphere.
French Sphere : The French Sphere comprises of five units : Tonkin in the north
next to China, centered on the basin of the Red River; Cochin China in the south,
with the Mekong Delta as its focus; and Annam between these two; Cambodia
facing the Gulf of Thailand, and Laos, landlocked in the interior. Out of these 5
French territories, the first three territories ultimately combined to become
Vietnam, while the other two achieved independence separately.
British Sphere : The British Sphere comprises of Burma, Malaya, a large part of
northern Borneo, and many small islands in South China Sea. Burma originally
belonged to India. However, the 1947 partition grand design, envisioned by the
British colonialists, fragmented India into India, Pakistan, Bangladesh (East
Pakistan before), and, Sri Lanka (Ceylon before). Burma became a sovereign
republic in 1948, and currently is known as Myanmar. In Malaya, the British
developed a intricate system of colonies and protectorates that resulted in the
far-flung Malaysian Federation formed in 1963, that included the former Straits
Settlements, 9 protectorates of the Malay Peninsula comprising of the former
sultanates of the Muslim era, the British dependencies of Sarawak and Sabah on
the island of Borneo, and numerous islands in the Strait of Malacca and the
South China Sea. Singapore became a sovereign city-state walking out of this
Federation in 1965. Gradually, the remaining units were later structured into
peninsular Malaysia, and, on Borneo, Sarawak, and Sabah. Thus the term
Malaya indicates the geographic area of the Malay Peninsula, including
Singapore and other nearby islands; the term Malaysia identifies the politicogeographical entity with Kuala Lumpur as its capital.
The Netherlands Sphere : The Dutch took control of the spice islands, i.e.
modern day Indonesian islands, through their Dutch East India Company. They
sucked out as much material wealth from these islands as they could that made
possible for Netherlands to bask in its Golden Age of material wealth. With no
competition from the preoccupied British and French forces, the Dutch devised
same tactics as the other two, pitting the princes of Indonesia’s islands against
one another with the famous divide and rule policy. The Dutch made Java the
focus of their administration due to its productivity and huge population. From
there, they extended their influence into Sumatra, Dutch Borneo, Celebes, and
smaller islands of the East Indies territory. Dutch colonialism claims to have
thrown a girdle around Indonesia’s more than 17000 islands, paving the way for
the creation of the realm’s largest and most populous nation state, consisting of
220 million people by now.
Spanish Sphere : Spain’s King Phillip II took control of the islands north of
Indonesia way back in 1571. Philippines was experiencing the arrival Islam in
southern Philippines via northern Borneo just when Spanish rule began. The
Spaniards spread their Roman Catholic faith with great zeal consolidating
Hispanic domination over most Malays. Since 1571, Manila, the capital of
Philippines became a profitable transit station en route from southern China to
western Mexico. From Manila to Acapulco, the Spaniards minted money on
trade. However, the indigenous people got almost nothing out of it at all. Great
land territories were awarded to loyal Spanish civil servants and to men of
Church. Oppression led to revolt, and Spain witnessed a major uprising when
Spanish-American war commenced elsewhere in 1898. As part of the cutthroat
settlement of that war, the United States replaced Spanish control in Manila.
However, that was not the end of the revolution from the Filipinos, who took up
arms against their new invader, U.S.A., and not until 1905, after inhumanely
killing innumerable people, did the American forces manage to placate their new
dominion. In 1934, Congress passed the Philippine Independence Law,
providing for a 10 year transition to sovereignty. However, World War II
commenced before the transition, and in 1941, Japan conquered Philippine
Islands, temporarily kicking out the American invaders. In 1944, U.S. forces
obtained Filipino support, and in 1945, the Japanese invaders were kicked out
from Philippine territory. The schema for independence was commenced, and in
1946, the sovereign Republic of the Philippines was proclaimed to the world.
Area yielded by Thailand : Thailand survived as an independent state amidst it
all. However, as an independent state, it lost territory to the British in Malaya and
Burma and to the French in Cambodia and Laos.
3. Describe the genetic boundary classification.
Genetic boundary classification is the genetic classification of territorial
boundaries in terms of evolution that relates to the cultural landscapes traversed
by these boundaries.
Richard Hartshorne proposed a four level genetic boundary classification. All
four of these boundary types can be observed in Southeast Asia. They are :
Antecedent boundary : Antecedent boundary is a political boundary that existed
before a cultural landscape emerged and stayed in place while people moved
into occupy the surrounding area. For example, the boundary between Malaysia
and Indonesia on the island of Borneo is an antecedent boundary.
Subsequent boundary : Subsequent boundary is a political boundary that
developed contemporaneously with the evolution of major elements of the
cultural landscape through which it passes. For example the border between
Vietnam and China is a subsequent boundary because it is a process of
adjustment and modification without and end in sight at present.
Superimposed boundary : Superimposed boundary is a political boundary
defined by powerful outsiders on a developed human landscape. Superimposed
boundary usually ignores pre-existing cultural-spatial patterns, such as the
border that still divides North and South Korea. For example, the boundary
drawn forcibly to divide the island of New Guinea by delimiting it in nearly a
straight line is an example of a superimposed boundary.
Relict boundary : Relict boundary is a political boundary that has ceased to
function. However, its imprint can still be detected on the cultural landscape. For
example, the boundary between the former North and South Vietnam is an
example of a relict boundary. During the Indochina war from 1964-1975, it was
demarcated militarily. However, it dropped to relict status since 1976 following
the reunion of the two Vietnams in the aftermath of the Indochina war.
4. Briefly describe Southeast Asia’s population patterns and size. Comment
on why Southeast Asia’s population is not as large as that of South or
East Asia.
The population and size of Southeast Asian countries, with the exception of
populous Indonesia, is comparatively moderate when compared to that of South
Asia and China. Thailand, Philippines, and Vietnam, have populations between
60 and 85 million. Laos, as big as U.K., inhabited 5.5 million people in 2002.
Cambodia, larger than Greece, hosted 12.7 million people in 2002. The
Arithmetic population densities are not especially high in Southeast Asia, except
for highly urbanized Singapore. Also, the physiological densities of Southeast
Asia are lower than eastern China or its South Asian neighbors. During political
stability, several of these Southeast countries thrive heavily on lucrative rice
exports. Thailand and Vietnam take the cake in rice exports.
Spatial differences exist in population patterns of Southeast Asia and its giant
neighbors. Similar to patterns in East and South Asia, people cluster in large
basins and deltas of major rivers in Southeast Asia as well. In these basins and
deltas, the population densities are comparatively higher, and the countryside is
bundled into paddies as far as visible. Many, small, and compact villages speck
the landscape, e.g. in the Red and Mekong deltas in Vietnam. However, in the
higher areas in between these low-lying alluvial basins, the landscape depicts
savanna characteristics, with reddish, leached, less fertile soils, and much
sparser population. In the islands of Indonesia and Philippines, well-watered
volcanic soils support luxuriant natural vegetation capable of sustaining intensive
agriculture amidst huge population clusters. Whole acres of countryside have
been scrupulously terraced to create paddy fields and irrigate them.
546 million people live in Southeast Asia, with 55% of it living in islands of
Indonesia and Philippines. However, immigrants do not flock to Southeast Asia
much. This is mainly due to physical barriers in overland routes into Southeast
Asia. For example, densely forested hills and mountains along the border
between northeastern India and northwestern Myanmar, the forbidding Xizang
(Tibet) north of Myanmar, and, the high, rugged Yunnan Plateaus northeast of
Myanmar and north of Laos, form hindering barriers to intending travelers.
Transit is much easier in the east, between southeastern China and northern
Vietnam, and here migration is greater. Migration also occurred from Southeast
Asia to China.
Highly clustered agricultural opportunities in Southeast Asia lie separated by
large stretches of less productive land, and these are crisscrossed by high-relief
zones that hinder movement. Although Southeast Asia has several concentrated
areas productive potential, there are few corridors to aid migration. Whatever
immigrants arrived in Southeast Asia over the past millennium, arrived by the
sea, not by land. This is true for all, from Arabs to Europeans to Chinese.
Hence, physical barriers have successfully prevented Southeast Asia’s
population from burgeoning to uncontrollable levels.
5. Briefly summarize the historical geography of Southeast Asia, including
the colonial experience.
French, British, Dutch, Spanish, Americans, and Japanese were the primary
colonial competitors for the rich raw material territories of Southeast Asia. The
colonial spheres that they grabbed in Southeast Asia through force and cunning
were as follows :
French Sphere : The French grabbed five territories : Tonkin in the north next to
China, centered on the basin of the Red River; Cochin China in the south, with
the Mekong Delta as its focus; and Annam between these two; Cambodia facing
the Gulf of Thailand, and Laos, landlocked in the interior. Out of these 5 French
territories, the first three territories ultimately combined to become Vietnam, while
the other two achieved independence separately.
British Sphere : The British grabbed the territories of Burma, Malaya, a large part
of northern Borneo, and many small islands in South China Sea. Burma
originally belonged to India. However, the 1947 partition grand design,
envisioned by the British colonialists, fragmented India into India, Pakistan,
Bangladesh (East Pakistan before), and, Sri Lanka (Ceylon before). Burma
became a sovereign republic in 1948, and currently is known as Myanmar. In
Malaya, the British developed a intricate system of colonies and protectorates
that resulted in the far-flung Malaysian Federation formed in 1963, that included
the former Straits Settlements, 9 protectorates of the Malay Peninsula comprising
of the former sultanates of the Muslim era, the British dependencies of Sarawak
and Sabah on the island of Borneo, and numerous islands in the Strait of
Malacca and the South China Sea. Singapore became a sovereign city-state
walking out of this Federation in 1965. Gradually, the remaining units were later
structured into peninsular Malaysia, and, on Borneo, Sarawak, and Sabah. Thus
the term Malaya indicates the geographic area of the Malay Peninsula, including
Singapore and other nearby islands; the term Malaysia identifies the politicogeographical entity with Kuala Lumpur as its capital.
The Netherlands Sphere : The Dutch grabbed the spice islands, i.e. modern day
Indonesian islands, through their Dutch East India Company. They sucked out
as much material wealth from these islands as they could that made possible for
Netherlands to bask in its Golden Age of material wealth. With no competition
from the preoccupied British and French forces, the Dutch devised same tactics
as the other two, pitting the princes of Indonesia’s islands against one another
with the famous divide and rule policy. The Dutch made Java the focus of their
administration due to its productivity and huge population. From there, they
extended their influence into Sumatra, Dutch Borneo, Celebes, and smaller
islands of the East Indies territory. Dutch colonialism claims to have thrown a
girdle around Indonesia’s more than 17000 islands, paving the way for the
creation of the realm’s largest and most populous nation state, consisting of 220
million people by now.
Spanish Sphere : Spain grabbed the islands north of Indonesia way back in
1571. Philippines was experiencing the arrival Islam in southern Philippines via
northern Borneo just as Spanish rule began. The Spaniards spread their Roman
Catholic faith with great zeal consolidating Hispanic domination over most
Malays. Since 1571, Manila, the capital of Philippines became a profitable transit
station en route from southern China to western Mexico. From Manila to
Acapulco, the Spaniards minted money on trade. However, the indigenous
people got almost nothing out of it at all. Great land territories were awarded to
loyal Spanish civil servants and to men of Church.
American Sphere : America grabbed Philippines at a time when Filipinos were
rising up in arms against ruthless Spanish oppression in Philippines, and Spain
and America clashed elsewhere in a full scale war in 1898. As part of the
cutthroat settlement of that war, the United States replaced Spanish control in
Manila. However, that was not the end of the revolution from the Filipinos, who
took up arms against their new invader U.S.A. as well. Only after inhumanely
killing innumerable people, the American forces managed to placate their new
dominion in 1905. Further, in 1934, Congress passed the Philippine
Independence Law, providing for a 10 year transition to sovereignty.
Japan Sphere : Japan grabbed Philippines in 1941 during World War II.
However, Japanese rule in Philippines was very brief until 1945.
Area yielded by Thailand : Thailand survived as an independent state amidst it
all. However, as an independent state, it lost territory to the British in Malaya and
Burma and to the French in Cambodia and Laos.
6. Comment on the matter of maritime claims, both in Southeast Aisa and
the world in general. What is the situation now and how might it be
different in the future?
Marine geography that focuses on the study of oceans and seas, has an
interesting branch that deals with the definition and delimitation of political
boundaries at sea. This branch involves political science and maritime law.
Littoral (coastal) states do not end as shown on atlas maps. For centuries, each
country has claimed various forms of jurisdiction over their coastal waters, often
closing off bays and estuaries and ordering foreign fishing fleets to keep clear off
nearby fishing grounds. This motion gave rise to the notions of territorial sea,
where all the rights of a coastal state would prevail; and, high seas that were
free, open, and unfettered by national interests.
In 1945, the United States helped precipitate what has become known as the
“scramble for the oceans”. Harry S Truman, President of U.S., issued a
proclamation that claimed jurisdiction and control over all the resources “in and
on” the continental shelf down to its margin, around 100 fathoms deep. In some
areas, the shallow continental shelf of U.S. extends more than 200 miles
offshore, and foreign drilling was banned beyond the 3-mile territorial sea.
Over period of time, this Truman Proclamation impacted not only U.S. waters or
the Pacific Ocean, but worldwide oceans. It set off a rush of other claims. In
1952, a group of South American countries issued the Declaration of Santiago,
claiming exclusive fishing rights up to a distance of 200 n.m. off their coasts. On
the other hand, as part of the Cold War competition, the Soviet Union urged its
allies to claim a 12 mile territorial sea. Now the United Nations arbitrated, and a
series of UNCLOS (United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea) meetings
began. 3 decades of negotiations at meetings dealing with issues ranging from
closure of bays to width and delimitation of territorial sea, achieved a convention
that changed the political and economic geography of the worldwide oceans
forever. Its main factors were : authorization of a 12 mile territorial sea for all
countries and the establishment of a 200 mile EEZ – Exclusive Economic Zone
over which a coastal state would have total economic rights. Resources in and
under this EEZ, i.e., fish, oil, minerals, belong to the coastal state, which could
either exploit them or lease, sell, or share them as it saw fit.
These provisions had a far-reaching impact mainly on the Pacific Ocean studded
with islands large and small. With EEZ enforced, a micro-state consisting of one
small island suddenly acquired an EEZ covering 166,000 square n.m.. European
colonial powers still holding minor Pacific possessions (notably France) saw their
maritime jurisdictions vastly expanded. Small low-income archipelagos could
now bargain with large, rich fishing nations over fishing rights in their EEZs. And
for all the UNCLOS Convention’s provisions for the “right of innocent passage” of
shipping through EEZs and via narrow straits, the world’s highest seas have
obviously been diminished. The extension of territorial sea to 12 nautical miles
and the EEZ to an additional 188 nautical miles created new maritime boundary
problems. Waters less than 24 miles wide separate many countries all over the
world, so that median lines, equidistant from opposite shores, have been
delimited to establish their territorial seas, and even more countries lie closer
than 400 n.m. apart, requiring further maritime boundary delimitation to
determine their EEZs. In such maritime regions as the North Sea, the Caribbean
Sea, Japan Sea, East China Sea, and South China Sea, a maze of maritime
boundaries emerged, some subject to dispute. Significant modifications at sea
arose amidst Political changes. The UNCLOS provisions also created
opportunities for some states to expand their spheres of influence. Wider
territorial-sea and EEZ allocations raised the stakes : claiming an island entailed
potential control over a huge maritime area.
At present, the process of boundary delimitation continues. Earlier maps
showing the median-line boundaries delimited according to UNCLOS
specifications changed when coastal states engaged in bilateral and multilateral
negotiations and argued over island ownership with major boundary implications.
The Pacific and world map of maritime boundaries is evolving constantly.
7. What are the basic similarities and differences between high-island culture
and low-island culture?
The basic similarities between high and low island cultures is that they both exist
in the Micronesia region of the Pacific Realm, and they both are inhabited by
Micronesians.
The basic differences between high and low island cultures is that high islands
are fewer in number than low islands in Micronesia, high islands are more
densely inhabited than low islands, and, high islands are volcanic islands
whereas low islands are coral islands. Also,high islands have a different
physiography than low islands, high islands wrest substantial moisture from the
ocean air; hence, they tend to be well watered and have good volcanic soils. As
a result, there is agricultural diversity assuring an economically secure life for its
people. Low islands are prone to droughts, fishing and coconut are mainstays of
life on low islands, and over long periods of time, many of the low islands have
vanished under the sea. Major migrations of people from Micronesia to Hawaii to
New Zealand originated in high islands. Due to these factors, the economies of
high and low islands also differ crucially.