South Asia

Our thoughts today should be with the 100 people killed in a terrorist attack in Mumbai. May they rest in peace.

South Asia is such a troubled place. Sri Lanka has been ripping itself apart in a brutal 20-year long civil war. Myanmar is in the deadly grasp of an oppressive military junta. Thailand, once a promising emerging democracy, has been in a state of political paralysis since the 2005 Coup and seems to be slowly tearing itself apart. Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam are all ruled by dictators. Pakistan is in what could only be described as utter chaos. Afghanistan, whose government's power extends little beyond Kabul, is ruled by a mixture of NATO forces, warlords and drug kingpins. India, while a fast-emerging economic power, still has huge problems with terrorism and poverty. Bangladesh has gone through 3 years of military rule after 20 of political stagnation and remains one of the most appallingly impoverished places on Earth.

Other than Africa, South Asia is the most depressing place on the planet. Stopping the political turmoil and violence that has gripped the region for the last 40 years has to be one of the top foreign policy goals of the incoming administration.

There is some reason for hope. India and Pakistan seem to have had an improvement in their relationship recently, and their half-century of feuding may be coming to a close. Bangladesh will be holding it's first free election in years next month. India continues to expand economically and the benefits of their growth should finally hit the poor soon enough.

Then theres the shining star of South Asia: Bhutan. The tiny Himalayan nation tucked between India and China is one of the only bright spots in the world. Bhutan was an absolute monarchy up until 2006, when King Jigme Singye Wangchuck abruptly announced that he would abdicate the throne and turn his country into a democracy. This highly laudable move was almost universally opposed by his people, who wanted the absurdly popular king to stay on as their ruler. Nevertheless, the people of Bhutan had their first election earlier this year. While still a relatively impoverished backwater country, Bhutan has made great strides in recent years. New roads and bridges, hydroelectric power plants, communications infrastructure and schools have marked impressive new era in Bhutan. Hopefully, it will prosper in future.

So today we should all mourn for the 100+ people killed in Mumbai, as well as for the thousands killed in Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Afghanistan over the last few years and the million oppressed in Myanmar, Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. But at the same time, look to Bhutan. This tiny nation has done great things the last few years and is an encouraging sign that good things really can happen in this world.