On this episode of Southeast Asia Dispatches, Deborah Augustin speaks to Lim Wei Jiet, one of the co-founders of the Malaysian United Democratic Alliance, Malaysia’s first youth-driven political party, about their thoughts on this voting age controversy, the challenges the party has faced in getting registered, and the political climate for young politicians in Malaysia.

Kokila Annamalai talks about her life, her work and the theory and practice of activism: movement building, non-violent and restorative cultures, and community organising. She also discusses the death penalty, drug policy, and the legal/justice system.

Seven creators reflect on the struggles and hopes of the ongoing pro-democracy protests in Myanmar.

Deborah Augustin speaks to Febriana Firdaus and Leo Plunkett about their recent documentary, Our Mother’s Land. Febriana and Leo talk about their experience with this film and share their thoughts on the challenges women activists face in Indonesia when it comes to environmental activism.

Dari perkebunan tembakau era kolonial hingga kepentingan gula negara, petani lokal di satu desa di Sumatera Utara berulang kali menghadapi penggusuran. Target untuk swasembada gula nasional telah membuat mereka kehilangan tempat tinggal.

Liyana Dhamirah, head of Red Dot United's (RDU) Youth Wing, and Elijah Tay, the party's youngest member at just 19 years old, talk to PJ and Sean about why they decided to join politics, building RDU, and housing, inequality, and education policy in Singapore.

PJ Thum discusses the ongoing campaign of harassment and intimidation by the Singapore government against New Naratif, and talks about his experience being interrogated by the Singapore police.

From colonial tobacco plantations to state sugar interests, indigenous farmers in one North Sumatran village have faced recurring evictions and displacement. Indonesia’s drive to become sugar self-sufficient has left them homeless again.

Htoi San Nhkum, director of the Kachin Refugee Learning Center, and Abeera Abdullah, a Fugee School alumni and the co-founder of Project Stand Up, talk about their educational experience in learning centres here in Malaysia and the impact the pandemic has had on the informal education system for refugee children.

New Naratif condemns the continued harassment of Dr. Thum Ping Tjin and urges the Singapore Prime Minister’s Office to stop its politically motivated attack on freedom of expression.

Abortions in Myanmar are punishable by prison time, unless women can prove their pregnancy puts their lives at risk. The lack of access to safe, legal abortions forces some women to resort to life-threatening measures.

June Chua, founder of The T Project, Singapore's first transgender shelter, joins PJ Thum and Sean Francis Han to talk about her life, her activism, and the state of transgender rights and social services in Singapore.

Meritocracy is marketed as a system for the management of scarce resources but is in fact the imposition and justification for scarcity. This article examines university education in Singapore as the prime site for the production of meritocratic ideology and considers the consequences more generally on the Singapore polity.

Kos yang tinggi dan ancaman penahanan telah lama menjadi penghalang kepada akses penjagaan kesihatan ibu dari golongan pendatang, pelarian dan pencari suaka tanpa dokumen. Pandemik COVID-19 telah menambahkan lagi risiko yang dihadapi oleh para ibu dan anak-anak.

High costs and fear of arrest have long stood in the way of maternal healthcare access for undocumented migrants, refugees and asylum seekers. The COVID-19 pandemic has put mothers and babies further at risk.

Dwitri Amalia speaks to Cholil Mahmud, the lead vocalist and guitarist of Efek Rumah Kaca, about using their music to advocate against regressive policies, and the role of art and music in a democracy.

Sean Francis Han talks with PJ Thum about his role in the 2017 MRT protest commemorating the 30th anniversary of Operation Spectrum, why he chose to take part, and how it transformed his life. We stand in solidarity with Jolovan Wham.

Despite the drastic rise of global inequality, left-wing parties continue to struggle to build class solidarity which transcends ethnic nationalism. Audi Ali looks at the historic and local factors in Malaysia that make class solidarity difficult to achieve.

Amid the anti-coup protests in Myanmar, activist Thinzar Shunlei Yi went into hiding to avoid arrest. After years spent protesting her country’s military, she explains why current demonstrations must do more than just restore civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi.