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ABSTRACT This paper empirically examines the dynamic stock return-volume relations for six emerging Asian markets: Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand. Evidence is found that trading volume Granger causes stock return in quantiles and the causal effects of volume are heterogeneous across quantiles. This shows that volume carries some information to the return and could be interpreted in light of theoretical models. In addition, we find that there is bi-directional causality between stock return and trading volume in most of the markets. The finding indicates that those Asian emerging markets with different institutions and information flows than more mature markets have present similar causal effects on the stock return-volume relation. Furthermore, the cross-country evidence shows that the US market helps to predict the returns of the emerging Asian markets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Rare diseases, also referred to as orphan diseases, are characterised by their low prevalence with majority of them are chronically debilitating and life threatening. Given the low prevalence and the widely dispersed but very small patient base for each disease, there may often be a disproportion in the availability of treatments and resources to manage patients, spur research and train experts. This is especially true in Southeast Asian countries that are currently in the process of implementing or revising their universal health coverage schemes. This paper aims to examine the status of rare disease management in Southeast Asian countries. It will serve as the basis for a more active discussion on how countries in the region can address an under-recognised rare disease burden and enhance national and regional capacities.Methods: The study consists of literature reviews and key stakeholders interviews in six focus countries, including the Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, and Thailand and five countries as best practice, comprising of France, Canada, Australia, Taiwan, and South Korea. Rare disease management initiatives across each country were examined based on the World Health Organization's framework for action in strengthening health systems.Results: The results suggest rare disease management remains challenging across Southeast Asia, as many of the focus countries face fundamental issues from basic healthcare systems to funding. Nonetheless, there are substantial improvement opportunities, including leveraging best practices from around the world and organising a multi-stakeholder and regional approach and strategy.Conclusions: Southeast Asian countries have made significant progress in the management of rare disease, but there remain key areas for substantial development opportunities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper I examine issues of identity formation, conflict and accommodation by means of a number of cases drawn from ethnographic research. In particular I look at some of the ways in which Malay-ness has been linked to the processes of inclusion and exclusion that operate between 'insiders' and 'outsiders' (or 'natives' and 'settlers') in and around localised 'communities' in Indonesia, Singapore and Malaysia. I suggest that far from necessarily being a fixed and permanent political identity, Malay-ness may also describe a highly fluid interactive space. It seems that ethno-religious conflict has been more likely to occur where hard, even racialised divisions develop between insiders and outsiders and that conflict has been less likely in situations when different groups have been able to make common cause under the banner of a more open and hybridised sense of Malay co-responsibility. In other words a key variable in such situations has been the extent to which a sense of solidarity may, or may not, develop between relatively immobile, localized, 'indigenous' cultivators and political elites on the one hand and more mobile, commercially-oriented outsiders of more universalistic orientation on the other. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed at summarizing the existing health policies for stateless populations living in the 10 ASEAN countries: Brunei, Cambodia, Lao PDR, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam. We followed scoping review method recommended by Arksey and O'Malley. Our inclusion criteria were based on three concepts: populations (stateless and undocumented people), issues (healthcare policies and regulations), and settings (10 ASEAN countries). Our findings suggest that none of the ASEAN countries have explicit healthcare policies for stateless people except Thailand. We also observed that ratification of international human rights treaties relating to the right to health does not necessarily translate into the provision of healthcare policies for stateless population. Although Thailand seems like the only country among 10 ASIAN countries having health policies for stateless populations in the country, the question remains whether having a policy would lead to a proper implementation by ensuring right to health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This study attempts to review longitudinal school-based physical activity (PA) interventions in Southeast Asia countries. Materials and Methods: ScienceDirect, PubMed and Scopus databases were used, which ranged from the years 2003 until April 2018. A total of twelve studies were included in the final review including seven from Malaysia, three from Singapore, one from Indonesia and one from Thailand. Results: The findings from Malaysian studies showed that EPaL provides students with cognitive and behavioural skills to cause changes in targeted behaviours by aiming to alter disordered eating behaviour, promoting PA, preventing sedentary lifestyle and enhancing eating behaviours. The integration of the transtheoretical framework improves participant adherence. Furthermore, circuit training was implemented during PE classes. The results showed significant improvements in the reduction of BMI, cardiovascular endurance and flexibility. In addition, MASCOT is ideal for promoting health and reducing obesity in Malaysian children as it has shown to improve BMI and total PA. In the Indonesian study, low-intensity endurance exercise of lower extremity has shown improvements in lowerextremity endurance as well as V02 max before for individuals with lower physical capacity. In Thailand, child health promotion programme has been shown to reduce the percentage of obesity of school children in the long--term. Finally, exergaming in the Singaporean studies showed improvements in attitude, self-efficacy, and perceived behavioural control. Conclusion: Limited studies were conducted on studying the cause of longitudinal PA implementation in school settings and its impact in Southeast Asia. Therefore, future studies are proposed to investigate this relationship and utilise comprehensive frameworks to identify domains for facilitating or inhibiting PA implementation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Indonesia, transnational labour migrations have become a major source of foreign currency over the past 20 years. On migration routes and abroad, migrants are often subjected to abusive, sometimes violent or even deadly experiences. Yet, the ‘migration industry’ can count on increasing numbers of candidates. Drawing on 20-month multi-sited ethnographic fieldwork conducted between 2006 and 2009 in Java (Indonesia), Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) and Singapore, I explore how, under these circumstances, migrant workers relate to this risky adventure. As it appears, local conceptions of ‘fate’ help to overcome fear: as future is perceived in terms of destiny, and since destiny lies ultimately in the hands of God, dealing with potential risks is a matter of religiousfaith: only by surrendering sincerely to Allah is the migrant able to secure his or her future in this dangerous milieu. In this cognitive framework, incidents are conceived of ascobaan Tuhan– godly trials – full of meanings, which are meant to test one’s faith in God. And bad experiences, rather than being seen ascontingent, are perceived as godly signs, which need to be interpreted in order to comply with God’s will. I aim to show how this worldview formulates risk and/or uncertainty in terms ofnasiband/ortakdir(fate; destiny). This relation to risk, in turn, challenges Western-centred risk theories in adding nuance to the relationship between agency and risk, by tracing a singular conceptual tension between risk andfate. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

There are two main approaches in the global war on terrorism (GWOT). On the one hand, the hard approach entails physical engagements which cripple destructive plans by terrorists, such as bombings. Through the legislative, judiciary and executive arms of the state, the modern state uses methods such as arrest, surveillance, intelligence and detention to cripple damaging initiatives by terrorists. The soft approach, on the other hand, attempts to debase terrorist ideology through a counter-ideology discourse against radical ideologies which encourage political violence. Through the soft approach, Muslim organizations and leaders debunk terrorist’s ideology of hate and violence. This article attempts to elucidate efforts made by governments, and of particular interest are contributions made by Muslim leaders in maritime Southeast Asia to counter the ideology and activities of terrorism. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article discusses public perceptions about the idea of an Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Community in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore, focusing on obstacles to the formation of the regional community. Based on public opinion surveys, the authors note obstacles facing regional integration in Southeast Asia such as disparity in education levels, the lack of economic competitiveness of many ASEAN countries, and countries' dependency on aid from developed countries. Other topics include socioeconomic disparity, varying legal and political systems in ASEAN countries, and technological limitations in ASEAN countries.