Now’s the time: Reduce the negative list and revise the Constitution

Dindo Manhit, President of the Stratbase-Albert del Rosario Institute (ADRi) for Strategic and International Studies President Duterte’s team has declared that it intends to lift constitutional restrictions on economic activity and open the economy to foreign investors. This is welcome news for business and consumers, who have long clamored for the same. The empirical literature… Read More

Duterte in East Asia: Good news or strategic success

Dindo Manhit, President of the Stratbase-Albert del Rosario Institute (ADRi) for Strategic and International Studies Image Source: The Philippine Star An analysis on the Philippines’ bilateral relations with Japan and China Earlier in the Duterte administration, many of the president’s supporters asked the rest of the country to look past the president’s alarming words and… Read More

More than meets the eye in Manila, Tokyo, and Beijing

Dindo Manhit, President of the Stratbase-Albert del Rosario Institute (ADRi) for Strategic and International Studies President Duterte has had an eventful series of weeks, filled with comments on his foreign policy and on developments in Philippine relations with other countries. A good amount of ink has been spent now on the Duterte’s ties with Beijing… Read More

When business is not just business: The politics of investment promises

October 28, 2016 Dindo Manhit, President of the Stratbase-Albert del Rosario Institute (ADRi) for Strategic and International Studies An analysis on the Philippines’ investment and financing agreements with China While it is tempting to read recent events in the Philippines as being solely influenced by the president’s personal sentiments and as designed by his foreign… Read More

Analysis: Winners from the Philippines-China state visit

October 21, 2016 Dindo Manhit, President of Stratbase-Albert Del Rosario Institute (ADRi) for Strategic and International Studies The Philippines is waiting for the outcome of President Rodrigo Duterte’s trip to China, which promises to be an important moment for promoting more trade between the two countries. For several years, Chinese direct investments in the Philippines… Read More

Merging Hard and Soft Solutions to the Daily Gridlock

Dindo Manhit, President of the Stratbase-Albert del Rosario Institute (ADRi) for Strategic and International Studies Image Source: BusinessWorld The traffic situation in Metro Manila has become indescribable. Traveling between Makati City and Quezon City easily takes four to six hours of a commuter’s day. Worse, during the rainy season, Metro Manila grinds to a halt… Read More

China’s End Game in the South China Sea

Carl O. Schuster, Captain, USN (Ret) Adjunct Professor, Hawaii Pacific University Diplomacy and Military Science Program Although not unexpected, China’s neighbors should take warning from China’s rejection of the International Court of Arbitration ruling on its South China Sea claims. Beijing has used the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea as the basis… Read More