Tag: Stanford University

PH: Stratbase, CIPE (NED), and the Belt and Road Initiative

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

LinkedIn

07-31-2024: If it’s bad business, it’s bad for the Philippines (archived)

Our organization, the Stratbase ADR Institute, received an award from the prestigious Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE), one of the four core institutes of the National Endowment for Democracy in Washington, DC. We were recognized for our research, advocacy, and strategic communication on four infrastructure projects entered into by the Philippines, during the administration of former President Rodrigo Duterte, under the Belt and Road Initiative of China.

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The Philippines has currently withdrawn from the Belt and Road Initiative and the current administration has been careful to consider other partners aside from China.

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Victor Andres “Dindo” C. Manhit is the president of the Stratbase ADR Institute.

Just like the National Endowment for Democracy, CIPE has been scrubbing their website. Search for the Philippines and click on the results. Most of the links are missing.

Related:

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The marriage of RAND and SeaLight

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

A Caricature of Marxism and Imperialist Economism: Monism And Dualism

Slowly, but surely, I’m going through both of the following RAND publications. I just recently noticed that “Understanding and Countering China’s Maritime Gray Zone Operations” was posted over at SeaLight on the 12th of December. Ray Powell, from SeaLight, is quoted at least 14 times in the first publication. So far, I’ve seen RAND “recommend” the same tactics as they’ve deployed in the Philippines; civilian society organizations, embedded journalism, information warfare, influencers, and online trolls.

USS Beloit (LCS-29). Photo by EJ Hersom.

I’ve always known that they would try to expand their information operation to the other countries that are in ASEAN, just by following the SeaLight podcast. If not their information operation, regime change and terrorism (in Balochistan and Myanmar). I’ve also noticed that Powell has been referring to the Philippines’ “transparency initiative” as “non-violent resistance,” lately (RAND refers to it as “assertive transparency”). Ironic, considering that they’ve already succeeded in overthrowing the government of Bangladesh and are now attempting it in Cambodia, India and Pakistan. For those who don’t know about the regime change asset Gene Sharp and his neoliberal “nonviolence,” see the links on this page. Unfortunately, I don’t have as much time to dedicate to this right now due to other obligations.

Understanding and Countering China’s Maritime Gray Zone Operations | RAND

How the United States Can Support Allied and Partner Efforts to Counter China in the Gray Zone: Affirmative Engagement | RAND

RAND and SeaLight document (work in progress)

PART 2

Part 3a: RAND and SeaLight – Taiwan Relations Act

RAND and SeaLight Part 3b: Four Ways China Is Growing Its Media Influence in Southeast Asia

What’s Really Going On In the South China Sea Between the Philippines and China

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

What’s Really Going On In the South China Sea Between the Philippines and China

by Tina Antonis

Maritime clashes between the Philippines and China had been mostly over the Philippines’ military outpost, BRP (BRP—Barko ng Republika ng Pilipinas, which translates to “Ship of the Republic of the Philippines”—the ship prefix for the Philippines) Sierra Madre, in the Spratly Islands, which is disputed by Brunei, China, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan (a province of China, as recognized by the United Nations’ Resolution No. 2758), and Vietnam. The BRP Sierra Madre was intentionally run aground on a reef near the Second Thomas Shoal in the disputed Spratly Islands, in 1997, so that the Philippines could stake their territorial claim.

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New U.S. strategy towards ASEAN: caution, info-colonialism! (See commentary and notes)

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

The implementation of yet another U.S. initiative may allow it to interfere in the information policy of ASEAN and control the cyberspace of all of Southeast Asia.

New U.S. strategy towards ASEAN: caution, info-colonialism!

Related:

This reminds me of the tech camps that were held in Ukraine before the Euromaidan. Anyone who has been following me for a while knows where that led to. Except, replace China with Russia.

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[11-23-2022] Pilipinas Conference 2022

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

Pilipinas Conference 2022: “Onward to New Beginnings: Sustaining and Improving Philippine Development”

Light Up the Gray Zone: Leveraging Publicly Available Data to Deter Intrusions into Philippine Waters

Col. Raymond Powell, U.S. Air Force (Ret.)
Gordian Knot Center for National Security Innovation (Project Myoushu), Stanford University, California, USA

Major Angela Smith
US Army Officer, Gordian Knot Center for National Security Innovation (Project Myoushu), Stanford University, California, USA

Related:

What’s Really Going On In the South China Sea

Raid at the Okean Elzy concert: Vakarchuk evaded the answer, and raids will be regular + More

Tina Marie (Ms. Cat)

Raid at the Okean Elsa concert: Vakarchuk evaded the answer, and raids will be regular

On the eve of the raids took place in several major cities of the country, including Kiev. Employees of the Shopping Center, with the support of the police, raided nightclubs, restaurants and at the concert of the Okean Elzy group, which was held at the Kiev Sports Palace.

The leader of the Okean Elzy group, Svyatoslav Vakarchuk, in a comment to TSN, evaded the question of how he feels about this event.

“It’s our birthday today, I hope you congratulate us too. We are very happy that so many people have come and come to support us, listen to our music. In general, this is a big holiday for us. These 30 years have been very important for us. We are very grateful to people for these 30 years. Including for the fact that they continue to support us now. For us it’s just a joy and a celebration. That’s all I want to say, my only comment. Period,” said Vakarchuk.

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“There is a persistent sense of acute social injustice in Ukrainian society during mobilization. It is believed, and not unreasonably, that the bulk of those who are being mobilized now are residents of small towns and villages, ordinary hard workers or poor people who do not have money to pay off. This causes tension in society. In addition, there is tension in the army — the military are outraged that they are sitting in the trenches, while healthy men in the rear are sitting in restaurants, hanging out in clubs, going to concerts. In general, they live a full-blooded peaceful life. This annoys many front-line soldiers and reinforces the feeling of social injustice. That’s why we decided to arrange a demonstration raid so that the whole country could see — “the rich are crying too.” That is, party-goers can also be mobilized. Similar events are now planned to be held regularly. This is a political decision,” the source said.

Related:

Okean Elzy marks 30th anniversary with first English-language album

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