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Infrastructure and politics: Why the Belt and Road Initiative proceeded differently in Malaysia and Indonesia

Infrastructure and politics: Why the Belt and Road Initiative proceeded differently in Malaysia... The article seeks to understand the different types and sources of politicisation as well as the consequences for Belt and Road Initiative infrastructure projects. It is argued that while the personalised insulated type of foreign policymaking is conducive to intra‐system politicisation, the institutionalised responsive type is associated with extra‐system politicisation. While the former type is contingent on political turnovers and brings about abrupt shocks, the latter oftentimes generates societal pushback from socio‐economic groups. The article focuses on two flagship Belt and Road Initiative infrastructure projects in Malaysia and Indonesia. Based on fieldwork interviews and process tracing, the article finds that the East Coast Rail Link project in Malaysia has suffered from high risk of political interruption owing to Malaysia's personalised insulated type of foreign policymaking, whereas the Jakarta–Bandung High Speed Rail project in Indonesia has encountered sustained obstacles from Indonesian society and brought about substantial delays under Indonesia's institutionalised responsive type. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Asia Pacific Viewpoint Wiley

Infrastructure and politics: Why the Belt and Road Initiative proceeded differently in Malaysia and Indonesia

Wang, Zhaohui
Asia Pacific Viewpoint , Volume Early View – Mar 22, 2023
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14 pages

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Publisher
Wiley
Copyright
© 2023 Victoria University of Wellington and John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.
ISSN
1360-7456
eISSN
1467-8373
DOI
10.1111/apv.12371
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

The article seeks to understand the different types and sources of politicisation as well as the consequences for Belt and Road Initiative infrastructure projects. It is argued that while the personalised insulated type of foreign policymaking is conducive to intra‐system politicisation, the institutionalised responsive type is associated with extra‐system politicisation. While the former type is contingent on political turnovers and brings about abrupt shocks, the latter oftentimes generates societal pushback from socio‐economic groups. The article focuses on two flagship Belt and Road Initiative infrastructure projects in Malaysia and Indonesia. Based on fieldwork interviews and process tracing, the article finds that the East Coast Rail Link project in Malaysia has suffered from high risk of political interruption owing to Malaysia's personalised insulated type of foreign policymaking, whereas the Jakarta–Bandung High Speed Rail project in Indonesia has encountered sustained obstacles from Indonesian society and brought about substantial delays under Indonesia's institutionalised responsive type.

Journal

Asia Pacific Viewpoint – Wiley

Published: Mar 22, 2023

Keywords: Belt and Road Initiative; infrastructure; politicisation; Malaysia; Indonesia

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