This paper examines changes in the Thai perception of China during the Thanom administration (1963–73), when Thailand turned from “hostilities” to “rapprochement” toward China. The paper attempts to clarify the changing perceptions, their causes, and the logic used by the government in attempting the policy shift.

The decade under study is categorized into three periods: (1) confrontation (1963–68), (2) adjustment (1968–71), and (3) rapprochement (1971–73). During the confrontation period, the demonization of China, the deification of the United States, domino theory, and forward defense doctrine were adopted to justify Thailand’s participation in the Vietnam War. During the adjustment period, opinion toward China was divided into two groups: Foreign Minister Thanat Khoman, students, and some intellectuals encouraged rapprochement with China, while other military-related officials opposed it. During the rapprochement period, under international pressure, Thanom’s military administration felt the urge to approach China. China was then dichotomized from the image of Communism and recreated into a “converted criminal.” The image changes during each period were not only the result of domestic and international conditions but also helped facilitate the government’s policy shifts.

This article examines the reorganization of land-use practices and social relationships among members of an indigenous swidden society with the development of coal mining in East Kalimantan. Swiddeners develop large swidden fields using a paid labor system in the concession areas of mining companies to get compensation for their customary land rights. They also practice risk management through two methods. The first is to establish a paddy field and rubber garden on the same field after harvesting the rice, in case there is no compensation from the companies. The second is to oppose the development of coal mining near their village in order to maintain their swidden-based lifestyle. In this article social relationships are investigated with a primary focus on the paid labor system. This labor system is adopted by swiddeners to maintain their large swidden fields and on various other occasions, such as during an emergency. In addition, the paid labor system provides the economically disadvantaged members of the swidden society with a cash income. Moreover, although previous studies have suggested that exchanging commodities, including labor for money, depersonalizes social relationships, the paid labor system in this research is practiced within a social context. In conclusion, swiddeners take advantage of the development of coal mining and the intruding market economy while balancing existing land-use practices and social relationships.

Tropical forest management (TFM) has become increasingly globalized since the end of the Cold War. This article examines how Cambodian forest management, long supported by international organizations, has failed. The focus here is on complicit mechanisms of international efforts in the failure of Cambodia’s forest management, rather than on well-clarified domestic politico-economic structures. Paradoxical facets of international support for Cambodia’s forest management are also elucidated. Major efforts by international stakeholders to introduce sustainable forest management (SFM) in Cambodia included projects and programs supported by the World Bank and other organizations from the 1990s to the 2000s. These included the reform of commercial logging concessions based on international standards and the introduction of community forestry based on different models. However, Cambodia continued to undergo severe deforestation in the 2010s, due to destructive timber harvesting and monoculture plantation development by groups connected with the ruling party and authoritarian states, and cash crop cultivation by local farmers, as a result of failed international efforts. Those unsuccessful efforts stemmed from dissonance among international stakeholders on how to support SFM in Cambodia and other developing countries. The failure suggests two paradoxical facets of the current globalized, pluralized TFM, particularly in developing countries like Cambodia. First, forest management in developing countries is difficult to improve as there are many stakeholders with different interests to be coordinated. Second, authoritarian political parties and states can benefit from unsuccessful TFM.