The Rise of International Capital: Indonesian Conglomerates in ASEAN (Critical Studies of the Asia-Pacific)

"This book analyzes the social forces and political coalitions driving regional integration projects in Asia with a focus on ASEAN and Indonesian conglomerates. It asks which social forces, within the domestic political economy of Asian states, are driving governments to seek regional arrangements for economic governance. In particular the book asks how the emergence, reorganization, and expansion of capitalist class have conditioned political support for regional economic integration. By addressing these issues, the book emphasizes that the wellspring of regional economic institution projects stem from the process of capitalist development and the social forces it has unleashed. The book's aims place the social and class relations that underpin regional projects - rather than the institutions which result from them--at the centre of the analysis of regional integration. The research for this account draws primarily on primary documents from archival and field research conducted by the author--including company documents and in-depth interviews, government reports and policies, and trade publications and data sources, which is supplemented with secondary sources where relevant."-- Provided by publisher This book analyzes the social forces and political coalitions driving regional integration projects in Asia with a focus on ASEAN and Indonesian conglomerates. It asks which social forces within the domestic political economy of Asian states are driving governments to seek regional arrangements for economic governance. In particular, the book considers how the emergence, reorganization, and expansion of capitalist class have conditioned political support for regional economic integration. By addressing these issues, the book emphasizes that the wellspring of regional economic institution projects stem from the process of capitalist development and the social forces it has unleashed. The book's aims place the social and class relations that underpin regional projects--rather than the institutions which result from them--at the centre of the analysis of regional integration. The research for this account draws mainly on primary documents from archival and field research conducted by the author, including company documents and in-depth interviews, government reports and policies, and trade publications and data sources, which is supplemented with secondary sources where relevant. Reviews of the book: This book makes an important contribution to leading debates within political economy by explaining how evolving interests under late capitalism are intertwined with the emergence of novel patterns of governance in Southeast Asia. Faris Al-Fadhats book demonstrates how well-positioned and increasingly-internationalised fractions of capital had a distinct interest in delinking from their national confines and required a certain institutional architecture to be in place, at multiple levels, for this to happen. I am aware of no contemporary study of Southeast Asia or more specifically of Indonesia that has come close to what Al-Fadhat has achieved with this book. -- (Associate Professor Toby Carroll, City University of Hong Kong) This book analyzes the social forces and political coalitions driving regional integration projects in Asia with a focus on ASEAN and Indonesian conglomerates. It asks which social forces within the domestic political economy of Asian states are driving governments to seek regional arrangements for economic governance. In particular, the book considers how the emergence, reorganization, and expansion of capitalist class have conditioned political support for regional economic integration. By addressing these issues, the book emphasizes that the wellspring of regional economic institution projects stem from the process of capitalist development and the social forces it has unleashed. The book's aims place the social and class relations that underpin regional projects--rather than the institutions which result from them--at the centre of the analysis of regional integration. The research for this account draws mainly on primary documents from archival and field research conducted by the author, including company documents and in-depth interviews, government reports and policies, and trade publications and data sources, which is supplemented with secondary sources where relevant. Faris Al-Fadhat is a Lecturer at the Department of International Relations, Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, Universitas Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta, Indonesia and an associate at the Asia Research Centre, Murdoch University, Australia.-- Provided by publisher Front Matter ....Pages i-xix Introduction (Faris Al-Fadhat)....Pages 1-14 Existing Approaches to Economic Regionalism and Their Limitations (Faris Al-Fadhat)....Pages 15-41 Regional Economic Governance and the Internationalization of Capital (Faris Al-Fadhat)....Pages 43-64 State Restructuring and the Internationalization of Capital in Southeast Asia (Faris Al-Fadhat)....Pages 65-93 ASEAN Regional Economic Integration and the Internationalization of Capital (Faris Al-Fadhat)....Pages 95-125 The Rise of Indonesian Conglomerates: Capital Expansion and Regional Alliance (Faris Al-Fadhat)....Pages 127-171 The Salim Group and the Social Relations of Capital Expansion (Faris Al-Fadhat)....Pages 173-209 Conclusion (Faris Al-Fadhat)....Pages 211-222 Back Matter ....Pages 223-279