Abstract
The book entitled ‘Between the Two Oceans of Indo-Pacific: Strengthening the Myanmar–Thailand Southern Corridor’, edited by Suthiphand Chirathivat, Charit Tingsabadh and Prabir De, is divided into four parts and consists of 12 chapters. The part on ‘History’ describes historical relations between lower Myanmar and southern Thailand (Suchandra Ghosh), depicts the trans-peninsula route between Myiek (Mergui) and Prachuap Khiri Khan (Thiva Supajanya), and illustrates the episodes during Second World War with the role of Japanese armies in the Thai-Burma Border Areas (David Boggett). The second part on ‘Regional Perspectives on the Economic Corridors’ touches upon Myanmar’s perspective in the context of ASEAN integration (Mu Mu Theint), Indian perspective of this East–West Corridor (Prabir De); and the final part on ‘The Region in Focus’ had chapters on trade and investment (Piti Srisangnam), logistics (Wiwat Sutiwipakorn), fishery and tourism sector (Charit Tingsabadh Suthiphand Chirathivat and Buddhagarn Rutchatorn), people mobility (Supang Chantavanich) and local entrepreneurs’ views on business development (Suthiphand Chirathivat and Sineenat Sermcheep). The concluding chapter highlights the significance of interconnectivity, allowing for a comprehensive understanding of the past and providing recommendations that will help facilitating economic development and strengthening future regional integration (Charit Tingsabadh, Suthiphand Chirathivat and Prabir De).
This book has three significant contributions:
The book offers comprehensive knowledge and in-depth insights into geographical areas or lands that have received limited scholarly analysis. While there may be fragments of existing information, they are often scarce and dispersed across different sources. As a result, this book represents an effort in gathering and compiling data from multiple sources to uncover a more cohesive understanding of Myanmar–Thailand corridor. The book presents perspectives that transcend the limitations of national borders by addressing cross-cultural and transnational interactions facilitated through trade (ancient and contemporary) and investment. By adding geographical and historical dimensions, it expands the perspective on these lands, revealing their potential in terms of physical and economic aspects and enabling a deeper understanding of the foundation for connectivity that can contribute to mutually beneficial future development of Thailand, Myanmar and India within the context of ASEAN integration. All the authors are experts in their particular field of study (history, geography, sociology (migration), and economics (international trade, logistics and tourism)), yet each chapter is written with the aim to illustrate how ASEAN regionalism provides an important rationale to promote connectivity in this sub-region. Thereby, the readers can choose to read each chapter separately to focus on specific topics of interest or read the entire book for a comprehensive understanding.
This book is designed to be accessible to both specialists in specific fields and interdisciplinary readers, allowing them to understand regional interconnections. Not only does the book provide holistic view of Thailand–Myanmar corridor in terms of history, archaeology, current conditions in economics, logistics, investment and development, it also showcases the interconnectivity and presents a forward-looking perspective that positions this area as a strong link between the past and the present, with useful implications for future developments.
There are two recommendations to enhance the book’s readability and visual comprehension. First is on names of places: It would be beneficial to provide basic explanations for the names of cities or locations used in the book. For example, clarifying the differences in terminology used for each chapter, such as Tanaosri-Tenasserim, Marid-Mergui-Muang Marid-Myiek, Beik, and so on. This will help readers understand the variations and historical context behind these place names. Second is on maps. Some of the smaller place names on the maps may be difficult to read, and the orientation of certain images may be confusing. Additionally, satellite images and photographs in colour format could greatly enhance visual understanding and aid in comprehending the content.