Yoon Ah Oh

Oligarchic rule and best practice migration management: the political economy origins of labour migration regime of the Philippines

ABSTRACT The Philippine labour migration regime has been praised as one of the best examples of government-led migration management in the developing world, with some of the most extensive policies and bureaucratic organisations to manage and protect its citizens working abroad. However, not much knowledge has been accumulated that explains its origins or why it emerged in the Philippines and not in other large-scale migrant-sending countries. Contrary to current explanations that emphasise the economic benefits of labour migration and civil society mobilisation, this paper highlights the migration regimes compatibility with the political economy interests of the countrys ruling elites. Bringing together the countrys two important political and economic features, oligarchic rule and labour export, this paper suggests that the unique genesis of the Philippines’ migration regime casts doubts on the replicability of the Philippine model in other labour-sending countries as currently pursued by the international development community.

Life Satisfaction of the Families of Migrants in the Philippines

Although remittance income is likely to increase the level of financial resources in the household, such a contribution should be assessed against the disruptive effect of migration on other aspects of family life. Using individual-level data from the Philippines, this article explores the impact of international migration on the life satisfaction of the families of migrants in the home country. The analysis compares happiness outcomes across non-migrant households, the households reliant on remittances as a primary source of household income, and the households that receive remittances but do not rely on them. The findings suggest that migration is positively associated with higher levels of life satisfaction only when remittances are large enough to compensate for the psychological distress caused by the migration. The results confirm the importance of remittances as a source of human improvement but, at the same time, highlight the fact that international migration is not a costless enterprise.

Determinants of International Labor Migration to Korea

Since the 1990s Korea has emerged as one of the major migration destinations in Asia. This paper represents one of the first attempts to examine the determinants of bilateral labor migration to Korea across source countries and over time. We analyze the effects of economic, demographic, and policy factors. We also examine the role played by trade between Korea and origin countries. The results suggest that economic fundamentals, including income level in Korea, as well as demographic factors both in origin countries and Korea, play an important role, while different patterns are observed for skilled and unskilled migrant workers. We also found that trade is an important predictor of the size and composition of foreign migrant population in Korea. We speculate that trade influences migration to Korea through the information effect and foreign labor policy channel.

Power asymmetry and threat points: negotiating China's infrastructure development in Southeast Asia

ABSTRACT Chinas ambitious global infrastructure investment plan, embodied in the Belt and Road Initiative and backed by massive financial resources, is an attempt to secure cooperation from developing countries in Asia and beyond to support its rise as a global power. Such cooperation, however, is not guaranteed. Despite the power asymmetry between China and partner countries, as well as the latters significant infrastructure investment needs, host countries still need to be convinced of the specific benefits of Chinas projects, thus creating a bargaining opportunity. Significant room for negotiations emerges due to the domain characteristics of infrastructure development and Chinas strategic motives and industrial policy needs which often misalign with the host countrys development priorities. I construct an analytical framework drawn from bargaining theory to explain when power asymmetry may fail to prevail in Chinas infrastructure diplomacy, which is illustrated by its high-speed rail negotiations in Southeast Asia. The relative bargaining power of a host country is influenced by its threat points, which interact with the project terms offered by China to produce final bargaining outcomes. This article offers a new perspective on the agency of weaker states in the context of Chinas rise.

China's Development Finance to Asia: Characteristics and Implications

This paper examines the determinants of Chinas development finance to developing countries with a focus on Asia from 2000 to 2012. It uses a recent version of China AidData, one of the most reliable and publicly available data sources that systematically collect and differentiate different types of Chinas official development financial flows. This paper differs from previous studies in two aspects that: (1) it analyzes a wider range of developing countries, moving beyond earlier research largely limited to Africa; and (2) it examines regional variation in Chinas motives for development financing. The findings show that Chinas allocations decision for concessional development flows, or ODA, has mixed motives of humanitarian, commercial and strategic interests. It is noteworthy that Chinas ODA appears not to be in competition against, but rather in a complementary form to, established donors in this period. Yet substantial regional variation is observed, suggesting different regional dynamics are at work. On the other hand, it is found that Chinas allocations decision for less-concessional development financing largely follows commercial considerations. This paper also provides detailed discussion of the trends in Chinas development finance to Southeast Asia, which is an Asian region critical for Chinas economic and foreign policy interests. The paper ends with a discussion of the implications of possible shift in Chinas overseas development finance strategy since 2011.

International Responses to Myanmar's Transformation

The transformation of Myanmar marks perhaps one of the least predicted international developments in the past twenty years. The new government that came into power in 2011 introduced sweeping political and economic reforms. The international responses to Myanmar’s reforms have been largely positive and in many instances enthusiastic. Western governments acknowledged and supported the reforms by easing or lifting sanctions on Myanmar. The change in Western policy about Myanmar also opened doors for expanded trade and investment opportunities with the rest of the world. Myanmar’s reemergence on the international stage has led to varied responses from Asian countries, among which China and Japan play major roles.