NJC 2020 H2 P2 Prelims

NATIONAL JUNIOR COLLEGE SENIOR HIGH 2 PRELIMINARY EXAMINATIONS Higher 2 HISTORY 9752/02 Paper 2 The Making of Independent Southeast Asia (Independence – 2000) 14 September 2020 3 Hours Additional Materials: Answer Booklet READ THESE INSTRUCTIONS FIRST An answer booklet will be provided with this question paper. You should follow the instructions on the front cover of the answer booklet. If you need additional answer paper ask the invigilator for a continuation booklet. Section A Answer Question 1. Section B Answer two questions. The number of marks is given in brackets [ ] at the end of each question or part question. This question paper consists of 5 printed pages and 3 blank pages.

2 SECTION A You must answer Question 1. ASEAN Economic Cooperation in the 1990s 1 Read the sources and answer the questions which follow. Source A Many of Asia's industries are way beyond the infant stage, but some still cling to protectionist tariffs like an overgrown child to a security blanket. Despite a recent agreement to accelerate ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA)'s implementation, threats of delays lurk. Most disturbing is the call by the chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce: "Indonesia needs to pull back from AFTA because the current domestic economic situation has yet to be conducive for such a move." The grouping needs concrete action toward AFTA to lure back foreign investors, which could help kick recovery into high gear. With that in mind, ministers have moved up their deadlines for eliminating import duties by five years. If Jakarta hints at foot-dragging, it will tempt other members to follow suit. Already, Malaysia has said it will not carry out tariff cuts on cars. Adapted from an American newspaper editorial, October 1999. Source B When the crisis broke into public view, the answer was immediate. The “observers” and “analysts” in the media, concluded: Surely, at the very least, the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) is dead. The real impact of the crisis has been to pull the ASEAN countries more closely together. ASEAN decided to move faster on AFTA. They have agreed that, for the older members, AFTA products would have tariffs of no more than 0 -5 percent by 2002. Although there is a time lag for the newer members, the schedule has been accelerated for them too. So much for the prediction of AFTA’s death. Since the onset of the crisis, ASEAN’s finance ministers have greatly intensified their consultations. One mechanisms for such consultations is the ASEAN surveillance process established last year. The min isters have also been developing a common position on the issues arising from attempts to review the international financial system. They insist that any measures adopted must be flexible, and take into account the particular situations and interests of all countries and not just of a few. The poor must be protected. Adapted from a speech by the ASEAN Secretary-General at a press conference, April 1999.

3 Source C Regrettably, the ASEAN countries are now hit by a currency turbulence. The stock markets too have been hit. But ASEAN will learn from the bad experience, adjust its policies, and after some time, push confidently ahead. Therefore, the challenges currently facing ASEAN do not detract from its important accomplishments. When ASEAN was created in 1967, few would have foreseen the significant role that ASEAN would play in the region. ASEAN’s attractiveness as a market for the US will be further enhanced when the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) is realised. Although AFTA is scheduled to lower tariffs down to 0-5 percent by 2003, it is already ahead of the curve. AFTA, when fully implemented, will make ASEAN’s manufacturing sectors more efficient and competitive in the global market. Adapted from a speech by Goh Chok Tong, Prime Minister of Singapore, to a US-ASEAN Business Council, September 1997. Source D The financial crisis swept through ASEAN countries like a tidal wave. Between 1997 to 1999, the combined GDP of the original members fell about one -fifth. Three years after, the continuing political and economic difficulties in Southeast Asia, plus the perceived weakness of ASEAN as an organisation, are strongly colouring the vie ws of analysts and investors. ASEAN appeared divided and slow in responding to the crisis, and even now is seen as weakened and drifting. ASEAN economic cooperation was gaining momentum before the crisis. Major initiatives had been launched, especially the ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) and the ASEAN Investment Area (AIA). However, the crisis has caused some to hold back, to give struggling domestic industries more breathing space. These pressures are real, but countries should not lose sight of the wider ben efits of ASEAN cooperation. ASEAN's economies are highly dependent on international trade, and it is in our interest to work together for a freer global trading environment. ASEAN also needs to explore links with other regional groups, for example a free trade area with China, Japan and South Korea. Adapted from speech by Lee Hsien Loong, Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore at a lecture in Bangkok, organised by the Central Bank of Thailand, November 2000. Source E ASEAN set forth a number of proposals to deal with the Asian Financial Crisis as a group. One suggestion was to conduct intra -ASEAN trade in the Singaporean dollar, the strongest ASEAN currency. In the end, only Malaysia and the Philippines signed a bilateral trade payment to reduce their dependence on the US dollar. By mid -1998, the crisis had begun to provoke conflicts between the ASEAN states. Singapore. Malaysia and Indonesia were at odds, exchanging insults that sometimes carried racist overtones. Malaysia complained that high interest rates offered by Singaporean banks for Malaysian ringgit were pulling capital out of Malaysia. Malaysia and Indonesia both accused Singapore of benefiting from their economic distress. Singapore was functioning as a regional safety zone for investors from other Southeast Asian states. Adapted from an academic work, 2002.

4 Source F Statistics from an academic article, 2014. Now answer the following questions. a) Compare and contrast the evidence provided in Sources C and D on the effects of the Asian Financial Crisis on ASEAN. [10] b) How far do sources A to F show that ASEAN was able to promote economic cooperation in the 1990s? [30] Graph: Percentage of intra-ASEAN trade out of total ASEAN trade from 1980-2002

5 Section B You must answer TWO questions from this section. EITHER 2 How important were constitutional processes and elections in maintaining political stability in independent Southeast Asian states? [30] OR 3 How successful was multiculturalism in promoting national unity in independent Southeast Asian states? [30] AND EITHER 4 “The role of the government was crucial in the economic development of independent Southeast Asia”. How far do you agree with this judgment? [30] OR 5 How far was the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis a turning point in Southeast Asia’s economic development? [30]

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