Man vs. Nature
Issue 61 — Key Developments Across the Philippines, Singapore, Timor-Leste, and Vietnam
Editor’s Note
by Karen Ysabelle R. David, Lead Editor - Pacific Corridor Desk
Across the Pacific Corridor this week, the age-old conflict between man and nature continues to play out in one of the world’s most climate-vulnerable regions. In the Philippines, monsoon rains have seen cities and provinces in much of the island of Luzon submerged in floods over the past week; meanwhile, in Singapore, the planned development of Maju Forest to make way for yet more housing has led to a public outcry and debates over the limits of development.
Over in Vietnam, Hanoi is confronting a problem of a different kind, as its lofty growth ambitions rest on rickety funding founded on the backs of overtaxed commercial banks. Similarly, in Timor-Leste, this year’s Pride March — which the country has celebrated for nearly a decade — has also run into issues with funding, in the wake of United States President Donald Trump’s budget cuts that have sent shockwaves through the LGBTQIA+ community all the way in Dili.
Whether ripples and shockwaves are the result of problems natural or man-made, it is the ordinary people of these four countries that are the first to pay the price.
The Philippines 🇵🇭
“Nature, Forgive Us”: Floods, Deaths, and the Price of Neglect
by Eduardo G. Fajermo Jr., in Angeles City
“Kalikasan, pasensya ka na sa mga tao.”
Nature, forgive us for what people have done.
That was the painful line attributed to 52-year-old June Lelis as he looked at tons of garbage swept into the Redemptorist Water Channel in Parañaque City. It was more than grief over trash. It sounded like a national confession: the floods now swallowing homes, roads, farms, churches, and schools are not caused by rain alone.
Across Luzon, the southwest monsoon enhanced by Tropical Cyclones Luis and Maymay turned another week of rain into another map of loss. The Office of Civil Defense said 19 people were reported killed and 15 others injured, with the province of Benguet recording the highest number of fatalities at 12, including landslide deaths in Baguio City, La Trinidad, and Atok.
Evacuations and flooding spanned several areas across the island of Luzon, from Quezon City, Marikina, Las Piñas, Parañaque, Manila, and Malabon in the National Capital Region, to the provinces of Bulacan, Batangas, Nueva Ecija, Pangasinan, Pampanga, and Zambales. In Calumpit, floodwaters reached chest-deep level and nearly rose to the roofs of houses; in Pampanga, churches in San Fernando were flooded; in Zambales, raging water and lahar damaged a bridge and forced more than 2,600 residents to evacuate.
The damage also entered classrooms and farms. The Department of Education said more than 6.5 million learners were affected by class suspensions, with 3,924 classrooms reported damaged. The Department of Agriculture earlier placed losses at PHP135.3 million, affecting 4,516 hectares and 6,010 farmers.
This is why “resilience” now feels too convenient. Filipinos are praised for surviving, but survival should not excuse weak preparation. A family that evacuates every rainy season is not proof that the system works. It is proof that the system keeps asking ordinary people to absorb failure.
This is why public anger over questionable spending matters, even if it should not consume the whole disaster story. On 11 August, reports on the confidential funds trial of the Office of the Vice President included testimony that tree planting and Christmas parties were allegedly listed among confidential expenses, while reported witnesses testified in a separate graft trial over alleged problems involving PHP455 million worth of ice-making machines.
No single peso can be said to have stopped one landslide. But every peso wasted is a peso unavailable for drainage, rescue boats, slope protection, evacuation centers, and early warnings.
In a country of storms, disaster preparedness is not charity after the flood. It is governance before the rain. When the state fails, the cost is not only counted in damaged roads, ruined crops, and submerged homes. It is counted in the names added to the dead.
Eduardo is a Political Science graduate and MA Political Science candidate at the University of Santo Tomas, researching democracy, disaster governance, and inclusive policy in the Global South. He is a former faculty member at Holy Angel University, where he taught Philippine history and contemporary global issues. He also worked with a senator in the Guam Legislature, contributing to policy research and legislative analysis.
Singapore 🇸🇬
Housing vs. Nature vs. Heritage — Will Singaporeans Eventually Have a Choice?
by Nurul Aini, in Singapore
Hailed as a “City in Nature,” Singapore consistently has to navigate and balance between nature and the development of housing for its people. On 10 July 2026, the plan to remove two-thirds of Maju Forest — one of the few forested areas in Singapore — to make way for more housing was announced. Meanwhile, Gillman Barracks, a significant space for arts and lifestyle, has also been planned as a potential residential space for both private and public housing.
Upon announcement, citizens responded with mixed reactions. There were, however, strong opinions against the development of Maju Forest, such as through petitions calling for development to be directed to brownfield sites, and for the full environmental study of the space to be published. The petition highlights critically endangered species, such as the Sunda Pangolin and straw-headed bulbul, and recalled various forests that were lost as a result of housing development. To date, the petition has garnered over 43,000 signatures. Up until 6 August 2026, the Housing and Development Board (HDB) also accepted public feedback via an online portal.
Residents who live in the area stressed the relationship between living near a forest and how it has shaped the community’s character, sharing how differently children play and grow when in close proximity to greenery. Various social media posts also emerged, such as one by user @ckw.ada which questions whether Singapore’s approach of urban tree planting in place of mature forests will only worsen the urban heat island effects. Walks through the forest are also organized in the spirit of allowing citizens to appreciate the trail and understand what we can potentially lose as a result of rapid development, while users like @4one.sg bring viewers into the forest while educating them on the species found within.
Additionally, this issue was also intensely debated in Parliament. Workers’ Party MP Kenneth Tiong questioned why alternative sites with low-density populations cannot be used to develop more housing, as well as the role of ministries, such as the Ministry of Sustainability and Environment (MSE), in advocating for the forest. Meanwhile, the People’s Action Party (PAP) MP Alvin Tan stressed that the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is part of an ongoing consultation process. The EIA is meant to be a systematic development process used by the government through agencies like the Urban Redevelopment Authority and the National Parks Board (NParks) to assess the impact of proposed development on the biophysical, social, and environmental makeup of the space. On a separate occasion, via a Facebook post, the Minister for Sustainability and the Environment, Grace Fu, highlighted that the MSE does not have a mandate on land use and planning and wrote about the hard trade-offs that Singapore sometimes must consider.
Gillman Barracks also underwent the Heritage Impact Assessment (HIA), with some infrastructures marked as high significance or exceptional. The development of this site has similarly gained traction amongst Singaporeans concerned with losing heritage sites.
Singapore is hailed as a modern city that harnesses technology and infrastructure for its progress. Yet, this episode on the Maju Forest does not necessarily show that Singaporeans resist development, but that they are not willing to partake in what could potentially be a sacrifice of their mental wellbeing and an alteration to a grounded lifestyle in the name of modern progress.
Aini is currently pursuing a master’s degree in English literature at Nanyang Technological University. She has experience working in youth groups, contributing to the planning and management of outreach activities.
Vietnam 🇻🇳
Beyond the Banks
by Tri Vo, in Ho Chi Minh City
Vietnam’s economy is running at a breakneck pace, having recorded a lofty GDP expansion of 8.18% in the first half of 2026, outpacing its ASEAN peers. However, beneath the surface of this macroeconomic triumph lies a profound structural vulnerability: that of an overstretched capital distribution system. To sustain the government’s ambitious double-digit growth mandate and propel Vietnam to the rank of high-income nations by 2045, total social investment demand is projected to escalate to a staggering US$1.46 trillion for the 2026–2030 period, nearly three times the country’s 2025 nominal GDP of US$530 billion. Such tremendous capital demands have prompted the critical questions of not just how to deploy but also how to source capital.
Both the Vietnamese public and private sectors have relied mostly on commercial banks to fund their economic expansion in the form of infrastructural financing. Yet, this dependency has now reached a critical threshold, as by the end of 2026’s first half, the economy’s total outstanding credit across the banking system had already exceeded US$795.5 billion. Such a high degree of leverage has posed a systemic bottleneck for continuing capital-raising efforts. Adding to this issue, liquidity pressure is intensifying across the banking sector, as seen in the rising deposit rates that are pushing borrowing costs higher, forcing banks to transition toward more selective lending. The situation has become serious enough to warrant repeated instructions from the State Bank of Vietnam to the banking sector to keep borrowing costs affordable to safeguard growth.
As banks tighten their belts, alternative funding channels are experiencing a notable spurt of life. The corporate bond market staged a remarkable comeback in the second quarter of 2026, with private placements surging ninefold from the previous quarter to over US$8.14 billion. However, such a liquidity injection is heavily skewed toward real estate. In fact, while commercial banks’ bond issuance year-by-year declined by nearly half, the real estate sector saw a fourfold increase in the same period. This development shows that alternative capital channels are being mostly directed toward the construction and real estate sectors, not the value-added manufacturing that can help boost Vietnam’s innovation, one of the goals of Vietnam’s economic ambitions.
To release the pressure valve for the banking sector, the state itself is injecting liquidity on a large scale through public infrastructure spending. By the end of July 2026, the Ministry of Finance reported the disbursement of approximately US$16.3 billion in public capital. While this represents 41.9% of 2026’s target and a notable year-on-year improvement, the pace remains uneven across sectors. Five ministries and several localities have disbursed less than 10% of their allocated funds, implying a certain degree of bottleneck in either bureaucratic matters or securing/initiating projects.
Ultimately, the path to a high-income economy cannot be paved solely with the wherewithals from the domestic commercial banking sector or the bond market, but also from external sources. Indeed, the construction of the International Financial Center in the economic hub of Ho Chi Minh City is a stark reminder of Vietnam’s seriousness in attracting foreign capital. That, along with upgrades in governance standards, the inclusion of diverse classes of assets in the market, and many other fledgling endeavors, will help pave the way toward a robust capital market capable of buttressing the country’s growth ambitions. Vietnam’s success will serve as a valuable lesson for developing ASEAN peers on graduating from an immature market dominated by traditional financial channels to one that is more interconnected with the wider world.
Tri has experience in management consulting and strategy, having worked with institutions such as the UNDP, The Asia Group, and ARC Group. He has provided strategic, legal, and operational insights to clients in sectors including manufacturing, energy, and technology. He holds both academic and professional experience related to Southeast and East Asia, with a focus on regional development and policy.
Timor-Leste 🇹🇱
The Pride Month for “Courage” to Collectivehood
by Amandina Maria Helena da Silva, in Dili
For almost one decade, Timor-Leste has celebrated Pride Month every year. It was first celebrated in June 2017 and was publicly supported by the previous Prime Minister Rui Maria de Araujo. The event drew support from international agencies, NGOs, and embassies — but that has changed over the last two years.
Since US President Donald Trump issued a statement about only recognizing two genders and cut the budget to support the LGBTQIA+ community across the world, Timor-Leste was heavily affected. This resulted in institutions that were previously active and fully funded the Pride March event, such as The Asia Foundation and the US Embassy in Timor-Leste, not fully supporting the empowerment of minority organizations like CODIVA Foundation and Arcoiris Timor-Leste due to the withdrawal of all funds that support LGBTQIA+ organizations. When hope fades, collective struggle grows stronger.
This year, there is a limitation of funding, but the state, through Head of State President Ramos Horta; relevant institutions; CSOs; social movements; and people continue to support minority groups through the Pride March, with the theme “Courage” — courage for a long life fighting for minority groups and humanity. This event was officially opened by the President of the Republic, who also affirmed that everyone deserves to live and love openly and honestly. The President reiterated his constitutional duty to protect the dignity of all citizens, fostering a society rooted in mutual respect and the absence of fear.
Besides that, RTTL News reported that the founder of Timor-Leste Pride, Natalino Ornai, stated that the event already has a lot of visibility, and many know about Pride March to support the LGBTQIA+ community, but in reality the minority community still faces a lot of discrimination. In some examples documented by Diligente, Domingos Pires, known as “Pildo,” expressed that she “was always alone and cried silently” due to years of suffering caused by bullying and discrimination. Meanwhile, Mário (fictitious name), a transgender man, spent years in silence, fearing the reaction of his family and society.
The stories of Pildo and Mário show that, despite some progress in raising awareness on human rights, many LGBTQIA+ people continue to face insults, humiliation, exclusion, rejection, and physical and psychological abuse. Clearly, there is a need to unite, not only for minority groups, but for women, the youth, and people in general.
Symbolism is not justice — minority communities need a state that moves beyond recognition to confront inequality, protect rights, and deliver meaningful change.
Amandina is a human rights advocate working with Asia Justice and Rights Timor-Leste on the Interim Reparation to Women Survivors project. She previously worked with UNDP Timor-Leste’s Accelerator Lab and has contributed to human rights and health initiatives through several youth and civil society organisations. Her interests lie in justice, youth empowerment, and community-based social change in Timor-Leste.
Editorial Deadline 11/08/2026 11:59 PM (UTC +8)
