摘要：From June 10 to 12, 2025, the “Global South and Southeast Asia” Forum was held in Jakarta, Indonesia. Co-hosted by Beijing Longway

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【导读】From June 10 to 12, 2025, the “Global South and Southeast Asia” Forum was held in Jakarta, Indonesia. Co-hosted by Beijing Longway Economic and Social Research Foundation, the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences at Universitas Indonesia, Institute for a Community with Shared Future at Communication University of China, and Shanghai Chunqiu Institute for Development and Strategic Studies, and organized by the Global South Network (GSN), the forum aimed to foster in-depth dialogue among intellectuals from Global South countries and explore pathways for innovative development models amid the changing global landscape.

This forum brought together 38 experts and scholars from 10 countries across China and Southeast Asia. All participants, while being influential in their respective regions and fields, also serve as key intellectual forces driving the new development agenda and the decolonization of knowledge in the Global South.

This special issue of Beijing Cultural Review presents the outcomes of the forum. All articles are developed from speeches and discussions during the event. The opening address delivered by Mr. Yang Ping, Chairman of the Longway Foundation, is selected as the editor’s note for this issue.

Intellectual Awakening of the Global South：

Opening Speech at the Global South and Southeast Asia Forum

The term “Global South” gained prominence after the Russia-Ukraine conflict, because it resonates with contemporary geopolitical realities and represents the future of our world. What is the Global South? Across the vast regions of Asia, Africa, and Latin America, there are at least 150 countries that can be considered part of the Global South. Their huge diversity makes “Global South” a term difficult to define.

Yet, the Global South differs distinctly from the West in the following aspects: they are latecomers to modernization, learners and imitators of Western modernization models, peripheral followers in the modern world system, victims of colonial imperialism, and, moreover, bearers of an unjust and unreasonable international order. Following WWII, the collapse of the colonial system led to the independence of numerous Asian, African, and Latin American nations. The endeavor of these newly established sovereign states to establish new global rules and order gave rise to the Bandung Spirit, the Non-Aligned Movement, the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence, and more. The world was transformed by the Global South.

Group Photo

However, the path to modernization has been far from smooth. Over seven decades after WWII, most Southern countries still face formidable challenges in development. Development remains the central agenda of the Global South.

The development agenda has long been influenced by the West. From development knowledge and technological approaches to institutional frameworks and economic models, southern countries have been profoundly shaped by Western modernization paradigms. Yet seven decades of practice have shown that the Western model is not universally applicable, and Western development theories have largely yielded failed outcomes. Despite decades of Western development assistance bringing substantial resources, Global South nations have yet to escape poverty and underdevelopment. The concepts, values, and political-economic models of the prevailing Western aid paradigms contain fundamental flaws, and require thorough review and critical reflection.

History and reality have shown that there is no single path to modernization, and that plural and diverse modernities are possible. Many Southern countries are forging modernization paths grounded in their own historical-cultural contexts and contemporary realities, offering non-Western approaches for fellow Southern nations.

Today, development remains the priority issue for the Global South — a priority far surpassing ideological debates like “democracy vs. authoritarianism” or “market vs. state”. Southern countries must concentrate on development as the central task. Hence, exploring new development models and theorizing alternative frameworks constitutes an urgent intellectual mission for Global South scholars.

Today, we have entered an era of intellectual awakening for the Global South. In pursuing modernization, Southern nations must establish intellectual autonomy and construct their own knowledge systems to break free from imitative dependence on Western paradigms.

The Global South Network (GSN) embodies this transnational intellectual movement. Led by intellectuals from the Global South, it seeks to foster broad collaboration across the Global South. Through continuous intellectual engagement, GSN aims to develop localized development models and discursive frameworks that are tailored to specific national, regional, and cultural contexts, and ultimately provide guidance and explanation to the development endeavors of Southern countries.

Hermansyah,S.T., M.Eng., IPU.,Rector of Universitas Indonesia，with Yang Ping，Chairman of Longway Foundation

As China’s neighbor, Southeast Asia represents a pivotal force within the Global South and gave rise to the widely influential “East Asian Model”. Therefore, promoting intellectual collaboration between Southeast Asian and Chinese academia, as well as between Southeast Asian and the broader Global South academia, constitutes a shared responsibility for our intellectual communities.

Longway Foundation is a nonprofit civil organization dedicated to the construction of cultural values. For over 18 years, it has supported Beijing Cultural Review — China’s most influential intellectual journal — while organizing academic research and international initiatives. With 3.2 million readers, Beijing Cultural Review today has gained significant influence, making Longway Foundation one of China’s most representative NGOs.

Distinguished Professors and Guests:

The world is standing at a crossroads of turbulence and transformation. The upheavals in the United States and Western societies are steering humanity toward an increasingly uncertain future. At this critical juncture, the Global South must act with heightened consciousness — to actively engage in the monumental task of rebuilding our world, safeguarding human peace, and promoting human development.

This is the vision of the Global South and Southeast Asia Forum. I am honored to share it with you.

Yang Ping

Chairman, Longway Foundation

June 10, 2025

— CONTENTS —

2025. Special Issue

▍Editor’s Note

Intellectual Awakening of the Global South：Opening Speech at the Global South and Southeast Asia Forum

Yang Ping

▍Conceptualizing The Global South

Knowledge Decolonization and the Autonomous Development of the Global South: Summary of the Global South and Southeast Asia Forum

Longway Foundation

Constructing Southern Theories in the Post-Neoliberal Era

Qin Beichen, Jing Jun

The Southern Problem and Beyond

Yin Zhiguang

▍The Southern Values

The “Vacuum” Period of Universal Values and the Role of Global South Countries

Hoang Hue Anh

The Myth of Homogeneity: Asian Values and the Cultural Limits of the Global South

Chang-Yau Hoon, Zhao Kaili

Shared Histories, Shared Futures: Toward a New Asian Regionalism

Hilmar Farid

▍Development Path of the Global South

Indonesia’s Colonial Legacy and the Challenges for the Global South

Max Lane

The Route of Modern Economic Development of Thailand

Narong Petprasert

From “Shared Poverty” to “Shared Development”: Indonesia’s New Paradigm of Poverty Alleviation

Pan Yue

The Malay World’s Exploration of Multiple Modernities

Xu Lipin

来源：文化纵横一点号