ASEAN’s brief foray into openness is over as the region returned to being a bloc of ‘strong leaders’, with democracies breaking down or becoming highly illiberal. Cronyism and incompetence among its strongmen is the only hope, writes Mark R. Thompson for South China Morning Post. The rollback of democratic institutions across the region coincides with the rise of China and the decline of US influence, says Amy Searight, senior adviser and director of the Southeast Asia program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, or CSIS. Inequality is one part of the formula, writes Hunter Martson for The Diplomat. As decentralization brings about greater opportunity and wealth, a wider portion of the electorate feel that they have been left out of this largely urban phenomenon, leading to social friction and populist anger.