This volume is a collection of articles that examines how the COVID-19 pandemic affected and intersected with various Southeast Asian contexts in the broad areas of migration, education and demographic policy. At the height of the pandemic from 2020‒22, the resulting restrictions to international travel, ensuing nationwide lockdowns and eventual economic crises formed part of what many commentators referred to as a "new normal". Apart from being a global health crisis, the pandemic disrupted and transformed the experience of everyday life at all levels of society, where many of its effects are now likely irreversible. In particular, the impact of the pandemic certainly affected the most vulnerable individuals and communities throughout the region, especially in countries that are experiencing rapid ageing such as Singapore and Thailand. Examples of the most affected include low-wage migrant workers, the disabled and the children of impoverished families. For many who were already living in a state of precarity, the structural "side-effects" of the pandemic were at times more deadly than the coronavirus itself as it often negatively impacted livelihood, social-emotional ties and overall well-being. At the same time, the "new normal" has further created conditions that raise the likelihood of occupational precarity even for long-term professionals within established fields like education. In other words, few experienced the COVID-19 pandemic without encountering both tangible and intangible challenges, regardless of where one was situated. Hence, by merging the theme of precarity with that of the pandemic's undeniable and exacerbating effects, this volume hopes to establish a useful platform to reflect and learn from a range of scholarly views and to contribute to new knowledge and inform policymaking in Southeast Asian societies.
"This volume is a collection of thoughtful scholarship that examines the challenges that have been made more acute by the COVID-19 pandemic among and between Southeast Asian populations. The chapters here consider how the global public health crisis and its policy responses have aggravated various forms of precarity that had taken root in pockets of Southeast Asian societies. While history will be the ultimate judge of the true social and cultural consequences of COVID-19 policy responses, Populations and Precarity during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Southeast Asian Perspectives is an urgent reminder that while the worst of the pand