Forget the rosy headlines and the politician-speak about ASEAN’s “resilience” or “strategic recalibration.” The numbers don’t lie and ASEAN is sliding into dangerous territory, and the signs are eerily similar to the 1997 financial meltdown that gutted the region. Back then, the Thai Baht crashed, dragging the whole neighbourhood down with it. Today, it’s the Indonesian Rupiah taking a nosedive in which worse than anything we saw in ’97 and it’s a screaming warning that no one wants to hear. Politicians and their ignorance are playing dumb, but the data is crystal clear: ASEAN’s economies are slowing, vulnerabilities are piling up, and the next global recession could hit harder than anything we’ve seen before.