KUALA LUMPUR: These are perhaps glory days for Southeast Asia, at least in the eyes of many from outside the region. Economically, ours is the fastest-growing region in the world, the envy of many others who are still wallowing in their stagnation. And while many neighbor countries in other parts of the world are sporadically — if not periodically — getting at each other's throats, most if not all Southeast Asian nations, despite their vastly different cultural and ethnic backgrounds, are prospering in their relative harmony with one another.