The Mediterranean region has a highly distinctive climate due to its position between 30 and 45°N to the west of the Euro-Asian landmass. With respect to the global atmospheric system, it lies between subtropical high pressure systems to the south, and westerly wind belts to the north. In winter, as these systems move equatorward, the Mediterranean basin lies under the influence of, and is exposed to, the westerly wind belt, and the weather is wet and mild. In the summer, as shown in Figure 3.1, the Mediterranean lies under subtropical high pressure systems, and conditions are hot and dry, with an absolute drought that may persist for more than two or three months in drier regions. Climates such as this are relatively rare, and the Mediterranean shares its winter wet/summer dry conditions with locations as distant as central Chile, the southern tip of Cape Province in South Africa, southwest Australia in the Southern Hemisphere, and central California in the Northern Hemisphere. All have in common their mid-latitude position, between subtropical high pressure systems and westerly wind belts. They all lie on the westerly side of continents so that, in winter, when the westerly wind belts dominate over their locations, they are exposed to rain-bearing winds. In the Köppen classification (Köppen 1936), these climates are known as Mediterranean (Type Cs, which is subdivided in turn into maritime Csb and continental Csa). The influence of the Mediterranean Sea means that the Mediterranean-type climate of the region extends much further into the continental landmass than elsewhere, and is not restricted to a narrow ocean-facing strip. Nevertheless, within the Mediterranean region climate is modified by position and topographic influences can be important. The proximity of the western Mediterranean to the Atlantic Ocean gives its climate a maritime flavour, with higher rainfall and milder temperatures throughout the year. The eastern Mediterranean lies closer to the truly continental influences of central Europe and Asia. Its climate is drier, and temperatures are hotter in summer and colder in winter than in the west. Annual rainfall is typically around 750 mm in Rome, but only around 400 mm in Athens.

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The relationship between the global and the local is one of critical importance to all regions of the world. In the resolution of the tension between the irresistible surge of globalisation and the undeniable facts of society as it actually exists in the various localities which together comprise the very world which is presumably the object or the subject-matter of globalisation, law lies at the forefront. It is, one might say, the very intellectual battlefield which we have selected for the resolution of the major problem facing human society at the turn of the century. The purpose of this article is therefore to investigate, in a somewhat narrative fashion the relationship between the global and the local in the context of law in South East Asia. The topic is clearly too large to be dealt with in a short space with the rigour and articulation it really deserves, but it is hoped that the approach adopted will provide some kind of a frame of reference for regarding, studying, and hopefully improving, the law in the South East Asian region; and will perhaps focus a pencil of light on the problems of the global and the local in this particular regional context.

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