Linguistic Capital and Political Authority: A Discourse Analysis of Southeast Asian Leaders’ Statement at COP29

HRMARS - This study investigates how linguistic choices function as symbolic capital to construct political authority and shape global diplomacy in the national statements of Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines at 29th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP29). Grounded in Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) focusing on lexical, rhetorical, and stylistic features, and informed by Bourdieu’s theory of language and power, and Hall’s model of contextual communication model, the study examines how Southeast Asian leaders navigate an English dominant ‘linguistic market’. A comparative analysis reveals distinct discursive strategies: Malaysia employed moral and diplomatic lexicon to establish moral authority; Singapore relied on technical and collaborative rhetoric to project pragmatic leadership; and the Philippines drew on cultural to assert empathetic authority. These linguistic strategies, functioning as language capital, shaped debates on climate finance and the Loss and Damage Fund. The study contributes to political discourse theory and diplomatic practice by demonstrating how non-native English-speaking leaders strategically convert their national habitus into diplomatic resource in English-dominated international forums.