Thammasat University students interested in ASEAN studies, Indonesia, history, political science, economics, sociology, and related subjects may find it useful to participate in a free 29 and 30 August Zoom webinar on Social Faultlines in Indonesia: Persistence and Change in An Evolving Landscape.
The event, on Tuesday, 29 August and Wednesday, 30 August 2023 at 8am Bangkok time, is co-organized by the Indonesia Studies Programme at ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute (ISEAS), Singapore, and the Institute of Social Sciences and Humanities (IPSH), National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), Indonesia.
The TU Library collection includes several books about different aspects of society in Indonesia.
Students are invited to register at these links:
https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_DU32TqAkR_6ASh0m-dgayw#/registration
https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_uOXywCWhQBy7ioWCInK-vw#/registration
The event webpage explains:
About the Conference
With around 279.1 million people spread over 17,504 islands, Indonesia has a highly diverse population that has shaped the political, economic, and socio-cultural life of the nation since its inception. Highly diverse populations are susceptible to increased polarisation and reduced social cohesion, and this has been the case in Indonesia since the early stirrings of nationalism in the early 20th century. During the Sukarno era, there were already calls for decentralization to address interests arising from regional diversity. This became muted during the Suharto era, where social divisions were wrapped under the governance of SARA (ethnicity, religion, race, and other social divisions) issues. Subsequently, post-Reformasi implementation of regional autonomy was an attempt at addressing long-repressed interests associated with social and regional diversity, but by then, some of these divisions had evolved into deep social faultlines that led to the eruption of ethnic and religious violence. While such violence has become less common since the early days of regional autonomy, the social faultlines continue to hold sway in Indonesia through identity politics, especially since direct elections were introduced.
This conference seeks to examine these faultlines in their various iterations, and in terms of how they structure the national imaginary, as well as the political, economic and socio-cultural life of the nation. Beyond the conventional religious divides, are there new religious identities that have emerged and evolved? Where ethnic identities are concerned, have certain boundaries become more porous, or are there boundaries that have become steeper, as a result of changing demographic patterns or ecologies of resource allocation? At the same time, regional autonomy has also deepened, in some cases, the divide between migrants and those who claim autochthony.
This conference aims to provide a platform for academic dialogue on multifaceted issues related to demographic diversity in Indonesia today. It takes into account the processes that lead to the persistence of social faultlines, how they are negotiated and managed, and how new faultlines emerge.
The website of the IPSH, BRIN, Indonesia. explains:
To execute research related activities, BRIN has 12 Research Organizations (RO) or institutes. They are 1) Social Sciences and Humanities; 2) Archeology, Language, and Literature; 3) State Governance, Economy, and Community Welfare; 4) Aeronautics and Space; 5) Nuclear Energy, 6) Life Sciences and Environment; 7) Earth Sciences and Maritime; 8) Health; 9) Agriculture and Food; 10) Energy and Manufacture; 11) Nanotechnology and Materials; and 12) Electronics and Computer Sciences.
Research Organization is a non-structural organization that carries out research, development, assessment, and application (litbangjirap), as well as inventions and innovations. It is led by a chairman (kepala). The main activity of RO is only to produce knowledge. The responsibility of translating knowledge into government policies is taken over by the Directorates within the Deputy of Development Policy. In line with this, the Institute of Social Sciences and Humanities (ISSH) or Research Organization for Social Sciences and Humanities has the task of: i) producing knowledge that meets ethics and research integrity, and ii) conducting research and scientific activities that make a real contribution to answering Indonesian issues and contemporary dynamics.
RESEARCH CENTERS
The ISSH-BRIN has eight research centers, namely:
- Research Center for Politics (Pusat Riset Politik)
- Research Center for Society and Culture (Pusat Riset Masyarakat dan Budaya)
- Research Center for Area Studies (Pusat Riset Kewilayahan)
- Research Center for Population (Pusat Riset Kependudukan)
- Research Center for Education (Pusat Riset Pendidikan)
- Research Center for Law (Pusat Riset Hukum)
- Research Center for Religion and Belief (Pusat Riset Agama dan Kepercayaan)
- Research Center for Religious Moderation and Harmony (Pusat Riset Kerukunan dan Moderasi Beragama)
Research Center for Politics consists of five research clusters: (1) Foreign Policy and International Issues; (2) Ethnicity, Gender, Religion and Politics; (3) Political Representation, Government and Regional Autonomy; (4) Conflict, Defense and Security; (5) Political Economy and Strategic Issues. The center has a vision to become a scientific reference and a recommendation in the conceptualization of independent and trusted government policies, both at the national and international levels. It also has a mission to encourage the democratization process towards the establishment of a rational and conducive national political system for the realization of the ideals of people sovereignty, plurality, rule of law, civilization and upholding human rights, improvement of people’s welfare and fulfillment of a sense of justice for all elements of the nation.
Research Center for Society and Culture has two main research focuses ‘the society’ and ‘culture’. The subject of this center is the society with its diversity and complexity, examining beyond the statistical data as population numbers. It also covers research on the societal organization, its values (religious, spiritual or metaphysical, social, and cultural), world views and culture. Researchers in this center derive from different social and humanities backgrounds such as anthropology, sociology, history, linguistics, communication, philosophy, law, economic, psychology, criminology, and other relevant background. […]
Research Center for Area Studies conducts research on the history, politics, economics, law, and culture of societies in Southeast Asia, Africa, Europe, and Asia-Pacific. The center studies transnational connectivity of people, goods, and ideas, comparative knowledge of countries, societies, and cultures, as well as to examine economic, political, and cultural diplomatic relations across the regions. […]
Research Center for Population conducts studies on population issues at local, regional, and national levels. With a population of over 270 million, Indonesia faces challenges in managing its population and encounters various impacts due to the significant number of its population. […]
Research Center for Education conducts research on education system and education studies. Including in its research activities are research on education policy, curriculum, vocation system, politics of education, education for multicultural society, and also system of transmission of knowledge. […]
Research Center for Law conducts research on law and legal issues with mono-disciplinary, multi and interdisciplinary approaches to gain a depth scientific understanding on the current legal system in Indonesia and in the world and how these legal systems interact with the society and the environment. […]
Research Center for Religion and Belief focuses its research on religious movements and belief systems in Indonesia. How religions and beliefs influence and being influenced by public policy, politics, and culture. This center aims to produce rich knowledge based on studies on diverse religions and beliefs in the country. […]
Research Center for Religious Moderation and Harmony focuses its research on how to manage and maintain religious diversity in Indonesia to become the strength of this country, not a source of conflict. This center was previously part of the Ministry of Religious Affairs. Among research areas of this center are religious radicalism and terrorism, religious conflict and harmony, inter- and intra-religious relationship.
(All images courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)