CFP: APRU (Penang) - Conf on Independence and After in SE Asia
From: Judith Henchy <judithh@u.washington.edu>
Date: Oct 4, 2006 5:05 PM
Subject: [Vsg] Fw: H-SEASIA: CFP: APRU (Penang) - Conf on Independence and After in SE Asia
----- Original Message -----
From: "H-SEASIA Editor" <h_seasia@NUS.EDU.SG>
To: <H-SEASIA@H-NET.MSU.EDU>
Sent: Monday, October 02, 2006 3:23 AM
Subject: H-SEASIA: CFP: APRU (Penang) - Conf on Independence and After in SE
Asia
Conference: The Second International APRU Conference: Independence and After
in Southeast Asia: Old and New Interpretations
Date / Place: 14–15 August 2007, Penang, Malaysia
Organizer: Asia-Pacific Research Unit (APRU), School of Humanities,
Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, Malaysia
Content: First Announcement and Call for Papers / Panels (September 2006)
The region of what is today referred to as Southeast Asia is home to eleven
sovereign nation states, viz. Myanmar (formerly Burma), Thailand (formerly
Siam), Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Brunei,
Philippines, and Timor Leste. Except for the newly independent Timor Leste,
the remaining aforesaid countries comprise members of the Association of
South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN) that was established in 1967. The
combination of sustained economic growth, comparative political stability,
regional cooperation in the spirit of ASEAN, and an overall gradual rise in
the standard of living across the region portends well for a promising
future for Southeast Asia.
The year 2007 marks the 50th anniversary of Merdeka (independence) for
Malaysia. Malaysia’s attainment of political independence from British
colonial rule in August 1957 was through constitutional means with the
smooth handing over of sovereignty and administration from the British
government to Tunku Abdul Rahman Putra Al-Haj, the prime minister and
architect of Merdeka A decade earlier, two other fellow nations achieved
their freedom but through bloodshed in the process, namely Burma (1946) and
the Philippines (1946). Indonesia was plunged into a conflict of nearly half
a decade before independence became a reality. The Indochina states of Laos
and Cambodia, with the status of French colonial protectorates, became
sovereign states in 1954. Neighbouring Vietnam, however, had to struggle for
another two decades before it attained independence. The city-state of
Singapore gained independence from colonial rule through merging with
Malaysia in 1963; two years later (1965) Singapore seceded from the
Federation of Malaysia to chart its own course. The Sultanate of Brunei
finally decided to stand on its own as a sovereign nation in 1984 since
becoming a British protectorate nearly a century ago. The notable
exception – thanks to the then geopolitical circumstances and prudent native
leaders – is Thailand, which escaped the European shackles of colonial
domination by remaining the only independent, sovereign nation-state in the
region. Timor Leste was the most recent in 2002 to be freed from a
colonizing power.
The discourse of nations achieving political independence and the
characterization of the years that followed as the "postcolonial" period has
long been a mainstay of the academic agenda in studies of Southeast Asia,
particularly in the disciplines of history, political science, economics,
literature and language, anthropology, and sociology. The road to
independence was often long and arduous. The years following the attainment
of national sovereignty were equally troublesome and problematic with
seemingly insurmountable challenges. Whilst Malaysia faced the sensitive
issue of managing race relations, the Philippines struggled with a leftist
insurgency, and Thailand’s see-saw with weak civilian governments and
military juntas. Meanwhile Myanmar was secluded under a military
dictatorship, and Cambodia’s nightmare following the establishment of a
genocidal regime. The ups and downs of nation-building, the maintenance of
political stability and economic sustainability are but some of the major
issues that faced post-independent nation-states of Southeast Asia.
Deadline for Abstracts: 15 January 2007
Deadline for Working Papers: 1 June 2007
Individual Participants: Individuals are invited to present a 20-minute
working paper relevant to any aspect of the conference’s theme. They are
requested to submit an abstract (150-200 words) to the Secretariat.
Specialized Panels: Scholars who wish to organize a panel (4-5 presenters;
1-hour per panel) based on a particular topic relevant to the conference’s
overall theme are to submit to the Secretariat the following materials:
Proposed Panel: Abstract (350-400 words)
Convenor / Panelist I: Abstract (150-200 words)
Panelist II: Abstract (150-200 words)
Panelist III: Abstract (150-200 words)
Panelist IV: Abstract (150-200 words)
Panelist V: Abstract (150-200 words)
Organizing Committee
Associate Professor Dr OOI Keat Gin (Chairperson) (kgooi@hotmail.com),
Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, Malaysia
Dr SHAKILA Abdul Manan (Secretary) (shakila@usm.my)
Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, Malaysia
Further Information
The Conference Secretariat
The Second International Conference (2APRU)
Asia-Pacific Research Unit (APRU)
School of Humanities,
Universiti Sains Malaysia
11800 Penang
Malaysia
Tel: 604 6533888 Ext. 3377; Fax: 604 6563707
E-mail: shakila@usm.my Website: www.usm.my/APRU/index.html