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The Australian National University

International Centre of Excellence in Asia-Pacific Studies

     "Asian Currents" Postgraduate Register Collaborators ANU College for Asia & the Pacific
 

March 2005 Projects Reports

Professor Amarjit Kaur

University of New England

Project Title: Asia Pacific Regional Migration Network

1. About the Project:

This is a four-year project aimed at developing a regional partnership and collaboration between academics and practitioners (including NGO leaders, human rights lawyers, government officials) working on key issues of cross border migration in the Asia Pacific region. The collaboration is designed to promote a better understanding of:

  • major current and impending cross-border movements of people
  • the politics and policies of receiving migrants
  • and methods to protect the human rights of regular and irregular migrants.

Each year four international visitors from the region will be funded to visit Australia to present seminars at Workshops in Canberra and Armidale focusing on a particular theme. These seminars will form part of an intensive program in which Australian-based experts will also make presentations. The project also incorporates a training component for doctoral students, early career researchers and others working on migration issues.

The theme for 2005-2006 is: "Refugee Crises in the Twenty-First Century : Asia-Pacific Perspectives and Responses".

2. Details of Activities for 2005 –6

A number of activities were planned for 2005-6, and funding was sought from a few sources.

  • The first activity was the Asia Pacific Migrations Workshop, held at the ANU from 1-2 December 2005 ( convenor : Tessa Morris-Suzuki, with support from the APFRN)

The workshop aimed at building bridges of communication and stimulated discussion and debate between centres, departments and individuals concerned with and working in the area of Migration and Borders in the Asia Pacific region.

  • The principal activity comprised two Workshops on the ‘Refugee Crises in the Twenty-First Century: Asia-Pacific Perspectives and Responses’, funded by ICEAPS. These Workshops were held at the following venues and dates :
    1. Australian National University , Canberra, 27-28 February 2006 [ 25 participants] ( hosted by the Asia Pacific Regional Migration Forum ) http://www.regionalmigration.org/
    2. University of New England, Armidale, 2-3 March 2006 [35 participants] ( hosted by the Asia Pacific Regional Migration Forum and UNE Asia Centre) http://www.une.edu.au/news/archives/000451.html

The workshops brought together 4 prominent international speakers and 56 other participants from the Asia-Pacific region to share their perspectives on the refugee crises in our region, and on possible ways to improve protection of the rights of refugees and other border-crossers in the Asia-Pacific.

The four invited speakers gave presentations on the following:

Koki Abe : Kanagawa University, Japan ‘Are you a Good Refugee or a Bad Refugee? Security concerns and the dehumanisation of Immigration policies in Japan’

Hamdan Adnan: SUHAKAM (Human Rights Commission, Malaysia) ‘Refugee Issues In Malaysia - The Need To Be Proactive and A Human Rights-Based Solution’

Riwanto Tirtosudarmo : LIPI Indonesia ‘Critical Issues in Forced Migration Studies and the Refugee Crisis in Southeast Asia’

Devi Novianti : Christian-Action, Hong Kong ‘Meeting the Challenges of Ethnic Minorities and Refugees in Hong Kong’

Representatives from the Armidale Sanctuary also presented a paper at the Armidale Workshop on the work of the Sanctuary and a refugee from Sudan spoke of his and his family’s experiences in Australia.

Outcomes of the Workshops funded by ICEAPS

Participants in the workshops have joined our ongoing Asiarights network. The discussions at the workshops led to a decision to develop a database of information on border control and refugee developments around the region. This will be developed with input from the workshop participants. Initial funding for the database has been secured, and development will start in June 2006.

Media Publicity

The ANU and UNE media offices produced several media releases. The convenors and invited speakers were variously interviewed by ABC Radio (Tamworth), NBN TV, and were featured in the local newspapers.

Publication
Papers from the Respective Workshop will be pubished in Asiarights online magazine (Canberra Workshop) and UNEAC Asia Papers ( Armidale Workshop).

3. Intended outcomes of the project

  • A continuing regional engagement and collaboration on migration challenges in the Asia-Pacific region between academics and practitioners (including NGO leaders, human rights lawyers, government officials)
  • Collaboration on promoting issues of human security as a global concept, that are attentive to the definition that peoples themselves give to partial insecurities of which they suffer within the context of their emergence.
  • Contribution to Management of Social Transformations through an examination of international migration and multicultural policies, and to elaborate a framework for policy development on international migration on the basis of scientific research, and collect and disseminate best practices concerning the situation of migrants in society.



Associate Professor Peter Kell

University of Wollongong

Project Title: Researching higher Education in Australia and Malaysia: An International Forum

Objectives of the Forum

The two-day forum brought together academics and experts in higher education in Malaysia and Australia at the University of Wollongong.

The forum performed a role in developing an awareness of issues in Malaysia and Australia relating to higher education and sustaining a regional partnership. This international forum explored the questions about:

  • The impact of globalisation and the changing nature of the global /local economy on the nature and direction of higher education including public and private universities
  • The changing nature of university in fulfilling its mission in teaching and learning, research and community service and developments across nations and within the region.
  • The role of higher education in responding developing promoting national growth and regional identity as well as broad concepts of citizenship.

    The intended outcomes of this forum were to:

    • Continue a regional engagement on issues in higher education.
    • Develop a publication to document the forum.
    • Establish a formal research link between participants in higher education in the Asia Pacific.

    The forum program included
    • Presentations from Malaysian and Australian academics as a well as academics and students from Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Thailand and China.
    • Visits to religious sites by participants including Nein Tien Buddhist Temple, Helensburgh Hindu Temple and the Townsville Hari Raya ceremony.
    • A conference dinner hosted by CAPSTRANS and one hosted by the Faculty of Education.
    • A tour of the city for overseas delegates.
    • The Delegates to the Australia Malaysia Forum 2-4th November 2004

    The Malaysia Australia Higher Education Forum participants with the Malaysian delegation of Prof Morshidi Sirat, Prof Ambigapathy Pandian, Assoc Prof Shanthi Balray Bahboo, Dr Rozinah Jamaludin (Universiti Sains Malaysia) Assoc Prof Kew Yew Lie (Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia) Assoc Prof Vincent Pang (Universiti Malaysia Sabah) with CAPSTRAN director Dr Lenore Lyons, Deputy Director Dr Tim Scrase and forum convenor Assoc Prof Peter Kell

    List Of Presenters:

    A Situation Analysis of Higher Education in Malaysia Prof Morshidi Sirat, Director National Institute of Higher Education Research (IPPTN), Universiti Sains Malaysia. Penang.

    University Education and Employment: Realities, Relevance and Responsibility Prof Ambigapathy Pandian Deputy Dean, (Graduate and Research Studies) School of Humanities, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang.

    Opportunities for Bi-lateral engagements in Research: Conducting On/off-line Collaborative Knowledge Production between Australian and China Prof Michael Singh, Green, Wired, Safe University Research Strength, University of Western Sydney. & Assoc. Prof Yuping Wang, Visiting Fellow University of Western Sydney, Yuncheng University, China

    “It’s English but it isn’t English”! The Experience of International Students in Australia in Encountering Global English in the Global University Dr Gillian Vogl & Assoc Prof Peter Kell Faculty of Education, UOW

    Shall We Understand Each Other? Effects of Cross-Cultural Competence on Asian Students Learning Performance Lakhvin Srinarula, Management & Marketing, Faculty of Commerce, UOW

    Mathematics Teacher Education: Modelling Perspectives from Malaysia and Australian Contexts Dr Mohan Chinnappan, Faculty of Education, University of Wollongong

    Internationalisation of Higher Education in Malaysia Assoc Prof Vincent Pang, Associate Dean (Research and Innovation) Universiti Malaysia Sabah, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah.

    Braving New Worlds in Higher education: Sharing Common Grounds, Mediating Diversity and Difference in New Contexts and New Communities Assoc Professor Koo Yew Lie, School of Language

    E-Learning at USM: Moving towards the Future Dr Rozinah Jamaludin, Lecturer in the Centre of Instructional Technology and Multimedia, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, Malaysia

    Environment Sustainability and the Role of the Higher Education Institutions: A Case for the Agenda on Energy Efficiency Assoc Prof Shanthi Balraj Baboo School of Communication, Universiti Sains Malaysia

    Women and Academic Careers in Malaysia Dr Michelle Lunn, Lecturer School of Sociology, Social Policy and Social Work, Massey University, New Zealand

    Building a Capability Development Model for Professional School Leaders in Thai Education Koolchalee Chongcharoen, Faculty of Education University of Wollongong

    Australian Quality Assurance in an Australian University: A Case study Report Huai Nathan Jiang, Ed.D Candidate, Faculty of Education, University of Wollongong

    Outcomes of the Forum

    Media Publicity

    The UoW media office produced several media releases. One of the releases of the University of Wollongong was broadcast by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) on 4th November 2005. See http://media.uow.edu.au/releases/2005/1101a.html and http://media.uow.edu.au/news/2005/1110a/index.html

    Participant Response

    The forum was attended by 50 people throughout the three days of presentations and activities. The impressions of the forum included the following comments from participants:

    • It helped to develop an exchange of ideas and information.
    • The forum was “food for though” and enabled us to share current challenges in the Asia Pacific.
    • It was a good opportunity for me to present my research in forum with like-minded people.
    • It was good for building some new networks and webs.
    • I have opened up new avenues of enquiry from this session.
    • Sensitivities were explored and developed opportunities in moving forward.
    • Latest up to the minute data and research from some of the top scholars in Higher education in Australia and Malaysia.
    • It was a great opportunity for students to present doctoral work and their future studies.
    • It helped us in sharing dilemmas of teaching, research and internationalisation debate and see that there was a common experience.
    • We gained a greater understanding of the complexities of internationalisation in all our countries.


    The Future

    Continuing a regional engagement on issues in higher education.

    • The value of maintaining an active link was recognised and it was suggested that a conference be held in Malaysia in 2006.
    • The forum website will be modified to include details of the network and will include the abstracts and details of the presenters.
    • A listserver will be developed by Dr Rozinah Jamaludin of all the forum members with links to CAPSTRANS server.
    • A newsletter will be complied and distributed by Dr Michelle Lunn.

    Developing a publication to document the forum.

    • The decision was taken to develop a monograph from the presentations delivered at the forum.
    • The monograph will be useful for government and bureaucracies to develop an impact on policy
    • The editorial team will include Assoc Prof Peter Kell, Dr Mohan Chinnappan, Ms Lakhvin Srinarula, Prof Ambigapathy Pandian,
    • The first draft will be scheduled for April May and will include the presentations and the nucleaus of the publication.
    • The possibility of a joint Universiti Sains Malaysia and University of Wollongong publication will be explored.

    Establish a formal research link between participants in higher education in the Asia Pacific.

    Future Research Activity

    Several applications for funds will include:

    • Asia Pacific Future Network funding for a 2006 Application for Malaysia conference.
    • The funding from the Australia Malaysia Institute Dr Vincent Pang will investigate
    • ARC International linkage grant with partners in Australia, Malaysia, India, China working on the issue of English in the Asia Pacific region/
    • ILRU and IPPTN may be able to be focus pints in future for research projects with bi-lateral nodes.


    Forthcoming Conference Themes for a proposed Australian Malaysia Higher Education Forum in 2006

    Research Themes Emerging for Forum in 2006. Higher Education in the Asia Pacific and Networked society

    • Mathematics Education bilateral studies in the teaching of Science, mathematics and the language interface.
    • The Concept of knowledge communities and interconnected networks and communications. What does it really mean for the academy.
    • Interconnected Knowledge and Research: Research policy and directions and the dilemmas for Australia Malaysia and other partners in the Asia Pacific.
    • Connecting with the Environment: Higher Education, the environment and sustaining sustainability?
    • Networking and linking to broader knowledge community: Links of Lifelong Learning “second chance” learning in adult education.
    • Maintaining the Standard of higher Education in the Asia Pacific: Quality assurance of trans-national education.
    • Interconnecting global communities: ICT and emerging technologies of learning.
    • Interconnections and global diversity: Intercultural implications emerging from internationalisation for teaching/research.
    • Governance and leadership higher education.
    • Professionalism in teaching and leadership.
    • Inclusion in Higher Education: Gender and inclusion in higher education research in the Asia Pacific.
    • Networks, funding, resourcing and the governance of Higher Education in the Asia Pacific: Private exchange or public good? Public corporation of private enterprise?

    Additional Publications

    • Research methods in the Asia Pacific (Possibility of book) in future. Ambi/Koo/ChrisFox/Kell/Mohan
    • Comparative Education Journal Koo/Pang to possibly submit

    Conference Opportunities

    • KL 2007 Asian scholars conference ICAS5
    • ILRU International Literacy Research Unit LitCON Penang; 2007.
    • CESA; 2007
    • AVETRA Australian Vocational Education Training Research Association; 2007

    Professor Philip Kitley

    University of Wollongong

    Project Title: Indonesia Broadcasting Commission, Lessons from the first years: Workshop

    Objectives

    The workshop on the Indonesian Broadcasting Commission was funded by ICEAPS and CAPSTRANS and was an important first attempt to review the status and work of the Commission. The status, responsibilities and powers of the Indonesian Broadcasting Commission (KPI) have come under sustained challenge in the media, the courts and from sections of executive government and private broadcasters. The KPI has defended its status vigorously but its effectiveness in maintaining accountability and transparency in broadcasting practices has been diminished. The workshop examined impediments to the effectiveness of the KPI, and in a series of position papers and presentations developed suggestions for institutional strengthening by involving principal and partner researchers, comparative analysts and key stakeholders.

    Participants

    Participants in the workshop included the Deputy Chair of the Australian Communication and Media Authority (ACMA) and a representative of the Malaysian Multimedia Commission. These two key participants introduced a comparative dimension into discussions that was very useful as it helped to demonstrate that many of the Indonesian Commission’s challenges were issues faced by many regulators. The comparative focus helped to shift discussions towards solutions rather than simply rearticulating well known problems and disputes. Other participants included three representatives of the Indonesian Broadcasting Commission, media activist Agus Sudibyo from the Institute for the Flow of Information (ISAI), media policy lawyer Hinca Panjaitan from the Indonesian Media Law and Policy Centre, Ali Murtadlo representing the developing regional television market, Ishadi SK, CEO TransTV Jakarta, Dr Edwin Jurriens (ADFA), Professor Philip Kitley (convener), Professor David Marshall (UOW), Professor Stephen Hill (UOW, and formerly Ambassador, UNESCO posted in Jakarta). UOW postgraduate students attended sessions as their timetables permitted.

     

    Acknowledgement of Sponsors

    The workshop was opened by the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academic and Internationalisation) Professor Castle and by the Dean, Faculty of Arts. Photographs of the opening was publicised on the university website and in the local daily, the Illawarra Mercury where ICEAPS support was noted. All participants gave formal presentations in English or Indonesian and these presentations were posted in English after transcription on the CAPSTRANS website where sponsorship of the workshop by ICEAPS and CAPSTRANS was acknowledged.

    Outcomes

    The workshop was organised as an intensive program of whole group discussion based on Professor Kitley’s experience of pioneering workshops on Indonesian media issues in the 1990s held at Leiden University. The ‘Leiden model’ model provides for participants to work with each other over the whole period of the workshop and by listening and taking part in extended discussions of each other’s papers, to reach a more profound understanding of different perspectives and political positions. The model worked extremely well and resulted in a number of ‘breakthroughs’ as reported later in the Indonesian leading national daily Kompas Friday 9 February 2007, page 7, “KPI, Regulasi Siaran TV dan Radio” by Ishadi SK – one of the workshop participants. Mr Ishadi has offered the facilities of Trans TV for a follow up workshop in 2008-9.

    Philip Kitley’s revised workshop paper was presented for discussion at the ICAS5 conference in Kuala Lumpur in August 2007, and was submitted in August 2007 to The Pacific Review for publication. The Pacific Review is rated by the Web of Science as a high impact area studies journal. At the time of writing reviewer’s comments have not been received.

    Participants’ positive endorsement of the workshop encouraged Professor Kitley to apply to the Australia-Indonesia Governance Research Partnership grants fund for a follow up workshop. In that application ICEAPS and CAPSTRANS support for the 2007 workshop were acknowledged. The grant was unsuccessful but scored in the ‘near miss’ category from over 60 applications. The application will be re-submitted in November 2007.

    The workshop came in on budget and all monies were expended as per guidelines. I acknowledge the helpful and efficient organising support of the Faculty of Arts and June Aspley who had carriage of the management of the workshop. I am also pleased to acknowledge the support and guidance of Associate Professor Lenore Lyons, Director CAPTRANS. A budget statement is attached for information.

    ICEAPS support for this workshop, the first serious scholarly examination of one of Indonesia’s new reformist commissions, was much appreciated by Indonesian colleagues who commented that such a workshop, given the tensions surrounding the Commission, ‘could never have been held in Jakarta’. ICEAPS is to be congratulated for its interest and support for path breaking research and institutional strengthening.



    Doctor John Makeham

    University of Adelaide

    Project Title: The Formation and Development of Academic Disciplines in China: Workshop

    Principal Activities
    Workshop successfully held at the University of Adelaide 3-4 December 2005. The group of 8 invited participants, and the disciplines they represented, were:
    Matthew Chew (Chinese University of Hong Kong), Philosophy
    Scott Davis (Miyazaki International College, Japan), Anthropology
    Stanislaus Fung (UNSW), Architecture
    Andy Kirkpatrick (Curtin University), Linguistics
    Mau-kuei Chang (Academia Sinica, Taiwan), Sociology
    Brian Moloughney (Otago University, New Zealand), Chinese History
    John Makeham (University of Adelaide), Chinese Philosophy
    Lauren Pfister (Hong Kong Baptist University), Religious Studies

    The Workshop met the stated aim of enabling “a core group of Asia-Pacific-based academic colleagues to hold a workshop to prepare the groundwork for a major research project on the formation and development of academic disciplines (humanities and social sciences) in twentieth-century China”.

    Participants in the workshop presented initial thoughts and approaches, especially in regard to issues of how we might work as a group rather than as a collection of individuals. The workshop did not to seek to have representatives from all possible disciplines but rather brought together a sufficiently large group of people so that the quantum mass needed to plan the major research project can proceed. Participants agreed that the project would pursue the following aims:

    • to understand and analyze how traditional forms of Chinese scholarship were adapted to new knowledge paradigms;
    • to identify the role played by indigenous “grammars,” or standards of rational justification, in shaping the formation of academic disciplines, and the concrete forms in which these grammars interacted with western paradigms and concepts;
    • to demonstrate how indigenous grammars of knowledge construction, and their ongoing complex interaction with western paradigms, decisively influenced the formation and development of individual academic disciplines; and
    • to examine the significance of the growing trend toward the indigenization (bentuhua) of knowledge systems and how it relates to broader contemporary concerns about the indigenization of knowledge in many social science and humanities disciplines.

    It was decided:

    • the project will operate at two levels: 1. a broad umbrella structure to be coordinated by John Makeham; and 2. individual disciplinary nodes or clusters to be coordinated by individual node coordinators. These disciplinary nodes will bring together international researchers who have an interest in the history of a particular discipline.
    • teams of participants will be formed for each disciplinary node.
    • members of each node will aim to participate in the annual workshops that bring all nodes together.
    • The annual workshops will be convened in 2007, 2008, and 2009 under the coordination of the umbrella structure. The first workshop will be convened late November 2007 in Otago, New Zealand.

    Workshop participants identified a theme for each year. The themes have been designed to be general enough to accommodate a broad range of disciplines:

    Year 1 (2007)
    The transition from traditional knowledge schema and knowledge practices to new epistemologies

    • Why did new concepts get taken up?
    • How did it effect the understanding of the material?
    • Was it an adequate conceptualization?
    • What were the social consequences and conditions for this?

    Year 2 (2008)
    Terminological and disciplinary demarcation

    • Including naming practices for particular disciplines
    • Bibliographical systems and libraries

    Year 3 (2009)
    Creation of “academics” (homo academicus sinicus?) and the formation of seminal institutions

    • Incorporation into tertiary teaching and curricula
    • Pioneering academic departments
    • Pioneering professional associations
    • Pioneering professional journals

    At present we have the following disciplines represented in the first phase of the project: Anthropology, architecture, Chinese history, Chinese literature, Chinese philosophy, linguistics, religious studies, sociology. Membership of these disciplines is currently being finalized. Currently the membership of each node is as follows: anthropology (7); architecture (4); Chinese history (12); Chinese literature (4); Chinese philosophy (11); linguistics (9); religious studies (7); sociology (to be finalized by September). Membership is drawn from academics in Europe, East Asia, North America, Australia and New Zealand.

    The disciplinary node coordinators are:

    Scott Davis (Miyazaki International College, Japan), Anthropology
    Arif Dirlik (University of Oregon), Sociology
    Stanislaus Fung (University of New South Wales), Architecture
    Andy Kirkpatrick (Hong Kong Institute of Education), Linguistics
    Wolfgang Kubin (Bonn University), Chinese Literature
    Brian Moloughney (Otago University), Chinese History
    John Makeham (University of Adelaide), Chinese Philosophy
    Lauren Pfister (Hong Kong Baptist University), Religious Studies

    Either over the coming months or in the second phase of the project
    (latter half of 2006, first half of 2007) we hope to add one or more of the following
    disciplines: psychology, political science, economics, and law.

    In addition, Duncan Campbell (Victoria University of Wellington) will work on bibliographies and libraries (necessarily multi-disciplinary in focus).

    Other activities and publicity
    John Makeham gave a seminar on the Project at the Institute for Modern History, Academia Sinica, Taiwan, on January 11 2006. The seminar was attended by about 25 researchers from Academia Sinica as well a number of visiting international scholars. Several participants were “recruited” as a result of the seminar.

    John Makeham recently submitted a proposal to M.E. Sharpe to support the publication of a series of collected essays: one for each disciplinary node as well as a single volume that brings together the results of the work in the various disciplines.

    Difficulties encountered
    No major difficulties to report. Chang Mau-kuei agreed to coordinate the sociology node but due to personal reasons recently withdrew from the project. Fortunately Arif Dirlik enthusiastically agreed to take up this role. It is because this changeover happened only very recently and unexpectedly that membership of the sociology node is still being developed.

    Participants in the Workshop unanimously expressed their gratitude to ICEAPS for making the meeting possible. Given the successful development of the project since then it is hoped that ICEAPS will consider contributing to the support of the first annual workshop in Otago in 2007 where we expect in excess of 50 participants, including a substantial cohort from the Asia-Pacific region.

    Doctor Mark McLelland

    University of Queensland

    Project Title: Sexualities, Gender and Rights in Asia: The First International Conference of Asian Queer Studies: Conference

    Background

    SEXUALITIES, GENDERS AND RIGHTS IN ASIA: An International Conference of Asian Queer Studies was the first international interdisciplinary conference on studies of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, transsexual, bisexual and queer (LGBTQ) peoples and communities in Asia and was held in Bangkok, Thailand, from 1 to 3 July, 2005. The conference aimed to develop linkages between research about Asian LGBTQ individuals and communities and promote the human and civil rights of homosexual, transgender and transsexual peoples in the region. A parallel aim of the conference was to defend the academic rights of those researching and teaching about LGBTQ peoples in Asia.

    The Event

    The event was highly successful, involving 175 papers presented over three days. Each day of the conference was dedicated to a specific theme:

    Day 1 – 7 July – Rights
    Day 2 – 8 July – Cultures
    Day 3 – 9 July – Health

    Furthermore, all panels and papers were programmed into several thematic streams to permit participants with specific interests to attend as many sessions as possible on the topic that was most relevant to them. The conference streams were:

    Cinemas and Media
    Gay Cultures
    Diasporas
    Health
    Rights and Activism
    Transgenders
    Women Who Love Women

    Additionally, a series of plenary panels and keynote presentations sought to highlight some key issues facing GLBTQ communities across the region. Professor Josephine Ho of National Central University Taiwan cautioned that the recent emphasis on human rights’ issues across the region is often framed in such a manner as to exclude sexual minorities and gender nonconformists. On a more positive note, a film panel consisting of four well-known queer film and video directors from the region spoke of the rise in visibility enabled over the last decade by interest in international and regional queer film festivals and events.

    Media coverage

    Local media coverage of the event in Bangkok’s Thai and English newspapers was extensive and as a result a large amount of interest was generated in the community. We had received approximately 300 pre-conference registrations, however due to advance media reports we had many attendees who arrived to register on the day for one or more days of the event. Our records indicate that at its peak, the combined conference audience reached 550 persons.

    Difficulties

    Organising an event of this size was not without its difficulties. Our original estimate was that this event would perhaps attract 100 paper givers and an audience of 250. However actual participation was more than double our original estimate which put a lot of strain on our largely volunteer organizational network. Also, the event was a collaboration between academics at several institutions, namely The ANU, Mahidol University, The University of Queensland, the University of Melbourne and the Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies at the City University of New York. Having such a dispersed organizational team dealing with differing internal structures and financial procedures was not without its challenges but in the end the collaboration resulted in a highly empowering event which served to strengthen the research ties between these institutions.

    Outcomes

    The conference website http://bangkok2005.anu.edu.au/ is being maintained as an archive of the event and includes the full program, abstracts of all papers presented, a photo selection and a refereed proceedings. A special conference edition of the journal Intersections: Gender, Culture and History in the Asian Context is also in the process of being compiled and will be released in mid 2006.

    Future Activities

    It is not at this stage clear whether the Asian Queer Studies conference will become a regular event. However, what this event demonstrated to all participants was that queer studies is no longer the sole province of Western-trained experts bringing in imported theory to account for local sexual and gender cultures. Asian queer studies emerged decisively from this conference as an enterprise carried out by researchers working within Asia itself, and not only speaking back to the presumptive centre of queer studies in the English-speaking West, but also articulating direct intra-regional conversations between diverse locations in Asia.

    An Australia-based conference entitled Queer Asian Sites is currently being planned and is scheduled to take place in March in Sydney in 2007. It is hoped that a venue and an organising committee for a future Asia-based Asian Queer Studies conference will develop out of this meeting. The AsiaPacifiQueer network is currently sounding out contacts in Hong Kong and Southern China for a potential Asian Queer Studies event in Macau in 2008.

    John Dodgson

    Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering, Victoria

    Project Title: After the Tsunami - Harnessing Australian Expertise for Recovery: Workshop

    Canberra, 31 March 2005
    The National Academies Forum is the coordination and consultation mechanism for the four Australian learned academies—the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia, the Australian Academy of Science, the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering and the Australian Academy of the Humanities. It was established in 1995 to succeed the former Consultative Committee of the Australian Committees .

Introduction
The magnitude 9.3 earthquake in the Indian Ocean off Sumatra on 26 December 2004 resulted in a massive tsunami. It caused catastrophic loss o f more than 300,000 people and inflicted major damage to infrastructure, property and the environment of many coastal and island nations of the Indian Ocean—principally Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, India, Africa and the Maldives.

In response to this large-scale international disaster, the National Academies Forum (NAF), in collaboration with the Departmen t of Education, Science and Training (DEST), organised a one-day workshop at the Shine Dome, Canberra on 31 March 2005. The aim was to consider how Australian science, technology, social science and humanities could impact on three key aspects of dealing with disaster—preparedness, recovery and rehabilitation.

Organisation of the Workshop
The Workshop was attended by approximately 100 natural disaster experts and other participants from academia, government, industry and the community at large. It was chaired by the President of the National Academies Forum, Dr John W Zillman AO FTSE and opened by the Hon Bruce Billson MP, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, with an opening address delivered by the Hon Tim Fischer AC FTSE, former Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the ATSE (Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering) Crawford Fund.

The outcome from the Workshop can be summarised in terms of:
• the major conclusions from the eight individual breakout group discussions; and
• a synthesis of conclusions and recommendations from the group discussions which were brought together by the rapporteurs into a set of seven overarching recommendations; as set out below.

Major Outcomes

Warning and preparedness
The three main components to ‘warning’ are: issuing a tsunami forecast, transmitting the tsunami warning/forecast to coastal communities and ensuring the public knows what action to take. There are a series of steps in moving from an earthquake to a tsunami impact forecast, and each requires significant scientific and modelling expertise (which Australia possesses). False warnings can be a problem, as they may lead to complacency. But it is vital that a tsunami early warning system (TEWS) transmits any alert to all relevant coastal communities.

Post-tsunami, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has joined forces with the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO (UNESCO-IOC), the UN International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (ISDR) and other key agencies to develop a tsunami early warning system in the Indian Ocean and other regions at risk. Since 1968 UNESCO-IOC has coordinated the development of the highly effective Tsunam i Warning System in the Pacific (TWSP). WMO’s Global Telecommunication System (GTS) interconnects the world’s National Meteorological and Hydrological Services, enabling the timely and reliable exchange of warning messages and related information. The TWSP already makes use of this system, and WMO is working to make it fully operational for tsunami and seismic applications in vulnerable areas worldwide.

Australia already has a sophisticated c ommunication infrastructure, used to issue warnings of severe weather and storms to all involved in emergency management. Our expertise in the appropriateness of different message dissemination techniques for different types of communities is a valuable resource for other Indian Ocean countries.

Sustainable reconstruction
A sustainable future for those Indian Ocean communities affected by the tsunami relies on enhancing the resilience of the system. Prior to the event most had low resilience, mainly the result of poverty and environmental damage (some examples are bleaching of coral reefs, destructive fishing practices, clearing of mangroves and beach erosion).

Sustainable reconstruction involves people, places and production—for communities that must deal with considerable natural variability. Such reconstruction is the outcome of effectively linking the built, social, cultural and environmental infrastructures. Rebuilding must start with development of appropriate building codes and practices and determination of whether sites for communities should be moved (set back)—bearing in mind the critical dependence of communities upon the coast for
their livelihood.

Similarly, activities of agriculture, aquaculture and forestry (both community and commercial) should be sited in optimal locations to foster sustainability. Education and capacity-building are also keys to future developments, as is an integrated coastal zone management (ICZM) approach. Geographic information systems (GIS) provide a powerful means to attain these goals. However, available data are still limited for the broader region (including parts of Australia).

A partnership approach involving universities, government and non-government institutions should be fostered through added strength of existing linkages and networks. In the quest for sustainable reconstruction, local communities must be involved in decision-making at all stages.

Australia, with its particular strengths in t ropical coastal and marine science, ICZM, multiple-use natural resource management (NRM), and building codes and practices, is wellpositioned to make a longer-term commitment to capacity building in the region.

Health systems
The tsunami has had a major impact on the health systems of affected countries. For example, in the Aceh province of Indonesia around 50 per cent of the provincial health centres were seriously damaged or destroyed and over 50 per cent of health care professionals were killed or displaced.

Australia’s response tested our own health system resources and emergency management protocols, but highlighted the willingness of the Australian health community to assist.

Through a partnership with the Government of Indonesia, Australia now has the opportunity to extend this assistance into the rehabilitation phase. However, there is little knowledge about the capacity and capability of Australia’s health workforce to operate in the region. This is compounded by our diminishing knowledge base in Asian languages, culture and politics. And we have lost the knowledge of how to manage tropical diseases and ‘old’ diseases (such as measles and tetanus), especially in the compromised setting of a country in the aftermath of a major natural disaster.

The enormity is clearly recognised of rebuilding in countries devastated by the loss of so many health professionals and so much of the health infrastructure, especially when this is compounded by the scale of the physical and psychological trauma experienced by the local population. Any rebuilding effort should go beyond just restoring the national health infrastructure and human resources and ensure that people of the affected countries are empowered to materially improve, in a sustainable manner, the health and welfare of their communities.

The following are designated as priority areas for health systems: 1) mapping resources, i.e. knowing what we have to call upon in our region; 2) consideration of long-term health impacts and improving resilience to disease threats; 3) developing Centres of Excellence featuring national exchange of professionals; 4) improving knowledge and understanding of the region.

Continuity of knowledge
Culture and custom are as important for community survival as physical assistance and technical expertise. Devastating natural disasters can destroy all knowledge upon which communities depend for their identity, survival and reproduction along with physical infrastructure and human lives. As well as formal and codified knowledge (such as that produced and disseminated by education systems) there is also the informal, lived knowledge of traditional communities.

In Aceh, for example, the tsunami destroyed many written land titles, and international agencies are now assisting to restore and rebuild the formal land documentation system. But in rural areas, including coastal communities, land ownership is often governed by custom and tradition, and many individuals and families have no written titles. In these cases, recovering records of land ownership will depend on intricate knowledge of local language, culture and community structures. Rebuilding communities, or altering land-use patterns, without respecting such local knowledge will only exacerbate community trauma.

Australians need expert knowledge of the countries and communities of our region to assist the
rebuilding of societies devastated by natural disasters.

Cultural knowledge and sensitivity are an essential component of aid delivery. In Aceh an Australian civilian medical team was on the ground and performing operations within five days of the tsunami. Yet at first, no interpreters or persons with local cultural knowledge were included in these teams. Until the arrival of several volunteer interpreters, patients expressed frustration at their
inability to communicate directly with medical staff about their injuries and other concerns. The medical team, in turn, had difficulty explaining treatment regimes and ascertaining the nature of injuries. Without the assistance of volunteer interpreters, there was the likelihood of misdiagnosis. Interpreters also assisted medical teams to achieve effective triage for determining evacuation versus on-site treatment options.

At present, discussions focus on the social sciences, but extending the plan to cover areas in natural sciences, technology, medicine and education would strengthen the local education system’s capacity to contribute directly to reconstruction, and would broaden the range of Australia’s institutional links into the region.

Risk—governance and policy
Australia’s current governance structure and policy-making framework have supported strong response and relief efforts, stemming from a tradition of military assistance after natural disasters. Under our Constitution, the States and Territories are responsible for emergency management, only calling on Federal assistance when a situation becomes unmanageable, in terms of containing the hazard and associated costs. Our timely military and civilian assistance has rescued many people over many years and provided immediate relief in the wake of natural hazards that have devastated communities.

However, the recent Council of Australian Governments’ Review into Natural Disasters (2004) recognised the need for disaster risk management measures other than just relief and response. Policy development needs to support mitigation and long-term recovery in order to ensure safe and sustainable communities. This recommendation is aligned with developments in emergency risk management, which often refers to risk management practices as ‘PPRR’ — Prevention (now termed Mitigation), Preparation, Response and Recovery.

Australia has the capacity to develop risk assessments, to assist policy makers, both in Australia and our broader region and to reduce the vulnerability of communities to natural disasters.

Australia is well placed to employ best practice risk management measures, and should consider risk assessments as an effective and sustainable form of international aid.

Longer-term issues: Economic, social, cultural, environmental
In the aftermath of the tsunami, Australia’s research and development sector contributed its significant expertise to disaster relief efforts in many ways — specifically through disaster management, provision of scientific and technical know-how, and its understanding of sociocultural, economic and political issues of the affected areas. However a number of important gaps limit our capacity to contribute to development and reconstruction efforts in the longer-term.

These relate to a lack of:
• personnel trained in Asian languages or with knowledge of socio-cultural and political contexts
• a coordinated regional disaster management framework
• base-line data
• coordination and collaboration across disciplines, institutions and industry sectors
• methods to effectively disseminate research findings
• sustainable regional partnerships.

Australia has a unique opportunity to reflect on and evaluate our national capacity to respond to future disasters and contribute to sustainable development in our region.

In evaluating our contributions and gaps, we need to recognise that decisions made now will have long-term effects on Australia’s R&D capacity as well as reconstruction and other activities in the region.

Technology and ICT (Information & Communication Technologies) for rehabilitation
In the aftermath of a disaster, commercial telecommunications providers (e.g. Telstra and Eriksson) have mobile telephone capability that could b e readily deployed to disaster areas to provide connectivity for relief providers. The technology also exists to establish secure or priority mobile phone networks in emergency situations.

The introduction and application of ‘appropriate’ technology in the rehabilitation phase could bring great benefit (‘appropriate’ referring to the need to recognise the nature and capability of the society that will use and maintain the technology). Experience has already demonstrated that insertion of high technology equipment into regions that lack the capacity to support and maintain it usually means that it rapidly falls into disuse when the providers leave. Rehabilitation must do more than restore the status quo that existed prior to the disaster; this is an opportunity for the society to advance technologically.

In this arena Australia’s distinctive technical advantage (compared with, say, Europe/US) is knowledge of, and demonstrated capability in, servicing and supporting small remote communities.

Australia should therefore help its regional partners to focus on the following facets of ICT: simple, cheap remote communications (eg. low-cost wireless systems); low-cost solar energy systems; delivery of distance health and education support.

Despite significant technological expertise in Australia, there are important gaps. There is an urgent need for a national forum involving all relief and rehabilitation agencies to facilitate a ‘whole-ofsystems’ approach. In particular, an integrated, national GIS capability would facilitate all phases of response—this would need to be sourced with appropriate data, which could be developed from the various nations involved.

It is vital that lessons learnt from the current tsunami response experience are captured in a consistent format for wide distribution. A review of the programs operating under the National Research Priority Safeguarding Australia is recommended, to identify all aspects relevant to natural disaster recovery, and the establishment of a high-level ASEAN Forum involving
regional governments and NGOs is strongly supported.

Understanding and harnessing community response
The magnitude of the response after the Boxing Day tsunami showed how various communities can harness their capacity fo r assistance and renewal (e.g. scholarly, diasporic (expatriates), donor, medical, aid, other). Australia can contribute to the understanding of this process (and learn some lessons itself) as it evaluates how assistance can be best utilised in ongoing donor/
reconstruction efforts.

Many Australians have long been engaged in projects in the region and can offer some knowledge of the communities affected by the tsunami disaster. Many have acquired relevant language and local area cultural knowledge—assets in addressing two of the main barriers to engagement. There are also networks of important overseas alumni of Australian universities, who maintain links with Australian academia.

Despite these positives, there are still large gaps in our knowledge and capacity, and these require further investment to resolve. It is also important to consider the local ‘perceptions’ of Australians throughout the region (and be prepared that these may not always be positive). And there is a disturbing downward trend in Asian language and cultural studies across the Australian university sector that needs to be reversed.

More needs to be done in scaling down the development focus from the national to the provincial level. Also emergency relief personnel need to know how to access expertise outside their specific discipline (for example in the tsunami relief program, high-level language expertise was available but relief agencies were unsure how to access it).

Evaluation of the response to the Boxing Day tsunami will assist planning and preparedness for future disasters, and there are now unique and unprecedented opportunities for longer-term integrated projects at the community level. We can avoid the semblance of a ‘white-knight’ mentality in disaster response efforts through longer-term investments, commitments and relationships.

Conclusions and Recommendations
The workshop concluded that, by comparison with most other countries, Australia is well-placed to offer assistance in many of the above areas of expertise, due to our local knowledge of servicing and supporting tropical and remote community conditions, and our historical associations with the broader region. The serious situation of the tsunami provided a unique (if unwelcome) opportunity for a reassessment to improve disaster and rehabilitation management and the more strategic and sustainable approach of Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) across the region. It may also provide the opportunity to plan for the mitigation of potential impacts of global climate change.

The eigh t focus breakout groups reached consensus on some universal aspects that would consistently underpin an effective and positive response. Their conclusions, formulated in terms of seven specific recommendations, are:

1. United strategic regional disaster management: For an effective, s trategic and unified approach to regional disaster management, Australia needs to establish and formalise multidisciplinary, multisectoral teams supported by a national framework, networks and a ‘common’ language — and underpinned by whole-of-government support.

2. National regional database: Develop a national regional database (supported by a whole-of-government input) to support expedient access to knowledge of capacity — both Australian and regional (this would have a multitude of other national benefits, including a national shorelines geospatial framework).

3. Regional continuity of knowledge: Australia should make communication and education a key priority for all aspects of disaster preparedness, recovery and rehabilitation — particularly to support remote communities and effect evidence-based policy development; this may require the supply of sustainable technology.

4. High-level Indian Ocean governance: Establish a high-level Indian Ocean regional forum (similar to that already operating in the Asia Pacific) with an Australian role that considers disaster warning and preparedness as part of its charter.

5. Culture of collaboration: Create a ‘culture of collaboration’ through developing partnership centres of excellence and stronger links between Australian and regional research agencies — including in-country training of professionals.

6. Strengthen Australia’s regional knowledge/skills base: Australia must consider regional cultural imperatives in all assistance and partnering activities. Therefore, we urgently need to strengthen our regional knowledge and skills bases — particularly in languages, history, cultural and religious studies, and political science — through appropriate education, training and career structures with government support.

7. Risk management as aid: Australia should consider risk management an essential component of a broader approach to aid and development to support sustainable regional futures (i.e. risk management is not just a response mechanism).

Professor Robin Jeffrey

Asian Studies Association of Australia (ASAA)

Project Title: Television in Asia, the Political Present: Workshops


A. Objectives
The "TV in Asia" project aimed to bring together scholars, practitioners and technical experts from the across Asia to compare the development and effects of television in various countries. The task of the project was stimulate research on Asian television among people who otherwise seldom meet and on topics that cross disciplinary and regional boundaries.

Assessment of Principle Activities
Beginning in mid-2005 the “Television in Asia” initiative brought together practitioners, scholars and managers of television from various countries of the region in three separate conferences. These conferences aimed to:

  • map the television landscape of Asia
  • identify areas for research – from the practical to the theoretical
  • promote cross-border and cross-disciplinary research
  • generate research projects that will explore important problems, enthuse scholars, win international funding, contribute to understanding of communications in a global era and foster a new generation of border-crossing scholar-practitioners

    The first leg of the “Television in Asia” project was held at Shanghai Exhibition Center (20-24 Aug., 2005), on the back of the 4th ICAS conference. The second leg was held at La Trobe University, Melbourne (11-14 Dec. 2005) and the final leg at La Trobe Institute of India and South Asia (16-17 Nov. 2006).

    The Shanghai event focused on primarily on China and India while the December 2005 conference in Melbourne involved presentations on television from Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, the Philippines, India, China, Japan and Sri Lanka. The final 2006 conference focused on South Asia and primarily involved presentations from scholars and practitioners of Indian television. It also involved the public display at La Trobe University of an exhibition on Bengali cinema (1930s-50s) by Sharmishtha Gooptu, University of Chicago.

    In assembling various experts from across the region, the project laid the groundwork for the signature event in 2006 of another ARC-funded enterprise, the Asia-Pacific Futures Research Network. The signature event, held in Perth in November, focused on communications in Asia.

    "TV in Asia" has so far involved a number of graduate students and younger practitioners. It has examined both aspects of popular culture and the role of television in health awareness and social change.

    Publications
    A selection of the proceeds of the December 2005 event have been published in a special section on ‘TV in Asia’ in Biblio: A Review of Indian Books (New Delhi: Sep- Oct. 2006), Vol XI, Nos. 9 & 10. The section has been edited by Nalin Mehta and Robin Jeffrey and contained ten articles that were first presented in the ‘TV in Asia’ December conference.

    Activities
    Investigation of grant proposals to study aspects of HIV/AIDS and Asian television are in train. In mid-2006, at least two future ARC proposals were germinating as a result of the project.

    Another future ARC proposal on television and sport, particularly relating to the Commonwealth Games, is also being considered as direct result of this event.

    b. umber of participants/audience involved in activities;
    Around seven participants were involved in the Shanghai conference, thirty in the Dec 2005 event and fifteen in the Nov, 2006 conference.
    c. Any media coverage or publicity generated;
    The Dec. 2005 conference was covered by The Melbourne Times (7 Dec 2005).
    d. Any difficulties experienced in executing the project;
    None
    e. Future activities expected to be initiated following the completion of the project
    A collection of articles coming out of the ‘TV in Asia’ project are currently being considered for publication as follows:
    - South Asian Popular Culture (Routledge), special issue on TV and Asian popular culture, edited by Nalin Mehta.
    - Book proposal, Nalin Mehta (Ed.), Chai in a Coke Bottle: Satellite Television, Politics and Cultural Change in India, currently being considered for publication in Routledge series on Media, Culture and Society in Asia. The proposal is currently with the series editor, Stephanie Donald.

    Doctor Beryl Langer

    La Trobe University

    Project Title: Philippines-Australia: Networks, Identities, Communities: Workshop & Conference

    The first workshop for the 'Philippines-Australia: Networks, Identities, Communities' project, funded by an ICEAPS Grant of $10,000, was held at LaTrobe University on May 5th and 6', 2006. Over two days of discussion and presentation of individual research papers by scholars from Manila and Australia and representatives of the Australia-Philippines Business Council - seventeen people in all -- the group worked towards clarification of a shared research agenda. (See attached copy of the Workshop
    programme, listing participants and session titles.) In addition, open seminars by the
    visiting scholars from Manila were presented at LaTrobe on Monday 7th. ICEAPS
    sponsorship was acknowledged in all campus publicity.
    Points of intersection between the different research groups represented at the workshop
    emerged from discussion, and the workshop was deemed a successful first step in
    building a research network on the Australia-Filipino diaspora. Unfortunately, however,
    the ARC Linkage Grant awarded to Dr Beryl Langer and Dr Trevor Hogan had to be
    relinquished because the industry partner (Australia-Philippines Business Council) was at
    the last moment unable to meet its financial and in-kind obligations. The project has
    therefore been put on hold, as funding for the PhD candidate who was to carry out the
    initial task of documenting patterns of community formation within Australia in relation
    to the dynamics of trans-national and trans-local connections to the Philippines and the
    global diaspora was no longer available. In this context, the momentum established by
    the ICEAPS funded workshop has been doubly important in maintaining commitment to
    the project, which will proceed in more modest form pending further finding
    applications. Plans for a second workshop, to be held in Manila in 2007, are proceeding,
    and Dr Hogan will be going to Manila in January to discuss details with our colleagues
    there.
    I wish to express my thanks to ICEAPS for enabling us to bring people together for the
    workshop, from which flowed positive prospects for research collaboration. These
    prospects continue, even though the last-minute withdrawal of the APBC from the
    Linkage Grant has brought a temporary halt to the LaTrobe project.

    Associate Professor Raj Pandey

    La Trobe University

    Project Title: Seed-Funding for Integrated Cross-Sectoral Database Development in Chinese-Australian Studies

    Hendra Yusran Siry

    The Australian National University

    Project Title: “Building the blue print of the Indonesian state”: Conference

    Doctor Philip Taylor

    The Australian National University

    Project Title: Vietnam Development Forum Workshop 2005

    Doctor Shahram Akbarzadeh

    Monash University

    Project Title: Islam and Human Rights: Workshop


    Doctor Satish Chand

    The Australian National University

    Project Title: How is communally owned land accessed for housing within Port Moresby?

    Professor Stephanie Hemelryk Donald

    Sydney University of Technology

    Project Title: Fresh and Salt: water, borders and the commons in Australia and Asia: Workshop & Symposium

    Professor Stuart Harris

    The Australian National University

    Project Title: Sino-Australian 'Broader' Security Relations: Energy, Environment and Engagement: Workshop

    Professor David Hill

    Murdoch University

    Project Title: ACICIS Islamic Business Study Options: Curriculum development

    Professor Margaret Jolly

    Australian Association for Advancement of Pacific Studies (AAAPS)

    Project Title: Seed Funding for Establishment if AAAPS

    Professor William Maley

    The Australian National University

    Project Title: Symposium on 'Chinese Diplomacy: Past, Present and Future'

    Doctor Julia Teresa Martinez

    University of Wollongong

    Project Title: Chinese capital in Indochina 1945-1975: Tracing Boat-People's past

    Doctor Max Quanchi

    Queensland University of Technology

    Project Title: Towards the future; Australia and the Pacific Islands; The inaugural conference of the International Centre of Excellence (ICE) - Australian Association for the Advancement of Pacific Studies (AAAPS)


    Doctor Ligang Song

    The Australian National University

    Project Title: China’s Industrialisation And Its International Resource Demand

    Doctor Tana Li

    The Australian National University

  • Project Title: Visit by Distinguished Professor to Assist Curriculum Development in Asia-Pacific Diaspora Studies

Professor Jonathan Unger

The Australian National University

Project Title: Establishing an “International Consortium for Research on Chinese Labour”