ECMSAS Accepted Panel Suggestions 25 to 32
For details of papers, please click on the title of the panel you are interested in. For further information, please contact the panel convenors directly, using the mail address(es) listed under each panel.Panel 25
Name 1: Bert Suykens
Name 2: Nel Vandekerckhove
Affiliation 1: Conflict Research Group, Department of Third World Studies, Ghent University, universiteitsstraat 8, 9000 Ghent (Belgium), ++32 (0)9 2649726
Affiliation 2: Conflict Research Group, Department of Third World Studies, Ghent University, universiteitsstraat 8, 9000 Ghent (Belgium), ++32 (0)9 2646794
Panel Title: Legal pluralism and tribal politics in South Asia
Abstract; The study of legal pluralism which examines "parallel and often contradictory regulations of social, economic and political organisation" (Max Planck Institute (PGLP), 2007), is a topic not often included in regional conference programs. However, with this panel we want to set-up a larger, interdisciplinary debate on legal pluralism in South Asia, by bringing together researchers, interested in the functioning of multiple regulatory orders in South Asian tribal politics. Such an in-depth debate is vital for tribal research, since many scholars who work in tribal areas are continuously confronted with different regulatory orders in which tribal communities operate or become entangled.
For this panel we hope to unite scholars who deal with (1) the origins and dynamics of tribal politico-economic and social regulatory orders, (2) the manifestation of these multiple orders in the every-day-life of tribal communities and in their cultural practices, (3) the long-term impact of plural legal orders on tribal society (both empirical and imagined). We especially welcome research conducted in (tribal) conflict zones, since political or economic brokers working in these zones are often active in crafting new or distinct legal spaces.
As different as they may be, three elements must bind the panel papers: (1) a deep engagement with the politics of multiple regulatory orders, (2) a focus on a specific South Asian case, preferably from a grass-root point of view, and (3) a non-essentialist view on tribals and their socio-economic and cultural practices.
Email 1: bert.suykens@ugent.be
Email 2: nel.vandekerckhove@ugent.be
Panel 26
Name: Dr. K. Ravi Raman
Affiliation: University of Manchester
Panel Title: The Kerala Model: Trajectories in Transition
Details: The Kerala Model: Trajectories in Transition (Kerala Studies Panel proposal: Convenor: Dr K Ravi Raman, Hallsworth Research Fellow, Department of Social Anthropology, Manchester University)
There exists a significant body of scholarship exploring the Kerala model of social development which is almost universally believed to have taken the state to the zenith of human development and democratic governance. These achievements are often attributed to public action and the associated policy of redistribution of wealth and income, and of progressive land reforms. The shfiting trajectories traced by the Kerala Model and the contemporary concerns and challenges that it faces are also being critically examined. Yet, there is little effort to engage in a collective discussion on the complex interconnectedness of the various political-economic and socio-cultural domains involved in these experiences, nor on the distinct departures from the ideal or the contrasting visions and contradictions in this otherwise model state. The panelists are expected to discuss the past and the present dimensions of the Kerala experience, each of which would be a step towards a fresh understanding of the emerging concerns in the state and the construction of an ethically viable development agenda, while eschewing the scourge of social inequity. While providing for new spaces of political praxis, the dialectics of micro and macro power relations and their political, economic and cultural correspondence with caste and religion, the dynamics of the globalizing experience with Malayalies moving in/out with their wealth, hopes and imaginations also form the subject of discussion. How best could contemporary scholarship map out the trajectories of transition of the Kerala model of development? Should the Kerala model be considered viable and worth sustaining, and if so, what are the challenges that face such an undertaking? How social has been the social model of development? How have the various social groups and religions historically experienced development, and the political and cultural processes in the state? Does such an entity as a specific Kerala model of production of power relations and mainstream discourse exist, one which artfully camouflages the day-to-day reality of workers and minority social groups, including women, and deadens their movements/resistance for/of social and political renaissance? What are the challenges and opportunities that the state of Kerala faces in this neo-liberal era, and what sort of political articulations could it make in terms of market, culture, federalism and sub-nationality? Scholars are invited to present their perspectives on all aspects of the social life that Kerala has experienced, is now experiencing and is likely to experience in the future.
Email: ravi.raman@manchester.ac.uk
Panel 27
Name: Dr. Vibha Arora
Affiliation: Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi
Panel Title: Routes and Roots of Democracy in the Himalayas
Abstract: Routes and Roots of Democracy in the Himalayas
Convenor: Dr. Vibha Arora
The Himalayas are not merely the place where the earth meets the sky while giving birth to waterscapes that give life to the plains. Nor are they merely a spiritual abode of divinities and numerous pilgrimage places. They are the crossroads and the melting pot of Indo-Aryan and Tibeto-Burman ethnic groups, and the birthplace of numerous religions and cultures that will harvest rich ethnographies and yield theoretical insights. After all, these Himalayas are the source of our cultural roots and the historic trade route interlinking the Indic civilization with Central Asia, Tibet and China, and South-east Asia. Politically, the faultlines in the Himalayas have a deep impact on the entire South Asian region. Admittedly boundary conflicts have largely shaped a security perspective on this region. The marginality of the Himalayan region within South Asian studies is shifting and the region is gaining visibility in sociology, social anthropology, political science, history and development studies. The current efforts to promote peace on borders and to resume inland trade between nations of South Asia with South-east Asia are welcome development's engendering further socio-historical studies.
This panel furthers debate on cultural roots and routes of democracy in the Himalayas of South Asia. Through debate and analysis, we aim to take stock of recent developments such as constitutional debates in Afghanistan, the humanitarian efforts following the earthquake on the Indo-Pakistan border and the opening of frontiers on the Indo-Pakistan borders, the Maoist insurgency, the royal coup in Nepal and Nepal's return to democracy, the ongoing discussions on the Bhutanese Constitution and forthcoming parliamentary elections, the Lhotsampa refugee crises and the declaration of abdication in 2008 by the Bhutanese King, the transformation of Sikkim into a Buddhist Shangri-la and the opening of the inland Sino-Indian trade route through Sikkim in 2006, the Look East Policy of the Indian government, the negotiations on Nagaland secessionism, the ethnic conflict in Assam, Manipur, and the various social movements in the region including the resource related conflicts over water, forest resources and development issues of Northeast India. The rooting and routing of democracy is key to peace and development of the Southasian region.
Abstracts of 250 words should be emailed as word attachments indicating clearly the title of the proposed paper, the name of author, institutional affiliation to the panel convenor, Dr. Vibha Arora at both these email addresses aurora@hss.iitd.ac.in and vibhaaurora@yahoo.com
Looking forward to discussing Himalayan Matters
Dr. Vibha Arora
http://web.iitd.ac.in/~aurora/
Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology, Hauz Khas, New Delhi 110016, INDIA
Email: aurora@hss.iitd.ac.in
Panel 28
Name 1: Dr Annapurna Waughray
Name 2: Dr Tilman Frasch
Affiliation 1: Manchester Metropolitan University
Affiliation 2: Manchester Metropolitan University
Panel Title: Social exclusion, social legislation and religious freedom: the relevance of Ambedkar in India, then and now
Abstract: This panel will address the meaning and relevance of Ambedkarism both historically and in the present day. Speakers will consider the life and work of Ambedkar during the first half of the 20th century, his role in the independance movement and his contribution to the shaping of the legal and political framework of India. Speakers will be encouraged to take a long-term perspective and to re-evaluate the relevance of Ambedkar's work and ideas in Indian society today: the legal foundations for equality, social exclusion and human rights in the contemporary context, Dalit activism and religious freedom.
Email 1: a.waughray@mmu.ac.uk
Email 2: t.frasch@mmu.ac.uk
Panel 29
Name 1: Louise Tillin
Name 2: Amrita Jairaj
Affiliation 1: Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex
Affiliation 2: Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex
Panel Title: Political Economy of Federalism in India: state, society and local elites
Abstract: Too often research about the constitutional and fiscal arrangements of federal systems privileges the formal attributes of federalism over the functioning of the federal system at the local level. This panel aims to consider federalism in its social context at the local (state or sub-state) level and to examine how incentives and institutions at the local level influence decisions taken at higher levels of the federal system, and vice versa.
The process of policy making and implementation in India has been profoundly influenced by the tension between the centre and states, and the federal division of responsibilities (political and fiscal) between each level of government. This panel will consider a range of areas in which centre-state relations are being questioned and rearticulated in a period of contradictory economic and political trends. Recent years have witnessed movement towards the creation of a free-flowing common market and the harmonisation of state fiscal policies, against the backdrop of the continuing regionalisation of the national party system and increasing diversity among state level political systems. This makes it an interesting juncture to consider how state-level (and lower tiers) policy making has been influenced by the political structure of federalism and the need to balance economic considerations and the political autonomy of the states.
Papers currently under consideration for the panel look at the impact of local institutions on the effectiveness of federal development assistance; intra-state bargaining over the harmonisation of state fiscal policies; the role of local and national elites in the redesign of the federation and institutions of local governance in the federal context. We would welcome papers that take a comparative approach.
Email 1: L.Tillin@ids.ac.uk
Email 2: A.Jairaj@ids.ac.uk
Panel 30
Name: Prof Ian Copland
Affiliation: Monash University
Panel Title: Religion and Governance in India
Abstract: This panel is proposed as part of an on-going research project entitled Religion and Governance in India: an Historical Inquiry. Project team members are: Ian Copland, Historical Studies, Monash University, Ian Mabbett, Monash Asia Institute, Matthew Groves, Law, Monash University, Asim Roy, History and Classics, University of Tasmania, and Adam Bowles, Latrobe University. Each team member has been investigating the interaction of religion and governance in India during a broad time period, with a focus on selected cases studies. It is envisaged that (1) Mabbett will report on his research into the ancient/'Hindu' period, Roy ditto on the 'Muslim' period, Bowles ditto on the 18th century, and Copland/Groves jointly on the colonial/postcolonial periods. We are also investigating the possibility of bring over a distinguished scholar from the US as a discussant.
Email: ian.copland@arts.monash.edu.au
Panel 31
Name 1: Birgitte Refslund Sørensen
Name 2: Siri Hettige
Affiliation 1: Department of Anthropology, University of Copenhagen
Affiliation 2: Department of Sociology, University of Colombo
Panel Title: Citizenship and education in South Asia
Abstract: The school in South Asia - as elsewhere - has been an important tool of the nation-state in the construction of national identity and loyal citizens. Today, the position and role of the nation-state is undergoing profound transformations due to a wide range of factors often subsumed under the nebulous label of globalization, and as a consequence the meaning of citizenship as a term denoting both a sense of belonging and entitlements is also being recast. This workshop explores how this is reflected in educational policies and practices in South Asia. It seeks to map the different actors (global, national and local) in this highly contested arena and to identify their social imaginaries and agendas. But first of all it aims to explore in-depth the competing understandings of "the citizen" that are voiced in policy documents, in teaching and training, and through other kinds of social interaction that take place in schools and other sites of learning.
Email 1: birgitte.soerensen@anthro.ku.dk
Email 2: shettige@hotmail.com
Panel 32
Name 1: Isabelle Clark-Deces
Name 2: Parvis Ghassem-Fachandi
Affiliation 1: Princeton University (USA)
Affiliation 2: Rudgers University (USA)
Panel Title: Vegetarianisms: the communicative power of meat in South AsiaAbstract: Vegetarianisms: the communicative power of meat in South Asia
Organizers: Parvis Ghassem-Fachandi and Isabelle Clark-Deces
The medical, aesthetic, and alchemical qualities of meat and blood carry a strong cultural valence in South Asian conceptions of the body, in medical, spiritual as well as in common sense perceptions with significant effects on everyday practices ranging from sexuality to politics. This panel examines the communicative power of meat in South Asia by investigating cultural practices of production, distribution, and consumption of meat and the practices of abstinence from it, vegetarianisms. The moral quality of food substances has long received deserved attention by many scholars in the South Asian context, serving to elucidate aspects of social structure, the formation of community boundaries, taboos, ritual, stigma, identity, and social mobility. Usually food, and in particular meat, have been investigated by symbolic system approaches. While we encourage participants to ground their contribution in the insights of these approaches, we appreciate new ethnographic data to enliven debates around food in order to show not only the respective collective and moral, but also individual divergences and differences in the way meat and the abstention from it, play out in South Asia.
Email 1: ideces@princeton.edu
Email 2: fachand@yahoo.com