Dr Katerina Teaiwa, Pacific Studies Convener in the Faculty of Asian Studies in the ANU College of Asia & the Pacific writes:

Fiji

The latest drama surrounding Fiji is starting to conjure up images for me of the Bermuda Triangle.

There is a mysterious dead zone of understanding between Fiji, Australia and New Zealand despite over a century of trade, and political and cultural exchanges.

In this abyss history begins again and again in 2006, 2000 and 1987 and the future of the island nation constantly hinges on a string of negative political and economic sound bites.

I often discuss popular perceptions of Fiji and the Pacific with many of my students. One postgraduate made a short documentary of Australian and Pacific relations for her final research project in 2008. She interviewed several young people in Canberra about their views of the island region.

The majority had close to no opinion or weren’t sure what part of the world she was talking about. The rest had perspectives that revolved around two sets of images: coconuts and cocktails on one side, and coups and crises on the other.

The two views of Oceania have been around since before Captain Cook and continue to be invoked by many a journalist who begins their South Pacific news story with the ominous words: “Beneath the exotic facade lies…”

The dominance of the “paradise in crisis” paradigm is a reflection of the lack of in-depth understanding of the region within the Australian public.

There is next to no Pacific content in Australian education at all levels, for example. In a recent discussion at the ANU with foreign affairs cadets from across Asia and the Pacific, we compared the two regions.

The economic and political influence of many Asian countries was a clear attraction for young people wanting to further their studies and international careers. One young woman then asked me what the “gain” was in engaging the Pacific.

The popular perception is that countries such as Australia and New Zealand guide, advise, fund and support Pacific Island governments and communities but have nothing to gain or learn from them. But the majority of people who do spend quality time in the islands, many of them government funded development volunteers, do come away with some major life changing experiences. They are often moved and inspired by the culturally vibrant communities they work with.

Clearly, if one is open to learning, an important “gain” is always cultural.

In August, at the Fiji Update held at Parliament House in Canberra, I called for a diversity of views on the current situation highlighting the wealth of activity and promise within the culture sector.

By diversity I don’t mean illuminating life and politics in Fiji from the perspectives of more “big men” whether they are of the Melanesian, Australian or New Zealand variety. I mean, find out what else is going on, what other extraordinary and meaningful things Fiji Islanders are doing. What are women’s groups doing? What are artists doing, painting, weaving, or singing? What other creative strategies do people use to express themselves? With all respect to ABC’s In the Loop, do such stories reach the general Australian public?

These questions probably would not result in enough sensational or scandalous answers to merit mainstream media attention but they would illuminate life on the ground and help assuage the panic that seems to rise every time Australia and Fiji’s relationship gets extra rocky.

We might learn, for example, about why the French funded Domo ni Karmen, “Carmen’s Voice” in Fijian, Fiji’s first Pacific opera and an adaptation of Georges Bizet’s Carmen, performed to sold-out theatres in Suva. We might contemplate the rise of slam poetry and hip hop and its direct connection with youth empowerment.

In some parts of the world we would turn to the musicians, poets and other literary figures for social and political insight. There is no shortage of such voices in the Pacific but rarely are they called upon for such wisdom.

One of the most cherished poems of the post coup era, “My Fiji,” was written by the late Adi Kuini Vuikaba Speed, wife of the late Dr. Timoci Bavadra who was ousted from government in the first Fiji coup.

Her words are worth remembering again, and again, and again.

. . . It was the budget
That brought them down.
But my country is:
singing competitions, old clothes bazaars,
food and mat sales for the church fund.
Noisy volleyball games and the boredom of children,
too small to enjoy the events, hot and bothered
by the things bigger people do.
That same government is back again,
old faces, old games.

But my country is:
The bumpy ride on Singh’s valley bus,
and driver Pratap greeting Fijians
in fluent Sigatoka dialect.
The Hindu tobacco grower who
helps the poor Fijian family
with the adopted Chinese son
- Adi Kuini Vuikaba Speed, 1997

Mothers Forum

On 2 November Dr Katerina Teaiwa, Pacific Studies Convener in the Faculty of Asian Studies in the ANU College of Asia & the Pacific, participated in an ANU forum, “Mothers: Cross Cultural Dialogues.”

Other speakers included Senator Kate Lundy, ACT member for Parliament, Jodi Hedley-Ward, author of “You Sexy Mother,” and Associate Professor Kalpana Ram of Macquarie University.

The gathering was chaired by Professor Margaret Jolly.

Above: Govind Jaiswal, whose father (right) was a rickshaw driver, was successful candidate in the 2006 civil services exam. His coaching classes in Delhi were financed by the sale of family land. Photo: OutlookIndia

Hope and perseverance drive the enormous number of young Indians with ambitions to work in government, reports Kate Sullivan (of the Faculty of Asian Studies).

It’s a Saturday aItafternoon in early October and Prakash is taking me to his afternoon preparatory class at Vajiram & Ravi, one of the dozens of institutes in Delhi that train candidates for India’s civil services exams. Still buoyant despite two failed exam attempts, Prakash is heading for a class that prepares students for the optional paper in psychology he hopes to tackle next year. The classes last two and a half hours and run seven days a week for twenty weeks or more.

The classroom is already half full, with around 200 chairs crammed into a room that can’t be much more than fifty square metres. Once the students have manoeuvred their way into a chair, it’s unlikely they’ll be able to get out again until after the class. And it’s unlikely they’d want to. The scarcity of places and the high cost of the course spell a dropout rate of less than 1 per cent. Though October marks the tail end of the course, and several students are immersed elsewhere in preparation for the fast-approaching Mains exams, the room fills quickly. Prakash points out three girls – a doctor, an engineer and a journalist – sitting pressed up behind us.

Mukhul Pathak, a well-known psychology lecturer whose coaching successes have made his subject a popular choice for the optional paper, marches up to a narrow podium and begins his class. Within seconds he has the entire room in uproarious laughter. Dressed in a striped cream and peach short-sleeved shirt and moss-green corduroy trousers, energetic and humorous, he shows no trace of having taught this same course perhaps twice a year for the past fifteen years. On his wrist hangs a thick gold watch of proportions such that from the fifth row I can see that it runs ten minutes fast. He radiates commitment, efficiency and affluence …

Reprinted from Inside Story. Read the full article …

Tok Pisin

The Pacific Studies teaching program has received an ANU Teaching Enhancement Grant of nearly ten thousand dollars to support the development of Melanesian Pidgins language resources.

Sessional lecturer Dr Ruth Spriggs will work on revising and creating new material for a crucial book on PNG Tok Pisin by Dutton and Thomas (1985).

Dr Marcus Mietzner

Dr Mietzner’s area of research is political party financing and democratic consolidation in  Indonesia: as Australia’s vast neighbour to the north, Indonesia,is of critical importance to Australian national interests. Particularly essential in this regard is the stability of Indonesia’s young democracy, which is increasingly threatened by the widespread perception that party politics are contaminated by corrupt, greedy and self-centred politicians. This sentiment is largely fuelled by complaints about questionable fundraising practices of political parties. Accordingly,this study will be of great interest to Australian policy-makers, aid officials and businesses that wish to address the deficiencies in Indonesia’s political system through political and economic cooperation programs.

Dr Li Narangoa

Dr Li Narangoa’s and Dr Robert Cribb’s area of research is ‘Puppet States’ Revisited: Empire and Sovereign Subordination in Modern Asia: the term ‘puppet state’ is a part of public discourse in Australia. It is used by scholars, journalists, commentators and members of the public to characterize specific international relationships in the contemporary world. While being used as an analytical term, it carries a strong pejorative connotation. This project will contribute significantly to giving the term clarity and stability of meaning that will enhance the quality of public discussion of international affairs and lead to a more informed approach to safeguarding Australia. The insights we generate by this comparison will illuminate the controversial contemporary issue of international intervention in the territory of sovereign states.

Kandali

A fourth-centrury poem by India’s greated classical writer Kalidasa has been brought to life in a new website by ANU 4th year student, Tomomi Sato.

The poem, Meghaduta, or ‘The cloud-messenger’ possibly India’s most famous love poem, is rich in geographic and environmental imagery.

In this highly innovative project, Ms Sato focussed on the twenty or so verses in which flowers or trees are mentioned by the poet. First, she translated each verse into English and Japanese. Next she researched the individual flowers and trees, and created her own water-colour ‘portraits’ of each. These were scanned and uploaded. Then she recorded herself singing the verses to a traditional melody, and these sound files have also been added to the website.

The whole project, including original Sanskrit verses, translations, artworks and audio files, can be visited at http://meghaduta.awardspace.info/

Mr Shun Ikeda

Mr Shun Ikeda, Head of the Faculty’s Japan Centre, has been awarded the Japanese Foreign Minister’s Commendation to acknowledge his contribution to the promotion of mutual understanding and friendship between Japan and Australia:

Mr Ikeda has made a significant contribution to deepening understanding between the people of Japan and Australia through his work at the Japan Centre at the Australian National University. In 1992, he initiated and established an exchange programme involving 12 Japanese universities. Throughout his academic career, he has also devoted himself to playing an important role in teaching Kabuki to University students, using it as a way to introduce traditional Japanese culture.

Also, since 1972, as a foundation board member of the Australia Japan Society in Canberra, Mr Ikeda has made a great contribution to promoting mutual understanding between the people of Japan and Australia.

In addition, Mr Ikeda has played a vital role in the management of the Japanese Supplementary School in Canberra, which works to preserve and teach the Japanese language to many children living in ACT.

See: http://www.au.emb-japan.go.jp/e_web/events/2009_Commendations.html

Dr Ruth Barraclough talks about Korean studies

Dr Ruth Barraclough, Lecturer in the Korea Centre in the Faculty of Asian Studies, talking on a Korean website about the Faculty and its Korean program …

Professor Tony Milner

On Saturday 3 October Professor Anthony Milner, Basham Professor of History, Centre for Asian Societies and Histories, was interviewed on the ABC Saturday Extra program about the handling of ‘Asia’ in the new national history curriculum:

Historian Anthony Milner has a passion for Australian stories and passing them on to the next generation of kids. But, he wants to broaden them to include their Asian context; that is, beyond European and settler notions. And he believes this could hit various bases simultaneously: it could be educationally clever, expanding the students, and it could help flesh out the prime minister’s vision that Australia be the most Asia-literate society in the world.

• Listen to the interview
• Download the audio file

Rishikesh

The Southeast Asia Centre of the Faculty of Asian Studies, Australian National University, is hosting a workshop entitled ‘Intersections of Area, Cultural and Media Studies’ on Thursday 25 and Friday 26 February, 2010.

This Workshop represents a collaboration between the Southeast Asia Centre and the National Film and Sound Archive (NFSA).

The Workshop coincides with the screening of a selection of new cinematic works from Southeast Asia by the NFSA.

Please contact Kirrilee Hughes for further details of the Workshop: Kirrilee.Hughes@anu.edu.au

Download a document which provides further details about the Workshop.