Systemic Corruption and Regime Change: State, Business and Political Elites in Indonesia and Implications for Governance Reform. The development of a stable, prosperous and democratic Indonesia is fundamental to Australia's long-term security. Systemic corruption has been identified as a fundamental impediment to such development and the Australian Government through AUSAID funds institutional reform programs. Yet formal law remains ineffective and corruption has continued to flourish, pointing ....Systemic Corruption and Regime Change: State, Business and Political Elites in Indonesia and Implications for Governance Reform. The development of a stable, prosperous and democratic Indonesia is fundamental to Australia's long-term security. Systemic corruption has been identified as a fundamental impediment to such development and the Australian Government through AUSAID funds institutional reform programs. Yet formal law remains ineffective and corruption has continued to flourish, pointing to weaknesses of policy design. This project will explain how competing political elites systematically use the leverage of the state to redistribute resources within business and society and seek to identify the formal and informal rules that underpin such behaviour. Outcomes will be better models and more effective governance reforms.Read moreRead less
City Shattered, City Born: The Great Kantô Earthquake and the Reconstruction of Tokyo, 1923-1930. This project explores the effects of, and responses to, one of the most catastrophic, yet least studied natural disasters of the 20th century. The project aims to analyse the extensive demographic, political, economic, and social impact of the 1923 Kantô Earthquake on Tokyo. It will also shed light on the politics which surrounded Tokyo's reconstruction, a reconstruction that influenced future exp ....City Shattered, City Born: The Great Kantô Earthquake and the Reconstruction of Tokyo, 1923-1930. This project explores the effects of, and responses to, one of the most catastrophic, yet least studied natural disasters of the 20th century. The project aims to analyse the extensive demographic, political, economic, and social impact of the 1923 Kantô Earthquake on Tokyo. It will also shed light on the politics which surrounded Tokyo's reconstruction, a reconstruction that influenced future expansion of Japan's capital throughout the 20th century. The findings, when published as a book and articles, will strengthen Japanese historiography, provide cross-cultural contextualisation and promote advances across various academic disciplines that investigate earthquakes, disaster relief, and urban reconstruction.Read moreRead less
A study of the scholarship on Indonesia in Australia and its implications for foreign policy. This project explores Australia's scholarly engagement with Indonesia and the impact of disciplinary, political and moral influences on their interpretations and knowledge. The importance of Indonesia for Australia has never been more acute. The impact of instability in Indonesia on Australia's own security and place in the region cannot be understated. It is essential that we have the tools for interpr ....A study of the scholarship on Indonesia in Australia and its implications for foreign policy. This project explores Australia's scholarly engagement with Indonesia and the impact of disciplinary, political and moral influences on their interpretations and knowledge. The importance of Indonesia for Australia has never been more acute. The impact of instability in Indonesia on Australia's own security and place in the region cannot be understated. It is essential that we have the tools for interpreting and understanding cultural, religious and political differences. Australian scholars have a deep and lasting engagement with Indonesia. Investigation of the debates within the field of Indonesian studies will help us to interpret better the perceptions and politics informing our study.Read moreRead less
The Spectre of Velvet Revolution: Dissidents, International Civil Society and post-Communist Authoritarianism. The study of 'Velvet Revolution,' both as a theory and as historical events, has immense implications for Australian policymakers. As an approach to regime change that does not entail foreign military intervention, 'Velvet Revolution' offers a path for democratic transition that minimises nationalist resentment and post-revolutionary violence. As a radical challenge to undemocratic regi ....The Spectre of Velvet Revolution: Dissidents, International Civil Society and post-Communist Authoritarianism. The study of 'Velvet Revolution,' both as a theory and as historical events, has immense implications for Australian policymakers. As an approach to regime change that does not entail foreign military intervention, 'Velvet Revolution' offers a path for democratic transition that minimises nationalist resentment and post-revolutionary violence. As a radical challenge to undemocratic regimes, it also constitutes a potent alternative to militant Islamism. By illuminating the role of dissidents and international civil society as protagonists and purveyors of 'Velvet Revolution,' this project will help to clarify the conditions that have facilitated the successful spread of democratic revolution.Read moreRead less
Islam and the Politics of Memory and Identity in Post-Authoritarian Indonesia. This project will make a vital contribution to understanding the past and present of Indonesia, Australia's most significant neighbour. The project investigates the legacy of competition between two of the most influential ideological and political forces in Indonesian history, communism and Islam, and examines their continuing significance to contemporary Indonesian identities. My analysis will profile the diverse ra ....Islam and the Politics of Memory and Identity in Post-Authoritarian Indonesia. This project will make a vital contribution to understanding the past and present of Indonesia, Australia's most significant neighbour. The project investigates the legacy of competition between two of the most influential ideological and political forces in Indonesian history, communism and Islam, and examines their continuing significance to contemporary Indonesian identities. My analysis will profile the diverse range of Islamic opinions in Indonesia on reconciliation and provide broader comparative insights into the processes of dealing with traumatic pasts.Read moreRead less
Fashionable Times: An Inquiry into the History of China's Modernity. Fashion, once regarded as a purely Western phenomenon and equated with thoroughly modern life, has recently made an improbable appearance in histories both of urban life in late imperial China and of twentieth-century Chinese nationalism. To speak of Chinese fashion is effectively to raise a question about the origins and course of China's modernity. The project aims to respond to this question through a study of the culture of ....Fashionable Times: An Inquiry into the History of China's Modernity. Fashion, once regarded as a purely Western phenomenon and equated with thoroughly modern life, has recently made an improbable appearance in histories both of urban life in late imperial China and of twentieth-century Chinese nationalism. To speak of Chinese fashion is effectively to raise a question about the origins and course of China's modernity. The project aims to respond to this question through a study of the culture of clothing from Ming to Mao, the expected outcome being an illustrated monograph of interest to scholars and general readers in the fields of fashion theory, material culture, and Chinese history.Read moreRead less
Islam and identity in Java: the violent culmination and subsequent decline of communal conflict, c. 1920- present. This project analyses for the first time the culmination of politicised and bloody conflict along lines of Islamic religious identity within Javanese society - today 100-million strong and Indonesia's largest ethnic group - and the subsequent decline and depoliticisation of those religiously defined categories, c. 1920-present. This process has left Javanese society more deeply Isla ....Islam and identity in Java: the violent culmination and subsequent decline of communal conflict, c. 1920- present. This project analyses for the first time the culmination of politicised and bloody conflict along lines of Islamic religious identity within Javanese society - today 100-million strong and Indonesia's largest ethnic group - and the subsequent decline and depoliticisation of those religiously defined categories, c. 1920-present. This process has left Javanese society more deeply Islamised than at any time in its history. But conflicting categories might, in theory, be repoliticised. The 2004 election campaign will be crucial for this analysis. The resultant book will be the last of three analysing the Islamisation of the Javanese from the 14th century to the present.
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