日　時:　2008年12月24日　15：00～
場　所:　稲盛財団記念館、小会議室IIで東南アジア研究所

You are cordially invited to a special seminar given by Dr. Thung Ju
Lan, CSEAS visiting research fellow from The Indonesian Institute of
Science, The Research Center for Society and Culture. The details are
as follows. Very sorry for short notice

Topic: "Chinese-Indonesians in Post Soeharto Era: Looking for a 'place'
or a 'voice' in politics?"
Speaker: Dr. Thung Ju Lan, CSEAS visiting research fellow and Senior
Researcher, The Indonesian Institute of Science, The Research Center for
Society and Culture
Date: December 24th (Wed.), 2008 15:00-
Place: Room 331, Meeting Room on the third floor of Inamori Foundation
Memorial Hall.

Abstract:
The May riots of 1998, not only changed the course of Indonesian
political history, but also the fate of many Chinese-Indonesians. Those
who could not leave the country believed that they now have to be
actively involved in politics if they wished not to be "crushed" by
recurring anti-Chinese violence, like they had previously experienced in
1946, 1965, 1974, 1980, and 1998. Therefore, the post-May 1998 period
witnessed a trend of some Chinese entering political arena.
Chinese-Indonesians' involvement in politics is not a new phenomenon in
the history of Indonesian nation-state, but obviously this phenomenon
was highly influenced by the policy of each regime as well as the
political situation at the related time. During the Soeharto's New
Order, Chinese-Indonesians were generally discouraged from participating
in politics due to a fervent fear among the military of their alleged
involvement in communist activities and networking, causing a
deep-seated suspicion and prejudice toward the Chinese-Indonesian
community, who were conveniently labeled as 'China's fifth column'.
Following substantial political changes brought about by the May Riots
of 1998, Chinese Indonesians began to be allowed to participate in
national politics as well as, to a certain extent, regional and local
politics, indicating the loosening up of government policy toward the
Chinese-Indonesians. However, some incidents -such as the Pontianak
Incident of 2008- that occurred in relation to the Chinese-Indonesians'
entry into politics clearly show that the public in general is not yet
prepared to accept the Chinese-Indonesians' role in local politics;
needless to say the political role of the Chinese as a group. In this
paper I would like to explore how the issue of Chinese-ness is being
interpreted in the politics of Indonesia, and how the
Chinese-Indonesians' responses to the situation.