AIIA

Academic Power Is Moving East with Tayeb Shah

The 21st Century is frequently forecast to be the Asian Century.  The term is usually understood with reference to the rapid growth of the economies of China and India, and the increasing influence it affords them in international affairs.

What is less salient to many is the growing academic power of Asia.  At our July event, Tayyeb Shah will explore academic relations between Australia and Asia. Tayyeb will also discuss the potential consequences of the COVID19 virus for the Australian tertiary education sector and possible responses to them. 

Tayyeb Shah is Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Global Partnerships) at The University of Western Australia. Learn more about Tayeb here

The politics of pandemics: COVID19 and the international order

Professor Mark Beeson will discuss how the rapid spread of the coronavirus COVID19 is bringing about an equally rapid transformation in domestic and international politics.

The preparedness of national health systems and the responses of political leaders around the world are being thrown into sharp and often unflattering relief.

The absence of leadership from United States at either the domestic or especially the international level is especially noteworthy. China's response, by contrast, has - after a false start - been remarkably effective. This presentation considers what the crisis may mean for the relative standing of American and Chinese forms of politics and economics. Are democracies capable of responding to the challenge? What are the implications for free market capitalism as it succumbs to yet another crisis? We may not know the answers for a while, but the questions are increasingly urgent.

Back from the Barracks: Why Indonesia's Military Still Reigns Supreme

This presentation by Natalie Sambhi takes a socio-cultural look at why Indonesia wants, and might need, a politically active military. For twenty years, democracy in Indonesia saw the formal exit of the military from politics, the end of its independent business interests, and its nominal return to barracks. Despite those developments, and the need for further reform and professionalisation, it appears that under President Joko Widodo, the Indonesian military is again becoming influential in politics, society, and economics. Jokowi has surrounded himself with former army generals as key cabinet ministers, power brokers, and close advisors.

 

What explains the enduring role and influence of the armed forces in contemporary Indonesia?  What is the impact of current civil-military relations on Jokowi's second term agenda, particularly on maritime security? With an imbalance of power and unresolved issues from the past, how can Indonesia make the most of its military's capacity and influence in the face of pressing traditional and non traditional security issues?

Crisis in Yemen

The war in Yemen has been raging for more than 4 years with catastrophic outcomes for its people. Out of a population of 28 million, 24 million are in need of humanitarian assistance. Fifteen million of them are on the brink of famine. Vital infrastructure in Yemen has been destroyed and its people are suffering the worst outbreak of cholera in history. This is the world’s largest humanitarian disaster, yet there is hardly any international news coverage.

Melissa Parke is a member of the UN Group of Eminent Experts on Yemen. At our November meeting, Melissa talked about how what began as a civil war, has broadened into a regional conflict involving powerful states. She discusses the parties involved and their responsibility for human rights violations according to the UN Human Rights Council, as well as the responsibility of states that are supplying weapons and other assistance to parties to the conflict.

To see the video that was played at the start of this presentation click here

The read the Report of the detailed findings of the Group of Eminent International and Regional Experts on Yemen, click here

Defending the Maritime Rules-Based Order: Perspectives from the Indo-Pacific

Maritime disputes are multifaceted. They include overlapping claims of sovereignty and jurisdiction, contests over freedom of navigation, island-building and militarization, and the use of ‘grey zone’ tactics to harass, intimidate and advance strategic interests. Maritime disputes have become highly visible microcosms of broader discord between the US-led regional security order, and challenger conceptions of order that see a bigger role for rising powers in generating new rules and alternative interpretations of existing international law. In this presentation Dr Bec Strating compares and contrasts the maritime security interests of key Indo-Pacific states and their attitudes to maritime rules, and reflect on the potential implications for regional maritime order building.

Australian soft power (and soft thinking) in the Indo-Pacific

Australia is a country with considerable, if under-utilised, reserves of soft power – the ability to achieve influence internationally via attraction rather than compulsion. In this presentation Professor Ben Reilly will discuss some claims regarding Australian soft power, including our democratic political system, multicultural society, and open economy, all based on broad-based norms of social equality and the rule of law. It will then discuss how these ideas have found their way into recent Australian foreign policy doctrine via recent White Papers, in which norms and values have been elevated to frame the Indo-Pacific region.

Beyond Trump

Donald Trump's election campaign has been described as 'explosive, populist, and polarising, and his direct to market use of social media has been unprecedented. His election signified a powerful rejection of establishment consensuses on trade, immigration, and other issues. And while constraint on executive power was a key intention in the design of the US Constitution, it is hard to imagine that the presidency of Donald Trump will not leave some lasting impacts on the nature and practice of US politics. 

In this panel discussion, Professor Gordon Flake, Michael Wood, and Dr Sherry Sufi explore the implications of the  administration of President Donald Trump.

Rethinking Global Governance

Mark Beeson provides an overview of the key issues and problems currently facing global governance and explains why international cooperation has become so difficult. Mark’s presentation is a snapshot of his new book, Rethinking Global Governance.

The world currently faces a number of challenges that no single country can solve. Whether it is managing a crisis-prone global economy, maintaining peace and stability, or trying to do something about climate change, there are problems that need collective action on the part of states and other actors. Yet despite global governance seeming like a good idea, it's proving increasingly difficult to provide.

Click here to see a video of the slides used to accompany this presentation with the audio.

Poverty and Development: Theory vs Reality

With reference to case studies in Africa and South East Asia, Dr Paul Schaffer challenges the theory of Export Oriented Industrialisation to show that successful development can be driven by strategies tailored to specific circumstances and that are directly focused on the alleviation of poverty in agricultural communities.

Dr Schaffer also talks about middle income countries of Latin America explaining how regulatory and training responses to high risk governance and corruption have blocked the professionalisation of management and caused conflicts in public expenditure. Dr Schapper will discuss the outlook for the resolution of this issue, arguing that there will need to be difficult transition from procedural compliance to performance accountability in public sector administration.

Click here to see a video of the slides used in this presentation with the audio.

Midwifery in PNG: Making a world of difference

Sara David is a midwife and the founding CEO of Living Child Inc.  She has been working in the Keram River area of East Sepik Province where, in recent decades, women have had little access to family planning, pregnancy and birth care and immunisation. Sara will discuss how she has negotiated cultural taboos and myths to enable the delivery of equitable, evidence based birthing practices with greatly improved outcomes for mothers and babies.

Sara now organises teams of midwives to provide support, simple teaching resources and professional development to local health workers and village volunteers. She one of the inaugural recipients of The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade's new Australian Aid: Friendship Grant program.

To see the slides that accompanied this presentation click here