Invitation: RCSD Graduate Seminar (Wed. 14 Feb. 2018 at 10.00-12.00 hrs.)

[RCSD Chiang Mai University]

Regional Center for Social Sciences and Sustainable Development (RCSD)

Master of Arts in Social Science Program (Development Studies),

Faculty of Social Sciences, Chiang Mai University (CMU)

is pleased to invite you to participate in :

 

RCSD Graduate Seminar on 

"Between Fighting and Failing Democratization and Indonesia's Anti-Corruption Movement"

By Dr. Elisabeth Kramer, Deputy Director, Sydney Southeast Asia Centre, the University of Sydney

Date: Wed. 14 February 2018

Time: 10.00-12.00 hrs

Venue: Subaltern Room (basement floor), Operational Building, Faculty of Social Sciences, Chiang Mai University

Abstract

There is a compelling conceptual relationship between democratization and anti-corruption efforts. Anti-corruption discourse explicitly draws upon democratic values of justice and fairness, calling upon the state to distribute social and economic benefits equally across citizens, and therefore has the potential to be a powerful rallying cry for those who feel disenfranchised from their government. The anti-corruption movement channels this dissatisfaction, particularly with officials abusing their power, to drive the democratization process by advocating change and the creation of new systems of transparency and accountability for government in the process. A decrease in levels of corruption is implicit in the democratization process, but there are no “quick fixes” in this domain. Corruption reform must be understood as a “context-driven, long-term goal” that requires a synchronized effort from social and political forces, over an extended period of time. The Indonesia case study of the anti-corruption movement demonstrates that ‘democracy’ is not simply an end-goal, but is an ongoing, and challenging, process.

This seminar posits two main arguments about the interplay between the anti-corruption movement and democratization in Indonesia. First, that anti-corruption protests, though stifled during the New Order, were a vital contribution to the broader movement for Reformasi that sparked democratic reform in 1998. Second, while the democratic transition has certainly afforded the anti-corruption movement more political space, it has not been smooth sailing. While we might normatively expect the process of democratization to make it easier to develop and implement new systems of accountability, resulting in a decrease in corruption, it has not played out this way in the Indonesian context—in fact, many perceive that corruption has increased. In its conclusion , this presentation will offer some explanations for the ongoing (or rising) levels of corruption, including muddled decentralization processes, a lack of oversight of political parties and elections and the shifting, but consistent, entrenchment of oligarchic interests. 

:: Your attendance is highly appreciated::

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Regional Center for Social Science
and Sustainable Development (RCSD)
Faculty of Social Sciences
Chiang Mai University
Chiang Mai 50200 THAILAND
Tel: +66-0-5394-3595 to 6
Fax: +66-0-5389-3279
Email: rc...@cmu.ac.th
http://rcsd.soc.cmu.ac.th