MASSA symposium @ Malaysia 2023

The 23rd MASSA conference over 7 and 8 July 2023 explores representations of Malaysia’s past, present, and future after 60 years of nationhood.

Join insightful discussions with scholars, researchers and enthusiasts of Malaysia at panels, makan dan sembang sessions, and more at New Era University College in Kajang!

The program of events are below (and you can also join us online):

DAY ONE

7.30–8.30am: Symposium Registration

8.30–8.50am: Welcome Address

• Dr Yeow-Tong Chia, President of MASSA, University of Sydney

• Dr Jason Ng Sze Chieh, MASSA 2023 Symposium Convenor, New Era University College

9.00–10.30am: PANEL 1 (Ng Ah Choo Multipurpose Hall)

Institutional Reforms

· Ms Maha Balakrishnan, Dewan Rakyat in Democratisation: How Our Past Informs Our Future

· Professor Wong Chin Huat, From Party-Hopping to Party-based Government: Malaysia’s Bumpy Journey in Strengthening Multiparty Democracy

· Ms Sri Murniati Yusuf, Advocating for Greater Budget Transparency, Oversight and Public Participation in Malaysia: Identifying Future Areas of Advocacy

· Mr Thomas Fann, BERSIH — Taking the Fight for Institutional Reforms: From the Street to Parliament

9.00–10.30am: PANEL 2 (B 202)

Identity, Ideology and Regime

· Professor Thomas Pepinsky — Conferralism and the Politics of Ethnicity in Contemporary Malaysia

· Associate Professor Ratna Rueban Balasubramaniam — The Malaysian Social Contract as Ideology

· Assistant Professor Diego Fossati — The Meaning of Democracy in Malaysia

9.00–10.30am: PANEL 3 (B 203)

Multiple Faces of Islamisation in Malaysia (1)

· Professor Ahmad Fauzi Abdul Hamid & Che Hamdan Che Mohd Razali — Doctrinal differencesamong distinct Islamist strands of thought and their influence on Malay-Muslim political behaviour

· Associate Professor Azmil Tayeb — Islamism Manifest or Simply a Flash in the Pan? Making Sense of the Green Wave in GE15

· Mr Teo Ann Siang — The Role of Islamic NGOs in GE15: ABIM and IKRAM

· Dr Hew Wai Weng & Dr Nicholas Chan — The Long Afterlives of Mat Kilau: Pop Culture and the Mainstreaming of Malay Muslim Majoritarianism

9.00–10.30am: PANEL 4 (B 205)

Malaysia’s GE15 — The Aftermath

· Assistant Professor Walid Jumblatt Abdullah — 2018 and 2022 Malaysia’s General Elections: Two Sides of the Same Coin

· Dr Bridget Welsh — Understanding Elections in Malaysia: Lessons from GE15

· Dr Arnold Puyok — Emergence of Gabungan Parti Sarawak (GPS) and Gabungan Rakyat Sabah (GRS): Regional Power Blocs in the Making?

· Professor William Case — What’s Next for UMNO? Coping With Loss

9.00–10.30am: PANEL 5 (B 206)

Being ‘Other’: The place of and for marginalised identities and communities in Malaysia’s complex histories, present and future

• The panel’s collective abstract is here

· Dr Nithiya Guna Saigaran — Marginalised Indian Population: Some Critical Insights from Fieldwork

· Ms Nadira Illana — Channelling the Void: Bringing Borneo’s Oral Traditions Back to Consciousness

· Associate Professor Khoo Ying Hooi — The Marginalisation — Human Rights Nexus in Malaysia

· Dr Aslam Abd Jalil — Refugees as the Other: is Malaysia Home?

10.30–10.50am: COFFEE/TEA BREAK

11.00–12.00pm: Keynote 1 (Ng Ah Choo Multipurpose Hall)

· Professor Francis Loh, Trends in Malaysian Studies from the 1970s to the 2020s: Changes and Continuities

12.00–12.20pm: (Ng Ah Choo Multipurpose Hall)

Conference Photo Session

12.30–1.30pm: LUNCH & FRIDAY PRAYERS

1.30–2.30pm: Keynote 2 (Ng Ah Choo Multipurpose Hall)

· Dr Sharifah Munirah Alatas, Intellectual Imperialism, Academic Dependency, and Coloniality: Digging Deep into Malaysia’s Higher Education Crisis

2.30–4.00pm: PANEL 6 (Ng Ah Choo Multipurpose Hall)

Climate and Environmental Challenges

· Ms Sharon Seah — Malaysia’s Climate ambition and Obstacles to Decarbonisation

· Assistant Professor Tom Özden-Schilling — Foreign Investment and Natural Resource Politics in Malaysia (the case of Lynas)

· Associate Professor Helena Varkkey, Dr Felicia Liu, & Dr Thomas Smith — Seasons of the Anthropocene: Politicisation of Haze Season in Southeast Asia

2.30–4.00pm: PANEL 7 (B 202)

Reflections on Covid-19 in Malaysia: Impact on Communities

· Dr Bridget Welsh — Suffering and Survival in Malaysia’s COVID-19 Pandemic

· Associate Professor Janice Nga — Youth and COVID-19 in Malaysia: The Case of Sabah

· Dr Aslam Abd Jalil — The COVID-19 Responses Towards Migrants in Malaysia: Reflections and Recommendations

· Ms Lee Min Hui — Women and COVID-19 in Malaysia

2.30–4.00pm: PANEL 8 (B 203)

Multiple Faces of Islamisation in Malaysia (2)

· Mr Aziff Azuddin — Islamism and the Reshaping of Urban Spaces

· Ms Dina Zaman — Against Wahhabism: Tanjak and the Resurgence of Malay Islamic Cultural Identity

· Associate Professor Sumit Mandal — Charting a Malay-Islamic Past: An Emerging Transnational Geography of Meaning and the Consolidation of an Exclusivist Identity in Malaysia

· Ms Nurhuda Ramli — Mainstreaming Ideal Muslimah: How Female Islamists Shape Religious Discourse on Gender Rights

2.30–4.00pm: PANEL 9 (B 205)

The Malaysian Economy

· Professor Tham Siew Yean — Deindustrialization and Reindustrialization: Rebuilding and Retooling Industrial Development in Malaysia

· Professor Evelyn Devadason — Rethinking Trade Policy and Trade Priorities in Malaysia

· Dr Shankaran Nambiar — Malaysia’s Economic Engagement with China

· Dr Firdausi Suffian — Sabah’s economic development, decentralisation and party hopping in a centralised federation

2.30–4.00pm: PANEL 10 (B 206)

Discourse, Culture, Human Rights

· Assistant Professor Ho Ying Chan — Between Ethnic Supremacy and Cultural Diversity — Bangsa Malaysia as Malaysians’ National Identity

· Ms Aliye Nur Kelesoglu & Associate Professor Khoo Ying Hooi — Challenging Ethnonationalism and Embracing Diversity: A Critical Discourse Analysis of ABIM, IKRAM, and Anwar Ibrahim’s Malaysia Madani

· Dr Sheila Devi Michael & Dr Choong Pui Yee — Human Rights Development in Malaysia Since Independence

· Associate Professor Kerstin Steiner — Personal Laws: Reconciling Islam and Human Rights in Malaysia?

4.00–4.20pm: COFFEE/TEA BREAK

4.30–6.00pm: (Ng Ah Choo Multipurpose Hall)

Early Career Research Workshop

· with Associate Professor Kerstin Steiner

6.00–8.00pm: SYMPOSIUM DINNER (Restaurant Fei Chui)

· Vice Chancellor of New Era University College, Professor Mok Soon Chong — Welcoming remarks

DAY TWO

7.30am: NG AH CHOO MULTIPURPOSE HALL FOYER

Registration

8.30–9.30am: Day 2 Welcome Address and Keynote 2 (Ng Ah Choo Multipurpose Hall)

· Dr Jason Ng (MASSA 2023 Convenor) to give welcome address

The Rise of East Malaysia

Keynote address by Professor James Chin

9.30–10.00am: COFFEE/TEA BREAK

10.00–11.30am: PANEL 11 (Ng Ah Choo Multipurpose Hall)

The Political Economy of Malaysia

· Professor Edmund Terence Gomez — Resisting Reforms: GLCs, Patronage and Power Consolidation

· Mr Pushpan Murugiah — Political patronage and consolidation of power through The Federal Land Commissioner (FLC) and land ownership

· Mr Wong Teck Chi — The Rise of GLICs and GLCs in Malaysia: A State Financialization Perspective

10.00–11.30am: PANEL 12 (B 202)

Roundtable on Singapore’s External Relations

· Associate Professor Chong Ja-Ian

· Assistant Professor Walid Jumblatt Abdullah

· Mr David Han

· Dr Stephanie Kam

10.00–11.30am: PANEL 13 (B 203)

Perang Dingin Di Malaysia: Sejarah, Hubungan Etnik Dan Propaganda

· Dr Ho Hui Ling — Risalah Sebagai Instrumen Kerajaan Dalam Memerangi Ancaman Komunis di Tanah Melayu Pada Zaman Darurat, 1948–1960

· Dr Ruhana Padzil — Memori dan Pengalaman Aktivis Politik Radikal Regimen 10, 1947–1989

· Mr Lua Zyn Lan — Perkembangan Gerakan Kutub Khanah Di Malaysia (Persekutuan Tanah Melayu)

· Dr Ho Kee Chye — Pandangan dan Tindak Balis Parti Komunis Malaya terhadap Isu Etnik di Malaysia semasa Perang Dingin: Kajian Skrip Radio “Suara Revolusi Malaya”, 1969–1981

10.00–11.30am: PANEL 14 (B 205)

Ecosystems of Hate? Social Media and the Mainstreaming of Intolerance in Malaysia

· Dr Nicholas Chan & Dr Hew Wai Weng — Manufacturing Hate: Social Media and Right-Wing Majoritarian Activism in Malaysia

· Mr Ooi Kok Hin & Dr Caleb Goh — Manufacturing Polemics: Right-Wing Discourse, Cybertroopers, & Black Ops

· Associate Professor Syaza Shukri — Three Decades of Digital Authoritarianism in Malaysia: The Government’s Role in Polarizing Society

· Dr Wan Rohila Ganti, Dr Aini Fatihah Roslam, Assistant Professor Mohamad Shafiq Sulaiman — The TikTok Election: Fake News, Parody, and Slanderous Remarks, and How They Impacted First-time Youth Voters

10.00–11.30am: PANEL 15 (B 206)

Culture & Identity

· Ms Cui Yii — Cultural identity as an expression of Chinese community: The modern ink painting of Malaysian artists

· Associate Professor Sarena Abdullah — The Changing Malayan Landscapes: From Western Representations to Malayan Renditions

· Mr William Wai Liang Tham — The Making of Malay(si)ans: Life-writing and Memory Work in Two Postwar Texts

· Ms Yun Seh Lee — Mapping the influences of the PRC and Taiwan in Kuching: Who are the local Chinese?

11.30–12.30pm: Private Meetings & Networking Sessions (Ng Ah Choo Multipurpose Hall)

12.30–2.00pm: LUNCH

2.00–3.30pm: PANEL 16 (Ng Ah Choo Multipurpose Hall)

Competing Histories

· Assistant Professor Jason Ng Sze Chieh — The Malaysian Communist Insurgency: Beyond A Conflict of Resistance

· Dr Amrita Malhi — The New Social History of the Malayan Emergency, 1948–60: Future Directions Beyond “Hearts and Minds”

· Dr Wilbert Wong & Professor Anthony Milner — Creating Malaysia — Colonialism and the History Wars

· Mr Kok Yin Chu & Dr Yeow-Tong Chia — A Historical Review of the Official Chinese Cultural Promotions in Singapore within the 1980s and its Implications to Malaysia

2.00–3.30pm: PANEL 17 (B 202)

《谈马来西亚的国族建构》On Malaysia’s National Construction

· 安焕然教授Professor Onn Huann Jan — 《论马华文化与国族建构》(On Malaysian Chinese Culture and National Construction)

· 伍燕翎副教授Associate Professor Ng Yean Leng — 《海凡的马共书写与国族建构》(Hai Fan’s Writing on the Malayan Communist Party and National Construction)

· 鍾大榮教授Professor Zhong Darong — 《马六甲勇全殿成功申遗与中马文化相似性》(Melaka Yong Chuan Tian Temple’s Successful Application for Intangible Cultural Heritage of UNESCO and the Cultural Similarity Between China and Malaysia)

· 黃大志教授Professor Wong Tai-Chee — 《低无技术外劳与中等收入陷阱》(Low and Poor Skilled Foreign Workforce and the Middle Income Trap)

2.00–3.30pm: PANEL 18 (B 203)

From the Periphery to the Centre?

· Dr Kumaran Rajandran — Politics in Malaysia: Research Trends in Discourse Studies

· Associate Professor Rohana Ariffin & Dr Rachel Samuel — Women and the Political Culture of Malaysia

· Ms Nicole Sim — Under the Clutches of Conflict Zones: A Comprehensive Comparison Between Foreign Correspondents and Citizen Journalists in Malaysia

· Mr Faris Ridzuan — Transcending Cultural Identities Towards Building a Plural Masyarakat Through “Eclectic Inclusivism”: Drawing from Progressive, Inclusive and Humanistic Traditions and Multicultural Resources

2.00–3.30pm: PANEL 19 (B 205)

Crisis and Resistance

· Senior Assistant Professor Sin Yee Koh — The Right to have rights: Crisis Experiences of Existing and Aspiring Malaysia My Second Home (MM2H) Migrants

· Dr Alicia Izharuddin — Trans-motherhood on the edge: Competing necro and biopolitics in the lives of transgender mothers

· Assistant Professor Andrine Ong — Does language matter in mental health? A corpus-assisted discourse analysis of mental health in the newspapers and public forum in Malaysia

· Dr Charity Lee Chin Ai — #KitaJagaKita: (De)legitimising the Government During the 2020 Movement Control Order

2.00–3.30pm: PANEL 20 (B 206)

Affirmative Action in Malaysia

· Associate Professor Hidekuni Washida — State Dependency and Support for Political Reform: Evidence from Malaysia

· Dr Lee Hwok Aun — Polarised Deadlock and Misguided Consensus: Why NEP Debates Get Nowhere

· Dr Muhamad M.N. Nadzri — The State of Malaysia’s New Economic Policy after the Fall of a Dominant Party: Contestation, Change and Continuity

3.30–3.50pm: COFFEE/TEA BREAK

4.00–5.30pm: ROUNDTABLE (Ng Ah Choo Multipurpose Hall)

Youth and Identity Politics in Malaysia

· Chair: Dr Helen Ting

· Dr Hew Wai Weng

· Siti Rahayu Baharin

· Syahredzan Johan MP

· Harris Idaham Rashid (exco Armada Bersatu Nasional)

5.30pm: CLOSING (Ng Ah Choo Multipurpose Hall)

Closing addresses by MASSA President and the Australian High Commission representative

· Dr Yeow Tong Chia, president of MASSA 2023

· Dr Steven Barraclough, Visiting Senior Official at the Australian High Commission to Malaysia

MASSA 2023 Symposium organising committee: Dr Jason Ng Sze Chieh (convenor), Dr Greg Lopez, Dr Kerstin Steiner, Dr Wilbert Wong, Dr Walid Jumblatt Abdullah, Kean Wong.