Current global movements have emphasized the institutionalized problem of colourism that structurally disadvantage people of colour. In Indonesia, the Melanesians, a marginalized group of dark...Show moreCurrent global movements have emphasized the institutionalized problem of colourism that structurally disadvantage people of colour. In Indonesia, the Melanesians, a marginalized group of dark-skinned people from East-Indonesia, find themselves in a Southeast Asian society that embraces a beauty standard of fair skin. This exposes the already marginalized group to a society that encourages colourism. This thesis attempts to research to what extent colourism within the beauty standards contributes to the marginalization of their position within Indonesian society over the last two decades. Furthermore, this thesis analyses the establishment of colourism within the Southeast Asian beauty standard, as well as why the Melanesians have been in a marginalized position since the Indonesian dependence.Show less
The interconnectedness of contemporary world politics and economics has led to an increased movement of labour, capital and ideas. Unfortunately, the movement of labour and capital has accumulated...Show moreThe interconnectedness of contemporary world politics and economics has led to an increased movement of labour, capital and ideas. Unfortunately, the movement of labour and capital has accumulated in, what the world-systems theory calls, ‘core countries’, while their waste has been shipped to the feet of the ‘periphery countries’. This is the result of a capitalist economic system that has caused ecological imbalance, uneven accumulation and unlimited extension. According to Max Weber’s hypotheses, the ‘core’ of this system is formed by historically Protestant countries whose values of individualism, hard work, revenue pursuit and frugality facilitated the success of the modern capitalist – spirit embedded in multinational corporations. Increasingly environmentally aware consumers are urging MNCs to take responsibility for the environmental harm that they have caused in countries where their outsourcing partners operate. Nevertheless, numerous MNCs have managed to avoid public scrutiny by implementing CSR strategies on the surface level. Therefore, outsourcing partners are still being affected by the negative externalities of the industry’s production processes. This thesis argues that the protestant ethic which allowed for the success of MNCs is also hindering the advance of corporate social responsibility amongst outsourcing partners in countries such as Indonesia. The protestant ethic characteristic of core capitalist countries perpetuates MNCs privileged position at the expense of the environmental degradation and consequent socio-economic well-being of inhabitants of periphery countries.Show less
This thesis investigates the gender ideologies present in the social marketing of contraception. The case of the family-planning focused NGO DKT International's program in Indonesia was used. It...Show moreThis thesis investigates the gender ideologies present in the social marketing of contraception. The case of the family-planning focused NGO DKT International's program in Indonesia was used. It was found that specific gender scripts, such as empowered women and sexually active men, were used in the advertising.Show less
Bollywood both shapes and is shaped by Indian society and its ideas on gender and nationhood. As such, it engages in the politics of representation as theorised by feminist film scholars. While...Show moreBollywood both shapes and is shaped by Indian society and its ideas on gender and nationhood. As such, it engages in the politics of representation as theorised by feminist film scholars. While extensive literature on the representation of women in Bollywood has arisen in the last two decades, less attention has been put on how rural populations or, more particularly, rural women are represented. This thesis attempts to fill this gap, recognising the invisibilization of rural women in India, especially the agrarian female workers who make up a major part of the national economy and around a fourth of the Indian population. I have used content and discourse analysis techniques on the Bollywood films Lagaan (2001) and Parched (2016) to investigate, firstly, the representation of Indian rural women in Bollywood, secondly the applicability of the theories developed through the literature on Indian women in Bollywood, and lastly, the possible implications of such representations on the visibility of Indian rural women, considering both the content and the reach of the films in the context of contemporary Bollywood. There is a multiplicity of representations of Indian women across Bollywood films, and this also applies for the representation of Indian rural women. In Lagaan, women play side-roles and are defined by their relation to the male characters; they are dedicated daughters, mothers and lovers. In Parched, the rural women are nuanced characters with desires, struggles and the will to fight for their agency in a patriarchal society. Even though the representations in Parched challenge notions of patriarchal and upper-class nationhood, its viewership and therefore the impact of the visibilization Indian rural women is limited to an elite and largely foreign audience, whereas the more patriarchal, but subaltern-perspective film Lagaan has reached Indian masses. Although women centric Bollywood films have been on the rise, a low number of films portray rural Indians and of those only few depict female characters in nuanced ways like done in Parched. This implies that Indian rural women remain largely invisibilized and stigmatized in Bollywood and in the imagination of the nation by the Bollywood audiences. Going forward, middle cinema offers a promising space for critical but still influential films, stimulating larger discussions on class and gender.Show less
While the Prime Minister of Pakistan has praised the ‘remarkable relationship’ between his country and the Afghan refugees it hosts, Rohingya refugees from Myanmar have been described by the Prime...Show moreWhile the Prime Minister of Pakistan has praised the ‘remarkable relationship’ between his country and the Afghan refugees it hosts, Rohingya refugees from Myanmar have been described by the Prime Minister of Bangladesh as a ‘threat to security’. This thesis seeks to account for this divergence in the perception of refugee influxes and accordingly explain the resulting refugee policies of each country. It finds that while the dominant academic discourse of geopolitical and economic factors can help to shed light on policy outcomes, socio-cultural and historical factors must also be considered.Show less
This thesis takes an institutional approach to patronage networks in Indonesia and describes how institutional vulnerabilities facilitated the expansion of patronage networks in Indonesia after the...Show moreThis thesis takes an institutional approach to patronage networks in Indonesia and describes how institutional vulnerabilities facilitated the expansion of patronage networks in Indonesia after the adoption of the open list proportional representation (OLPR) system. It is demonstrated how institutional factors such as decentralization, a powerful bureaucracy, Suharto's legacy, weak and underfunded political parties, resourceful economic actors, and lacking enforcement of anti-corruption regulations have increased the opportunity and incentive for politicians, bureaucrats, economic actors and voters to establish patronage networks. This thesis concludes that careful deliberation of institutional factors is essential before adopting the OLPR system in order to prevent widespread clientelism.Show less
Bicultural or multicultural identities have emanated from migration in today’s world of globalisation. This study focuses on the gap in research on the development of return migration’s impact on...Show moreBicultural or multicultural identities have emanated from migration in today’s world of globalisation. This study focuses on the gap in research on the development of return migration’s impact on cultural identity through the case study of readjustment experiences of Japan’s kikokushijo. By examining eight factors, both personal, societal, and interactive, the analysis finds that recent return migrants experience less severe readjustment problems than those in the 1970s and 1980s, and that Japanese society’s perception of return migrants is less critical. Yet recent return migrants still struggle with “traditional” aspects of Japan, issues of identity, and stereotypes. Through the analysis of Japan’s kikokushijo, this research adds a new perspective and contributes to the broader field of migration in an era of globalisation with a focus on society’s perception of return migrants, cultural identity development, and readjustment strategies.Show less
Since Kim Jong-un acceded as North Korea’s state leader in 2012, it was speculated that North Korea would gradually become more involved in the international community. Although the absence of...Show moreSince Kim Jong-un acceded as North Korea’s state leader in 2012, it was speculated that North Korea would gradually become more involved in the international community. Although the absence of international involvement ensures authoritarian regime survival, authoritarian regimes benefit from involvement international community if they obtain a position of negotiation for financial and material aid. In relation to this dichotomous effect of international involvement on authoritarian state survival, this study aimed to define North Korea’s efforts to deploy its fundamental institutional legacies of state ideology, economy and military to achieve regime survival in the international community. Accordingly, the main research question that this study addressed is: How does North Korea intend to deploy its fundamental institutional legacies in the process of achieving regime survival in the international community, with regard to the dichotomous impact of international involvement on authoritarian state survival? In order to answer this question, this study conducted a word frequency analysis of Kim Jong-un’s New Year addresses from the years 2013 and 2018. Although this study disregarded the contextual value of the selected words, the data obtained from the New Year speeches indicated that North Korea intends to pursue involvement with South Korea and the United States in the international community. This study concluded that, through the preservation of the vital essence of Juche ideology and the reinforcement of the essential components of its economic institutional legacy, North Korea intends to retain regime survival in its external environment. In addition, through increasing the emphasis on its nuclear abilities, rather than reinforcing the focus on the fundamental constitutes of its military institutional legacy, it is suggested that North Korea intends to create a position of negotiation in the international community. Overall, this study could provide the foundation for future comparative research on the contemporary relation between North Korea and the international community, with regard to North Korea’s intentions for its fundamental institutional legacies and the reflection of words related to economy, military and ideology in Kim Jong-un’s New Year speeches.Show less
A look at how Sino-Relations have devloped in the context of development in Central Asia. Analyzing international and regional organizations from both a neo-realist perspective and a liberal...Show moreA look at how Sino-Relations have devloped in the context of development in Central Asia. Analyzing international and regional organizations from both a neo-realist perspective and a liberal institutionalist view this thesis will attempt to explain the concept of cooperation that continues under the posibility of confrontation between China and Russia.Show less
This study aims to find out how stereotypes about foreigners are formed in South Korea, and what the role of the media is. It delves into the reason why people construct stereotypes and how the...Show moreThis study aims to find out how stereotypes about foreigners are formed in South Korea, and what the role of the media is. It delves into the reason why people construct stereotypes and how the media can influence public opinion through framing. With these as attributing factors, the history of foreigners in South Korea is also illuminated and it is established that Korean identity dictates that there is a stark categorization of what is Korean and what is not. This dictates means that inherently those that are not Korean are believed to not act like Koreans in any way, and this thus forms the stereotype. On a micro-scale, it is demonstrated how stereotypes are negotiated, reproduced and confirmed. These stereotypes focus mainly focus on categorization and identity of the foreigners and Koreans. These stereotypes being the center of a TV program is an act of framing, which is then conveyed to an audience, which is how stereotypes are influenced by the media.Show less
This thesis covers how the cultural identity of one nation can affect an economic phenomenon. This thesis chooses Republic of Korea (ROK) and youth unemployment as the case studies for the unit of...Show moreThis thesis covers how the cultural identity of one nation can affect an economic phenomenon. This thesis chooses Republic of Korea (ROK) and youth unemployment as the case studies for the unit of analysis. This thesis claims that identity is embedded within the educational policies, which together, creates the over-education phenomenon, and result the ROK with the highest tertiary education attainment among the OECD countries. By investigating the historical and economic development of South Korea, this thesis illustrates the key characteristics of its cultural identity and how this was embedded within the economic structures of the country. With this rhetoric, this thesis attempts to grasp the notion that identity economics has a bilateral relationship between their cultural identity and the structural policies.Show less
The purpose of this thesis is to analyse the influence of the Confucian family system over lesbian, gay men, bisexual, and transsexual rights, LGBT rights, in Japan. This thesis investigates how...Show moreThe purpose of this thesis is to analyse the influence of the Confucian family system over lesbian, gay men, bisexual, and transsexual rights, LGBT rights, in Japan. This thesis investigates how this family system portrays hegemonic gender roles over the Japanese population. One of the outcomes is that the Confucian family system created a registry system, or Koseki Seido which dates back the Tokugawa era. The koseki seido has been an obstacle for these LGBT communities to have a legal status in Japan. Also, the traditionalist nature of the Japanese society has severely impacted the efforts of these minority groups in obtaining civil rights, when compared to more LGBT-friendly countries. Even though LGBT communities have not obtained a legal status within Japan’s society, since 2015 the Shibuya prefecture has been issuing same-sex partnerships that have granted these communities a better legal status. The partnership certificates are not legally binding; however, same-sex couples can be afforded the same civil rights as that of opposite-sex couples. The inclusion of the same-sex partnership certificates as a case study serves to illustrate how Japan is progressing in adapting LGBT rights, albeit slowly.Show less
