Philippines 2016: Democracy for the Bobotante
February 24, 2016
Written by Carmina Yu Untalan. Spend just 30 minutes reading commentaries on Philippine presidential elections online, and there is a 99 percent chance that you will come across the word bobotante. You may guess that it is a derogatory term from the context in which it appears: we have four candidates and each have weaknesses: …
Philippines 2016: We Need to Talk About Manny
February 22, 2016
Written by Pauline Eadie. Political aspirants in the Philippines routinely trot out religious piety, devotion to family and humble origins as mechanisms to appeal to the masses. These humble origins often turn out to be somewhat exaggerated as in the case of Manny Villar. If a claim to humble origins is simply not credible then a …
2016 Philippine Presidential Elections: Turning Point for Internal Conflicts?
February 17, 2016
Written by Joseph Franco. The 9th February 2016 marks the official start of 90-day campaign period for the Philippine presidential elections. Boisterous and even bordeline slanderous remarks are par for the course as with prior presidential races. Beyond the day-to-day flurry of campaigning lies potential turning points for the different internal conflicts raging across the …
What the Philippines 2016 Elections Mean for the Mindanao Peace Process
February 15, 2016
Written by Pauleen Gorospe. It has been decades since the armed conflict in Mindanao erupted. Almost 50 years later, the Government of the Philippines (GOP) was able to enter into peace agreements with two secessionist groups: in 1996, with the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) and, in 2014, with its breakaway group, the Moro Islamic …
Philippines 2016 at the Institute of Asia and Pacific Studies
February 8, 2016
Written by Pauline Eadie and Francis Domingo. Thirty years ago in February 1986 the Philippines saw a bloodless revolution that ousted President Ferdinand Marcos and his wife Imelda Marcos from Malacañang Palace. This revolution was known as the EDSA Revolution and the non-violent tactics of the masses became known as ‘People Power’. These events are embedded in the …
On Disasters and the Yolanda/Haiyan Experience
February 5, 2016
Written by Jan Robert R Go. Since 2000, natural disasters, it seems, have become a commonplace in the Philippines more than ever—not simply in terms of numbers, but also in terms of magnitude. Many studies and reports, both national and international, have already highlighted the geographical exposure of the Philippines, which makes it a disaster-prone …
Prominent feminist activist Kavita Krishnan to give 2015/16 Tomlinson Lecture
Written by Carole Spary. Our 2015/16 Tomlinson Lecture speaker is Kavita Krishnan. Kavita is the Secretary of the All India Progressive Women’s Association and a politbureau member of the CPI(ML) Liberation Party in India. She is a prominent feminist, left activist and campaigner on a range of interrelated issues, in particular women’s rights in India. …
“They Are Not Colonies but Jails”: Indian Indentured Labour in Colonial Mauritius, 1852-1900
January 18, 2016
By Sascha Auerbach, Department of History, The University of Nottingham To understand the rationale for the research conducted with the generous aid of IAPS seedcorn funding, a little background on the topic of study is necessary. Today, the constant flow of population across the globe—whether as workers, visitors, or refugees—is a common feature of life. …
Violence Against Women in India: Is ‘Culture’ The Culprit, or Structure?
January 8, 2016
We’re getting excited about the annual Tomlinson Lecture on 3rd March at 6pm. Kavita Krishnan will speak on ‘Violence Against Women in India: Is ‘Culture’ The Culprit, or Structure?’ Kavita Krishnan is the Secretary of the All India Progressive Women’s Association. Lecture open to all but please register at www.tomlinson-lecture.eventbrite.co.uk
UK-India Business Council, growing trade, and reverse colonialism
January 4, 2016
Written by 3rd year International Relations student, Priyanka Mistry, who undertook an internship in India in July 2015 as part of the British Council Scheme UKIBC, the UK–India Business Council, is a membership based organisation founded in 2007 to promote and increase bilateral trade between the UK and India. Some companies which are part of …
