Foe of History presents paper, moderates proceedings at the 2015 Inter-Asia Cultural Studies Conference

Asst. Prof. Jonathan Foe of the Department of History of the Faculty of Arts and Letters,  presented his paper and served as panel moderator in the Inter-Asia Cultural Studies Conference in Surabaya, Indonesia from August 7 to 10, 2015. Asst. Prof. Foe joined co- presentors  from different parts of Asia and Pacific who prepared discourses based on the  conference theme  “Undercurrents: Unearthing Hidden Social and Discursive Practices.” This international convention also became a gathering of researchers who give face to the multiculturalism that is happening in many Asian societies now. 

Among these subthemes was gender studies, an area which Asst. Prof. Foe covered with his paper, “Comparing the Status of Philippine Gays to Those of Indonesia.”  Based on his dissertation titled“1960’s Philippine Gay Life: Discreet, Hidden yet Tolerated,” he took an interest and studied the situation of gays in Indonesia who share a common past with the Philippines, particularly with deities or diwata and shaman or babaylan , which are present in both subcultures. Aside from his participation as paper presenter, Foe also moderated a parallel session which clustered all presentation for the subtheme “Sexuality and Identity.”

The opening keynote lecture was delivered by Prof. Abidin Kusno of the University of British Columbia, Canada/ Kusno’s address, entitled “Locating Undercurrents”, underscored the related theories of power and discourse in studying cultural issues with South East Asia and East Asia. Meanwhile, the closing keynote was rendered by Prof. Melani Budianta, a Humanities faculty from the University of Indonesia whose paper highlights the social movements in Surabaya  during the critical moments  in Asia.  In addition, there were eight parallel sessions and three plenary presentations that covered a variety of subjects that ranged from environmental issues of the Surabaya River to the forging of a feminist organization within the nations of South Asia. 

The conference has commenced in the year 2000 with a group of Asian scholars bound by mutual concerns that transcend nationalities. Since then, they have been holding  conferences every other year in the key cities in Asia such as Taipei, Fukuoka, Bangalore and Seoul.