Public Discussion Series
Indonesian Studies
M. Mirza Ardi, MPPM
| Prof. Anthony Reid Seminar Room, ICAIOS |
Master of Public Policy and Management from the University of Melbourne where he met and studied intensively under Prof. Vedi R Hadiz on political economy approach.
About PDS:
In general, there are three major approaches in studying Indonesian politics. The first is the historical-anthropology approach. It is pioneered by Cornell scholars like George McTurnan Kahin, Benedict Anderson, and Herbert Feith. Second, liberal-pluralism approaches, it is pioneered by various scholars like William Liddle in Ohio University or Edward Aspinall in ANU.
Thirdly, political economy approach, it is pioneered by two different school of thought: Richard Robison and Vedi R Hadiz (Neo-Marxism) and Jeffrey A Winters (Weberian). The core argument of the political economy approach is that Indonesia is controlled by the oligarchy power. However, some political observers in Aceh define oligarchy in simplistic way as “ruled by the view”. This presentation intends to clarify what the ‘oligarchy’ means in the Indonesian context. It will compare between Robison-Hadiz and Winters concept. It is argued that different perspective will produce different conclusion in explaining Indonesia politics. Finally, the presentation encourages Aceh scholars to produce Aceh studies from different tradition of thoughts.
