SEMESTER 1 2010

Diversity Matters @ Murdoch

Once-a-Semester Newsletter for the Murdoch community to discuss culture and diversity

Under the Microscope: Engage Beyond Language Knotty Knots - Globalisation, Democracy, Culture Exchange Experience Hand in Hand? - Science and Culture

2010 has commenced and left us all with no doubt that we are occupants of a turbulent and dynamic world. Many of you will have made new year resolutions, to undertake more exercise, study more diligently and participate more actively in your local communities. Yet at the same time we hear of the serious fires and floods in this country and then of the catastrophic earthquake in distant Haiti, and wonder how to respond!
These scenarios offer considerable challenge to that idiom Think globally, Act locally. The contributors to this semesters Diversity Matters, demonstrate that we need to take both a long and a close view of our shared communities near and far. How else can we gain insight into the experiences of students who come from abroad to live and study with us; what elements of different lived histories would contribute to improving our understanding of political, cultural and religious activities of all peoples in an expanding global economy? We make the assumption in Australia that we are a multicultural nation, but have failed to ensure that our culturally diverse populations are included in the representation of that national identity. Waleed Aly, writing in The Monthly last year identified this as a lack of the construction in Australia of civic ideals and an ethos of participation. Aly noted that Australia was more likely to demand that migrants to its shores fit in. (Aly, Waleed, (2009), Patriot Acts The Monthly, June, 8) This semesters Diversity Matters shows how Murdochs students and staff avoid the temptation of fitting in and instead take up the challenge of participating thus ensuring they are contributing knowledge, thoughts and ideas which are open and unfixed.

Introduction

Manager, Equity, Health & Counselling, Murdoch University

Geraldine Box

Exchange Experience
This is to share my observation on student induction in the City University of Hong Kong (CityU).
I attended the University as an Exchange Student. CityU has some great programmes for international/exchange students. Namely, a Welcoming Party with international and local students. All were encouraged to exchange what it is to be Australian, Canadian, Chinese etc. This allowed us to be open to differences of customs and views of other students. It was also designed to take us through what customs exist in Hong Kong local culture, laws, foods, transport etc. by guest lecturers such as a Hong Kong police representative, sporting and university club reps. We were informed of extra-curricular activities sporting/travel/photography clubs. We were each given a buddy (a student volunteer) who helped us find our way around our new city, get used to the public transport system, organise things like student cards, gym cards, public transport cards and find local amenities. Also, an individual (an international PhD student) was paid by the university to

On the experience of a Murdoch exchange student in Hong Kong

organise events for international students that related to local pastimes and activities. These events included locals who introduced/ explained the activity and took part in it with us. These are just a few of the plethora of things that CityU had to assist students to settle in and integrate. I would unreservedly recommend the utterly amazing experience I have had in Hong Kong. Anyone who has been on an exchange or studied abroad would know firsthand the personal difficulties faced when adapting to a new environment the physical distance from close friends and family, language barriers, difference in climate, foods, customs, standards of hygiene I asked some Hong Kong students on exchange in Australia about similar level of attention and assistance while studying in Australia. Whilst they still had a great time studying in Australia, their level of integration and intercultural exchange was limited. Some may argue that if international/ exchange students wish to integrate, they should have to be the ones to work at it. But, I believe that such an argument fails to recognise the major obstacles international students face just trying to adapt to their new environment and study. Study-abroad students have a wealth of knowledge and experience to be shared with outbound exchange students, local students and Murdoch as an institution. The returning students can contribute in a dynamic way to Murdoch to further enhance international students experience, here. Joel Murdoch Graduate

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The knotty knot of Democracy and Culture

Caroline Hughes
Associate Professor Politics and International Studies Murdoch University

Studying democracy and culture can be difficult. Both the concepts are notoriously tricky to define. We all know that democracy comes from the Greek for people power: but what does that consist of, actually, given that most people have no desire or opportunity to spend their days in or around parliament debating political issues?
In a classic article published in 1956, and still much-cited today, W.B. Gallie categorised democracy as an essentially-contested concept.1 This is a concept bound up with all kinds of moral positions. Consequently, different individuals, with different moral outlooks, will find it impossible to agree on what democracy ought to contain or deliver. A social democrat might emphasise power over the distribution of wealth in society; a liberal democrat would emphasise the power to control potentially tyrannous states which desire to impose heavy taxes. They are unlikely to reach agreement from these two incompatible positions. Consequently, culture might make a big difference to the approach to government taken by different countries in the world. This has certainly been a claim made by leaders in Asia,2 prompting analysts of Asian politics to come up with the concept of Asian-style democracy.3 In the 1990s, especially, a number of governments in Asia that were dominated by single parties and which circumscribed freedom of speech or association, argued that this reflected East Asian cultural norms of hierarchy, deference and respect. Culture is also a difficult concept. The famous philosopher Raymond Williams once described culture as one of the two or three most complicated words in the English language.4 Cultural difference is immediately identifiable, whenever one steps off a plane in a new country; but it is difficult to accurately

pin down without reducing it to an absurd stereotype that actually fits no one. Ive been in Australia for over a year now, and I havent seen a single person wearing a hat hung with corks. Every society has its culture; but is that culture best described with reference to high culture or popular culture? How do we deal with subcultures, minority cultures, working class culture or youth culture? As soon as you begin to subdivide society, you find that culture subdivides along with it. In the discipline of anthropology, over the past few decades, analysts have shifted from a paradigm in the first half of the 20th century of viewing culture as essentially discrete, static and internally consistent, within a society, to understanding it as hybrid, mobile, open to outside influence and internally contested. Understood in this way, the claim by East Asian leaders that their culture values strong leadership over individual freedoms ceases to offer the legitimacy they desire. If culture is contested then this means that powerholders can use their power to promote their preferred vision of the national culture over contending visions, in an authoritarian or undemocratic way. And that takes us back to square one when considering the relationship between culture and democracy.

Asian leaders are not the only leaders to succumb to the temptation of trying to use ideas about culture to mobilize support behind essentially political decisions. The politics of authenticity is influential in all countries, and is arguably on the rise. Personality politics rests upon the ability of leaders to claim a particular cultural identity or set of personal values, as opposed to an ideological position or policy platform. In an increasingly neo-liberal world, as parties move closer together in terms of ideology, we can expect to see more of the use and abuse of ideas about culture in political campaigning. There is a danger that this may make it difficult for the people. However, we define them to exercise democratic power in the context of pressing problems such as climate change and global poverty.
1 W.B. Gallie, Essentially Contested Concepts, Proceedings of the Aristotelian Society 56 (1956): 167-198. 2 See, for example, Lee Kwan Yew, Is Democracy Necessary? The Weekend Australian 24-25 April 1993, 20. 3 See, for example, Clark Neher, Asian Style Democracy, Asian Survey, 34.22 (1994): 949-961. 4 Raymond Williams, Keywords, (London: Fontana, 1988), 87.

Diversity Matters @ Murdoch Semester 1 2010

Under the Microscope

ENGAGE BEYOND LANGUAGE

Foreign language and the perceptions around language communication

Murdoch University Psychology student, Wendy, elaborates upon a discussion with peer students and staff.
Most students would agree that coming to university for the first time is both an exciting and equally daunting experience. Caught up in my own experience of adjusting to campus life as a mature age student with family responsibilities, I am almost embarrassed to admit that I adopted a lot of the stereotyped impressions of International students. Having been given the opportunity to be part of a discussion group made up of a mix of Domestic students and International students, the topic of foreign languages and the perceptions around language communication, left me quite humbled and a lot more enlightened on the personal experiences and challenges facing our fellow students from overseas.
There is a tendency to think of language as just words but they represent so much more. The discussion opened with the following questions posed: Does the study/knowledge of foreign languages foster better understanding of people with different cultural backgrounds? Perhaps the most poignant comments came from an international student who stated, I havent understood Australian people. Not only me, but other international students. Its not easy to get along with Australians. I did a small survey and found the majority of international students (approximately 70%) didnt have interactions with Australian students. It can be seen at lunch in the refectory and concerns me because International students come to study not just language and education, but culture as well. Language is a barrier, expecially colloquial language. A Domestic student who previously attended university in Canberra stated that there was a big divide between International students and Domestic students. One way to bridge that divide he suggested, would be to learn a foreign language. He went to Indonesia, to learn the language and experience things from the other side, coming back with a better understanding and respect. Learning Indonesian enabled me to gain cultural insights of the dynamics in a culture. Language is not merely a tool of communication, however, and can still render one inadequate in an unfamiliar culture. One International students experience in the United States was along these lines. Although fluent in English the student found herself preferring to hang out with other International students instead of Domestic students. Language was not the barrier, but cultural norms. The desire to be with others who had the motivation to understand each other and what they had gone through to come here was stronger. Another Australian student who went to Japan, found themself mixing with other International students who spoke both Japanese and English. They acknowledged that people who can really use the language can feel the ease of fitting in culturally though there is a time factor involved in learning the informal language ie. colloquialism. Sovic (2009), found that International students need time to adapt to different accents, acronyms, slang, and the speed of conversations, and they often feel that home students lack goodwill and patience (p. 755). It was agreed in the group that it probably takes one to two generations for this to occur. So if our exposure to language started earlier ie. in primary school - would it help? A Domestic student from country WA responded that learning Indonesian as a language in primary school helped me to also learn the culture, even though many of my peers did not continue with the language. We did however gain a general understanding of other cultures even though we lived in a small country town. Do you agree that a lack in the ability to communicate well in a language is often interpreted as a lack in intellect/ decision making/knowledge/awareness? One International student stated that,

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Learning language and going overseas break down stereotypes

Ross

Aiko

Philippa

Asep

Wendy

Raafi

Aki
trying to make conversation with people in Australia and having difficulty because Australians get a bit suspicious of this approach. The response from an Australian student was we are so used to people being from other nationalities, we dont automatically assume they are visitors, unlike Australians in other countries, probably because we are a multicultural society. Economic and technological global dominance of English speaking and European cultures are irreversibly influencing many more cultures. Do you agree? An International student responded Japan is one of the most Americanised countries. We love Starbucks! Also, younger people use more English words than the older people, because its cool! Another International student agreed: Even the Bahasa Indonesia has changed over the last fifty years due to infiltration of English. After Suharto, billboards changed to English. Before this, Bahasa was more prominent.

Renee

Rachelle

because I look different it is assumed that I cant speak English. I have felt totally misunderstood and people have felt the need to help me. So due to appearance, then language, ie. poor English, it was assumed I was incapable. Another example was given of an International student who raised a good point in a class but expressed themself poorly due to paucity of language and was treated dismissively, only to have a Domestic student make the same point more succinctly and be acknowledged for it. An International student in the discussion offered that language is only the first key to express ideas. After I know English and more about Australian people, I need to know more about their habits. How do you make friends with Australians? I feel Australians put up a barrier. International people would extend hospitality to others ie. guests, but Australians dont do that with International people. Another International student agreed: I have an International friend who is always

In international education, other than the export dollars, what benefit does Australia get by interacting with foreign cultures and people? According to Khawaja & Dempsey, 2007, foreign students bring with them an array of experiences that reflect individual, cultural and social elements of their lives(p.13). One group participant remarked, the primary function of learning language and/or going overseas breaks down stereotypes eg. Indonesians as terrorists. The final word then perhaps belongs to this International student - I would like Australian students to tell us how to know them better.

Language is not merely a tool of communication however and can still render one inadequate in an unfamiliar culture.

Diversity Matters @ Murdoch Semester 1 2010

HAND IN HAND? Or, AT ODDS? Three Murdoch academics comment on the relationship of modern science and cultural traditions
Has the progress of science been more often at odds with cultural sensitivity, than in agreement?
Philip: I regard science as a human cultural activity that is devoted to observing, recording and explaining the behaviour of the natural world. Science is an important part of all human cultures. In some cultures, science was integrated with religion and social customs. As science developed it has become more secular and international and it now has its own transnational culture. This has brought it into conflict with some political and religious leaders when it has questioned some of their core beliefs. The essence of modern science is intellectual honesty, nothing is beyond question and every theory must be subjected to an experimental test. This idea is clearly at odds with some traditional beliefs. However, most modern societies recognise the value of science and understand its strengths and limitations and the conflict is now part of the general debatethat accompanies the progress of science. Sally: Scientists need to listen to local knowledge. While modern Science is welcome, in some cases, it does delineate people from tradition/culture/village-life. Example: techniques of growing the Wonder Food in India or rice-growing in Mozambique have treated people as customers with scant value for their lifestyle. While modern Science and big companies implementing Science are important, it is also very important to embed scientific principles in the social and natural context. Robert: Several areas of Science are at odds, viz, developing GM food. Huge expansion in Molecular Biology has enabled introduction of genes into plants that help resist disease and insects. But, such modifications are seen as potentially harmful: introduced genes will get a stranglehold on plants and generate compounds that are not safe and natural. Genetic Engineering focuses on the necessity to provide more food. There is a lack of understanding of Genetic Engineering. Likewise, Stem Cell research is seen as playing God. Genetic arguments are to

Have the changes brought about by scientific inquiry and discovery/invention been too rapid for cultural sensitivities to stomach?
Philip: Science has produced revolutionary changes in our view of the world and this has sometimes had implications for religion and cultural practices. There was considerable conflict between science and religion in Renaissance Europe and later between science and ideology in Nazi Germany and Stalinist Russia. Today we see tensions between scientists and creationists and between meteorologists and climate change sceptics. Science has also accelerated the rate of technological change and this has exacerbated some social and political conflicts and has given some nations the power to destroy all human civilisation. We are still learning how to manage technology effectively.

Sally: Polio or Bird Flu vaccines are needed. They are important. But being wary of change is not unnatural. Cars, cell phones, iPods have changed even lesser developed societies forever. It is hard to know what is wrong or right. Who will decide if introducing electricity in a remote Bangladeshi village will result in the society abandoning its age-old tradition for the television!! Robert: Yes, it is probably true. There is a lack of appreciation in the public of what scientific invention really means. There needs to be thorough public debate on the pace and purpose of technological advancement. Currently, people are unable

help people overcome genetic diseases. But, that is seen as interfering with the Natural Selection which may not be beneficial to particular species. Genetic manipulation can help select the genetic make-up of children. Where to draw the line?!

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More? Less? Not at all?!

Philip Jennings
Professor Energy Studies

Sally Paulin
Lecturer Sustainability

Associate Professor Biochemistry

Robert Mead

Globalisation and Democracy: can we expect more or less democracy in the world due to economic globalisation?
Jane Hutchison

Senior Lecturer, Politics and International Studies, Murdoch University

to grasp the purpose of advancements happening at a high pace. For example, DNA Profiling and peoples privacy need to be thrashed out through community consultations.

In todays world, how can the scientific community work collaboratively with cultural traditions that are based on worldly and spiritual wisdom gathered over millennia?
Philip: I believe it is important for scientists to understand and respect the civilising role of culture in human society. Scientists need to be aware of the global implications of their work and they must

try to foresee their impact on society. Scientists and technologists need to be more broadly educated so that they are aware of the history of social and cultural impacts of their work and they need to have a good understanding of social justice and professional ethics. Creating this awareness is an important part of University education and Murdoch Universitys graduate attributes seek to address these issues. Sally: The modern scientific communities should listen to and understand local traditions. Local farmers are community scientists. They have the wisdom and knowledge that work for humans. Nature is their laboratory. While a genetically modified seed may be seen as successful, it destroys the ability of farmers to grow crops the next time from seeds saved in the earlier cycle. Scientists, acting as saviours, should focus more on the cause of problems (eg, land clearance as per European farming, water erosion) rather than treating the symptoms. Robert: Greater awareness on the value of traditional wisdom is needed, but with caution. The medical profession has embraced traditional knowledge, viz, in Chiropractic, Chinese medicines, Acupuncture. Modern drugs source ingredients from sources known to age-old traditions. There is surely a nexus. We have become more sensitive to seek scientific validity on traditional approaches that we adopt confidently.

Those who answer more tend to see democracy and market capitalism as a package. They believe that, as economies become more integrated through market globalisation, their political systems will invariably be more open, accountable and competitive. Witness the number of people who predict this for China. These people focus on the relationships between political and economic freedoms, so they tend to understand democracy as a system that protects individual liberties in relation to the state.
Those who answer less tend to believe that democracy is diminished by globalisation because economic processes now extend beyond the territorial jurisdiction of democratically-elected governments. This position is not generally associated with the view that democracy and market capitalism go hand in hand, but with the understanding that democracy is an important constraint on market capitalism because it enables the proper reckoning of alternative social values over those of price and profit. Further, others believe that globalisation will not see the spread of democracy because it is not universally embraced within all cultures. Rather than having an interest in the links between economic and political change, this position regards democracy as an institutional expression of social values. To my mind, this is one of the weakest positions. This is not because I think that globalisation will sweep away all cultural differences, it is because I consider that democracy is better regarded as an institutional expression of particular configurations of power and interests. In relation to China for example, the question is not whether Chinese culture is (or is not) compatible with democracy. The more pertinent questions are: What are the emerging, powerful economic groups in China? How are they connected to the ruling party and the state? Do they derive an economic benefit from the maintenance or loosening of political controls? And what of other social groups who have done less well from globalisation? Where do they perceive their political interests to lie? What is the form and strength of demand-making in relation to the ruling party and the state? In short, I am suggesting that the best questions about globalisation and democracy are the empirical ones about the nature of ensuing social transformations. From this perspective, economic globalisation will not necessarily produce more or less democracy in the world. Its influence is contingent on the mix of historical and contemporary factors in specific places that are not reducible to culture. To imagine otherwise is to miss the social and political conflicts that invariably accompany the economic transformations that globalisation can bring on.

Diversity Matters @ Murdoch Semester 1 2010

TERROR IN TERRITORY
Globalisation, Terrorism and Australia
Rajat Ganguly
Senior Lecturer Politics and International Studies Murdoch University

Due to Canberras blanket support of the Americanled global war on terror and its military involvement in Afghanistan and Iraq, Australia is now squarely in the crosshairs of transnational terrorist groups. These groups have greatly benefited from the forces of globalisation and nowhere is this more apparent than in the efforts of al Qaeda to forge links with salafi jihadist terrorist organisations in various parts of the world and in the ability of these groups to infiltrate into western societies and states.
For Australia, the al Qaeda affiliate that has posed the most serious threat has been Jemaah Islamiya (JI), based in Indonesia. However, concentrating our attention solely on the JI would be a serious mistake. This is because, unknown to many Australians, the most powerful and lethal al Qaeda affiliate in the world today is a group called al Shabab, which is based in Somalia but aspires to operate globally. Meaning The Youth in Arabic, the al Shabab grew out of the Somalia Islamic Courts Council that took control of most of southern Somalia for six months in 2006 but was then ousted from power by the US-backed government forces with support from the Ethiopian military. Taking advantage of Somalias weak government and the widespread resentment generated among the Somali people by the presence of Ethiopian soldiers in Somalia, the al Shabab has grown rapidly and has organised terrorist training camps in southern Somalia for a large number of local and foreign jihadis. Groups like al Shabab can directly threaten the Australian homeland by recruiting, training and activating terrorist cells from within Australias own population. In the wake of the 9/11 attacks, as western states including Australia tightened their border security controls, terrorist organisations started concentrating on recruiting personnel from mostly immigrant communities within western societies themselves. A key mechanism in the recruitment process was the internet. The recent arrests in Melbourne of several Somali immigrants, who were intending to attack the Holsworthy military base in Sydney, demonstrate clearly the existence of linkage between domestic terrorist cells and transnational terror networks. Although this planned attack was nipped in the bud by the Australian Federal Police, terrorist attacks on the Australian homeland has become a real possibility in the near future. This may have serious implications for Australias immigration, asylum and multicultural policies.

Rajat Ganguly

Jane Hutchison

Produced by: Equity Access & Diversity Murdoch University http://equityaccess.murdoch.edu.au/ Contact details: Equity Access & Diversity Room 1.6 Social Sciences building Murdoch University South Street MURDOCH WA 6150

Caroline Hughes

Telephone: 61-8-9360 6084 Facsimile: 61-8-9360 6502 Email: equity@murdoch.edu.au Murdoch University 2010

Diversity Matters @ Murdoch Semester 1 2010