Fall 1995
IN THIS ISSUE . . .
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FOURTEENTH ANNUAL ATWS CONFERENCE Montgomery, Alabama
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In August, the ATWS won “consultative status” as an non-governmental organization (NGO) to the important Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) of the United Nations. This good news was contained in a letter from Farida Ayoub, the chief of the UN’s section office for NGOs, to ATWS executive director, Zia Hashmi. The new ECOSOC-ATWS relationship has immediate implications for ATWS members who would like to make an impact on United Nations decision-making.
As a recognized NGO, the ATWS may designate official representatives to the ECOSOC’s UN offices in New York, Geneva, and Vienna. As well, the ATWS will regularly receive calendars of UN meetings and conferences and individual members can participate through our designated representatives. At this point, the ATWS is looking for suitable candidates who could represent the association at the UN’s offices in Europe and is quite open to any and all suggestions. Meanwhile, Zia Hashmi is the ATWS’s representative to New York.
The ECOSOC has authority over five geographically dispersed offices of its economic commission in Africa (Addis Ababa, Ethiopia), Europe (Geneva, Switzerland), Latin America (Santiago, Chile), West Africa (Amman, Jordan), and Asia and the Pacific Basin (Bangkok, Thailand). In addition, there are eleven other commissions that cover a wide variety of activities including social development, human settlements, new and renewable sources of energy, energy for development, human rights, population, sustainable development, narcotic drugs, the status of women, transnational corporations, science and technology for development, crime prevention and criminal justice, and statistics.
A glance at the first calendar of meetings sent to the ATWS executive offices at Georgia Southern University shows that the overwhelming number of ECOSOC’s meetings are divided between the three major centers with New York only a slightly more popular place than either Geneva or Vienna. As well, there are important meetings in a number of the world’s other major capitals such as Berlin, Copenhagen, Tunis, Nairobi, and Beijing.
In addition, there are some non-ECOSOC bodies open to NGO participation (a number of which will soon meet on Palestine, for example) and there are special meetings and conferences that can be attended after the proper special accreditation has been obtained. And finally, there are a number of other issues such as child rights, nuclear proliferation, the peaceful uses of outer space, torture, and international law that are addressed by other committees, most of which can also be accessed via the ATWS’s new NGO “consultative status.”
It is certain that a number of ATWS members have academic interests that match with the activities of this diverse collection of ECOSOC commissions and their subordinate committees. The association’s new “consultative status” will now allow us to play immediate roles via our official representative, ATWS Executive Director, Zia Hashmi.
Are you working in human rights or drug control or energy development? Are there problems in these or other areas that you would like to address and, hopefully, change through new data or specific written social and economic policy proposals? This could be your opportunity for involvement. Call Dr. Zia Hashmi (912) 681-5668 or 681-0332 if you have a specific idea or if you need more detailed information than can be provided in a newsletter article such as this.
ATWS Presidential Address
Jacksonville, FL
October 13, 1995
Michael B. Bishku Welcome to Jacksonville to the Thirteenth Annual Conference of the Association of Third World Studies hosted by the University of North Florida (UNF). This meeting was originally supposed to be held in Lincoln and hosted by the University of Nebraska (UNL), a great midwestern venue and my home state for six years. But as a nearly native Floridian, I must say that I am just as pleased being here and I trust that all of you are as well. I want to thank Professor Tom Leonard for providing us with our fine local arrangements, the University of North Florida Foundation and others at UNF for their kind support and last, but certainly not least, the Department of History and Philosophy for its helpful assistance in the process of organizing this conference.
The theme for this year’s meeting, “National Development – originally Nationalism, but changed to be more inclusive – Imperialism, and Religion,” includes related subjects that have interested me for quite a long time and have affected and continue to affect world developments greatly. Throughout history, nationalism and religion have been both constructive and destructive forces. Ethnic and religious persecution and cleansing continue to be employed in attempts to enforce national unity. At the same time, there have been national campaigns to promote literacy or health care or clerics taking stands for social justice. While colonialism, one element of imperialism, has come to an end, unfortunately, abuse of political power and wide separations in economic class remain.
The Association of Third World Studies’s annual conferences and the Journal of Third World Studies provide important and, indeed, necessary forums to discuss these and other important issue of the day. We, as professors and other professionals, also have an obligation to promote an awareness of the Third World to a largely apathetic public. Commentaries in newspapers and community lectures are important tools in this regard. We can’t just sit in our ivory towers; we need to interact with those outside our respective fields.
For the vast majority in academe, please also order the Journal of Third World Studies for your school libraries so as to increase that publication’s exposure. While the Association of Third World Studies is now a fairly large organization, it still would be nice if we increased our membership even further. Encourage others on your campuses or people you know elsewhere or happen to meet at other conferences to join. And don’t forget to communicate with other members of the ATWS, perhaps even by e-mail; we need to be in contact more than just at the annual conference. One step in that direction would be smaller regional meetings in the springtime and volunteers to organize them would be most welcome. Who knows, it might lead to having annual conferences in regions of the United States or Canada where we have never been before. Remember, this is an organization that depends on the cooperation given and the efforts taken on the part of its membership.
Thank you very much.
Florida Conference A Success!!
Thirteen turned out to be a lucky number for the ATWS and its annual meeting in Jacksonville. Thanks go to ATWS President, Michael Bishku, Professor Tom Leonard, and the History Department at the University of North Florida for their efforts. The theme of the conference was “National Development, Imperialism, and Religion in the Third World.”
One highlight was the special banquet speaker Halil Ugur, Turkmenistan’s ambassador to the United States, who described his country and spoke about the politics of this region of the former Soviet Union. Meanwhile, the Saturday luncheon speaker was anthropologist Kathleen Logan of Florida International University who shared her thoughts on the “indigenous Peoples Participation in Latin America’s Democratization Process.” Special note must also be made of the University of North Florida’s generous kick-off reception during which Dean Lewis Radonovich welcomed the participants.
Although smaller than last year, the conference was nonetheless impressive for both its size and quality. There were a total of 143 participants, some of whom served in more than one capacity as either chairs, presenters, discussants, or roundtable members. The 114 participants from the United States came from 27 states and the District of Columbia and represented 66 colleges and universities plus one community college. In addition, the schedule included one participant who works for the federal government and six other institutional and “independent” scholars.
This year the state with the largest number of its academic institutions represented was Florida (9) followed by Georgia (8), North Carolina (6), and Alabama (5), plus Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Texas with three each while nine other states were represented by two institutions each. Once again, the largest single contingent was the sixteen member delegation from Georgia Southern University. Other well represented institutions included our University of North Florida host with five participants as well as Florida State University (6), the University of South Florida (5), plus Air University and Florida Atlantic University (4 each) and Florida International University and Lafayette College (3 each).
Attendees were busy at the conference’s 24 panels where 107 papers were read and then commented on by 21 discussants. In addition to this already impressive schedule, there were four roundtables with another 24 participants. As usual, the panels dealt with a wide variety of topics, but many had a strong emphasis on issues related to Third World “Development.” Some additional panels were organized around other themes that included religion and politics, security, Islam, and elites. Despite (or perhaps because of) this year’s relatively smaller size, the panels seem to have gone very well and active audience participation was a strong plus for many of the presenters.
Once again this year the best represented geographic region was Africa which had eleven separate panel sessions. Meanwhile, issues for the Americas (the Caribbean and Central and South America) and for the Middle East were discussed in five panels each. Unfortunately, the large and important Asian region was clearly under-represented with only three panels. Of course, some Asian papers were included in the thematic panels, but this does not excuse the imbalance. Clearly, ATWS members must recruit their campus’ Asianist colleagues if the association is to be truly representative of the Third World.
ATWS President-elect Don Simmons of Troy State University made a point of inviting the Florida participants to next year’s meeting that he will host in Montgomery, AL. The 1996 meeting is set for October 3-5 with the theme of “The Third World: On the Brink of the Twenty-First Century.” Now is the time to plan papers and panels. The deadline for abstracts is April 15.
Since its founding in 1983, the Association of Third World Studies has become a firmly rooted international organization with a growing and dynamic membership. The journal continues its fine tradition and now we have a Proceedings, membership directory, and newsletter. With the association expanding and adding new services, we should all pitch in and make the fourteenth annual meeting the best ever!
Korwa G. Adar’s (United States International University of Africa, Nairobi, Kenya) book, Kenyan Foreign Policy Behavior Towards Somalia, 1963-1983, was published by University Press of America in Lanham, MD in 1994. More recently, Adar co-edited The United States and Africa: From Independence to the End of the Cold War with Macharia Munene and J. D. Olewep Nyunya. This title was published this year by East African Educational Publishers of Nairobi.
Edwin G. Clausen (History, University of Arizona) received an ACLS (American Council of Learned Societies) grant for travel to international meetings abroad. He went to Beijing where he participated in the conference “China in Transition: The Impact of Economic Change on Culture and Society,” June 18-27.
Nader Entessar (Political Science, Spring Hill College) was recently elected executive director of the Center for Iranian Research and Analysis. He also organized and chaired a panel, “Self Government in Iraqi Kurdistan,” and presented a paper, “Regional Determinants of Kurdish Self-Rule” at the annual meeting of the Middle East Studies Association, December 6-10, 1995 in Washington, DC. His chapter, “Criminal Law and the Legal System in Iran,” will appear in Robert Heiner, ed., Criminology: A Cross-Cultural Perspective by West Publishing Company of Minneapolis.
Shafik H. Hashmi (Political Science, Georgia Southern University) published a chapter on “Privatization Policy” in Charles H. Kennedy, ed., Pakistan: 1995 that was recently published by Westview Press of Boulder, CO.
William Head (History, Warner Robbins AFB, GA) has a co-edited book coming out next spring in both hardcover and paper from Greenwood Press. The book is Eagle in the Desert: Looking Back at America’s Role in the Persian Gulf War. Head’s co-editor is Dr. Earl H. Tilford, Jr., director of studies, Army War College, Carlisle Barracks, PA.
Bill has another co-edited Greenwood anthology in production and it is scheduled for publication in the Fall of 1996. The title of this book is The Tet Offensive and his co-editor is his fellow ATWS life-member, Dr. Marc Gilbert (Department of History, North Georgia College, Dahlonega, GA).
On a personal note: Bill missed his first ATWS meeting since becoming a member in 1984. He would like to thank the dozens of colleagues who called and/or wrote expressing concern over his health. He is doing much better now and looks forward to seeing everyone next year at Troy State University in Montgomery, AL, if not before. Thanks, again, for your concerns and congratulations on another great meeting!
Harold Isaacs (History, Georgia Southwestern College) in addition to his college’s Presidential Citation for Distinguished Service conferred on him by GSC President Dr. William H. Capitan during our conference in Jacksonville, Isaacs has also received an award from the Board of Directors of the Georgia Consortium, Inc. for his outstanding contributions to international studies in Georgia.
On October 17, Isaacs hosted Mr. Jy-Jon Tsai of the Republic of China’s office in Atlanta who spoke on “Democracy, Economic Development, and Human Rights in Asia.” Mr. Tsai’s presentation was a part of GSC’s on-going Third World Perspective Seminar Series.
Saba Jallow, Sudha Ratan, and G. Lane Van Tassell (Political Science, Georgia Southern University) participated in a panel discussion, “The United Nations and the New World Order,” on October 23 as part of GSU’s celebration of the 50th anniversary of the United Nations.
M. Bazlul Karim (Political Science, Western Illinois University) presented a paper, “The Political Economy of Agrarian Reform: The Unanswered Questions,” at the 44th annual meeting of the Midwest Conference on Asian Affairs in St. Louis, MO on October 14.
Michele Zebick-Knos (Political Science and International Affairs, Kennesaw State College) presented a paper entitled “Preserving Biodiversity in Costa Rica: The Case of the Merch-INBio Agreement,” at the 19th annual International Congress of the Latin American Studies Association held on September 28-30, 1995 in Washington, DC.
Roger D. Long (History, Eastern Michigan University) recently edited The Man of the Spot: Essays on British Empire History as number 31 of the Contributions in Comparative Colonial Studies series published by Greenwood Press. In addition to the editing and writing of the introduction, Long also wrote an historiographical essay on the British Empire. Among the contributors was ATWS member and former Executive Board member, Marc Jason Gilbert of North Georgia College.
Paul J. Magnarella (Anthropology, University of Florida), former ATWS president (1992-1993) and special council of ATWS, spoke on the “United Nations Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia,” on October 24 at Georgia Southern University. This talk was part of the three day celebration of the 50th anniversary of the United Nations hosted by the GSU Center for International Studies.
George Purden (History, Armstrong State College) was elected chair of the newly reactivated Southeast Georgia Consortium for International Education which includes Armstrong, Augusta, Brunswick, East Georgia, and Savannah State Colleges and Georgia Southern University. The consortium will develop new programs and activities leading to the greater internationalization of students, curriculum, and faculty.
Sudha Ratan (Political Science, Georgia Southern University) spoke on November 15 in GSU’s College of Business Administration, “Doing Business in India: The Political and Economic Realities.” Her talk was co-sponsored by the Asian Studies Program of the Center for International Studies and the Center for International Business Education.
Steve Y. Rhee (Political Science, Armstrong State College) was a panelist on the U.S.-Korean Relations session at a Korean studies conference organized by the Institute of International Studies, University of South Carolina and held on May 26-28 in Columbia. As well, he is scheduled to give a college-wide talk, “Nuclear ‘Powder Keg’ on the Korean Peninsula: New Phenomenon of the Post-Cold War Regional Instability,” on February 8, 1996 as part of the Robert I. Strozier Faculty Lecture Series at Armstrong.
Paul A. Rodell (History, Georgia Southern University) reviewed Nick Cullather’s Illusions of Influence: The Political Economy of United States-Philippine Relations, 1942-1960 in The Journal of Asian Studies, Vol. 54, No. 3 (August 1995), pp.894-895. As well, his combined review of Rob Steven’s Japan’s New Imperialism and Richard F. Doner’s Driving a Bargain: Automobile Industrialization and Japanese Firms in Southeast Asia appeared in Crossroads: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Southeast Asian Studies, Vol. 8, No. 2 (1994), [published in October 1995], pp. 200-205.
Paul D. Starr (Sociology, Auburn University) will be a faculty escort for a TraveLearn cultural tour of Morocco on March 9-23. This program is oriented to older travelers and includes the services of a distinguished local guide, presentations by Moroccan professors and the U.S. faculty escort, and a visit with Moroccan families. TraveLearn is affiliated with Auburn University and many other programs for senior learners. Starr performed the same service in Morocco last year with a delightful group of sixteen.
Then, in the Fall of 1996, Starr will teach with the University of Pittsburgh’s Semester at Sea program. Stops on the itinerary include Japan, China, Hong Kong, Vietnam, India, Egypt, Israel, Turkey, Greece, and Morocco. His courses will include intercultural interaction, Arab society, and comparative civilizations.
Moses Tesi (Political Science, Middle Tennessee State University) is managing editor of The Journal of African Policy Studies. He urges all interested ATWS members to subscribe (see also the “Announcements” section).
G. Lane Van Tassell (Georgia Southern University) former chair of the Department of Political Science was promoted to associate vice president of academic affairs and dean of graduate studies. Congratulations!!
On November 15, Dr. Van Tassell spoke on “The Future of the Left in Central America,” as part of Georgia Southern University’s Center for International Studies colloquium series.
Rudy Zarzar (Political Science, Elon College) had a 1995 spring semester sabbatical to research on the problems and prospects for democratization in the Middle East. He also received a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities to develop an interdisciplinary course on North African politics.
The Southeast World History Association (SEWHA) and the World History Association (WHA) in cooperation with the American Historical Association (AHA) invite everyone’s participation in an exploration of teaching world history. The three associations will hold their annual meetings in the Marriott and Hilton Hotels in Atlanta on January 4-6, 1996. All SEWHA members and guests can participate in SEWHA and WHA activities without also registering for the AHA’s conference. There will be a SEWHA and WHA reception and a series of panels addressing issues of gender, periodization, course creation and the pedagogy of world history. For further information, contact Marc Jason Gilbert by mail at Department of History, North Georgia College, Dahlonega, GA 30597; by telephone at (706) 864-1911; or by e-mail at: [ mgilbert@nugget.ngc.peachnet.edu ].
The Council on International Educational Exchange announces its 1996 seminars. The themes, locations, dates and costs of seminars held about and in the Third World are:
- “Brazil: The Emerging Giant,” University of Sao Paulo, May 26-June 3, $1,995.
- “The Arab-Israeli Peace Process,” Hebrew University of Jerusalem, June 9-16, $1,850.
- “South Africa: The Dynamics of the Rainbow Nation,” University of the Western Cape, Cape Town, June, $1,850.
- “Contemporary Vietnam: Recovery, Renewal, and Recognition,” Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, June, $1,850.
- “Sustaining the Masses: Environmental Protection and Economic Development in China,” Nanjing University, May 26-June 1, $1,650.
- “Chile,” Santiago, Chile, late May/June, $1,800.
- “Turkey: Civilization, Society, and Identity,” Middle East Technical University, Ankara, Turkey, June 2-12, $1,900.
The fees do NOT include transportation to the seminar site, visa fees, airport taxes, or incidental expenses. For additional information, write the Exchange at 205 East 42nd Street, New York, NY 10017, or call (212) 661-1414, ext. 1110; or fax (212) 370-0194; or e-mail [ ifdsregistrar@ciee.org ].
The annual meeting of the American Council for the Study of Islamic Societies will be held May 3-4, 1996 at Villanova University, PA. The theme for this year’s meeting is “The Islamic Revival: In the Mainstream, on the Margins.” Program organizers are looking for contributions in the following areas: Islam and developing regional hegemonies, the impact of regional political conflicts on Islam, the impact of developments “on the margins” of Islam, Islamic modernism: history and current status, Islam and ijtihad, and contemporary sufism. If you would like to contribute a paper to this year’s meeting, please send an abstract to ACSIS 1996, c/o Dr. Gisela Webb, 125 Union Avenue, Bala Cynwyd, PA 19004.
The Journal of African Policy Studies seeks articles, review essays, and research notes on policy issues facing Africa. Manuscripts in the form of case studies, comparative analyses, or theory construction should be sent to Edmund Keller, editor, James S. Coleman African Studies Center, 10244 Bunche Hall, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90024-1310. For information on book reviews, contact John Oriji, History Department, San Luis Obispo, CA 93407.
The Fifth International Philippine Studies Conference will be held at the Hilton Hawaiian Hotel in Honolulu on April 14-16, 1996 immediately following the regular annual meeting of the Association for Asian Studies. The meeting’s theme revolves around two major events which will be observed in 1996: the centennial of the Philippine Revolution of 1896 and the 90th anniversary of Filipino immigration to Hawaii. Inquiries can be directed to Marissa Garcia, Center for Philippine Studies, University of Hawaii at Manoa, 416 Moore Hall, Honolulu, HI 96822, tel. (808) 956-6086, fax (808) 965-2682, or e-mail: [ marissa@uhunix.uhcc.hawaii.edu ].
Elon College will host the North Carolina Political Science Association annual meeting on March 22-23, 1996. If anyone is interested in presenting papers, holding panels, or participating in some other way, please contact Carmine Scavo at East Carolina University, Greenville, NC 27244.
North Georgia College, with support from the federal government, is sponsoring an all-day roundtable on February 21 titled “The Middle East Peace Process.” The roundtable participants will include nationally known experts. All interested faculty are encouraged to attend and there is no registration fee. For detailed meeting and housing information, contact Professor Marc Jason Gilbert, Department of History, North Georgia College, Dahlonega, GA 30597, tel. (706) 864-1911.
Call for papers. The 7th Interdisciplinary Conference on “Science and Culture” will be hosted by the Institute for Liberal Studies (ILS) of Kentucky State College on April 18-20, 1996. The following topics are of particular interest: Science, technology, and religious ideas; Women and minorities in science; Cross-cultural perspectives on science; Science in non-western societies; and Psychology and culture. Proposals of no less than 750 words must be submitted (postmarked) by February 16, 1996 or faxed to (502) 227-5843. For further information contact Mark Shale, ILS Conference Committee, Hathaway Hall, Kentucky State University, Frankfort, KY 40601.
Correction
In the summer issue we incorrectly reported that David Moore-Sieray (Maseno University College, Kenya) was the managing editor of the Maseno Journal of Education, Arts and Sciences. In fact, the managing editor is his colleague Professor F. Q. Gravinir. The ATWS Newsletter regrets the confusion.
THE JOURNAL’S NEXT ISSUE
Editor Harold Isaacs tells us that the next issue of the Journal of Third World Studies is due to be published in January. As usual, this issue also promises to be a substantial one and will contain eleven articles. There will be four articles on Africa with three more on Latin America and the Caribbean and another two on the Middle East. Rounding out the articles are two pieces without geographical dimensions.
Especially topical is Andrew F. Clark’s article on the democratization process in Mali, Brian M. Du Toit’s contribution, “Regional Conflict in the New South Africa,” and John N. Anene’s piece on military coups and redemocratization in sub-Saharan Africa. Also in this issue are a number of reflective offerings such as Rolin G. Mainuddin’s consideration of the “New Order’s” impact on the nation-state, Jacob Abadi’s reasessment of what he sees as the abandonment of South Arabia, the search for direction by European Community and Latin America that Menno Vellinga analyzes and Gary Kline’s examination of how children figure into the “development” process. Other articles on a variety of topics by Lucy Wairimu Keberra, J. Patrice McSherry, Michel G. Nehme, and Martin G. Collo add important further dimensions to the next issue that will keep subscribers reading well into the night.
DEADLINE!!!
All materials for the next issue of the ATWS Newsletter must be received by the deadline March 1, 1996!
Members are encouraged to submit news about their activities, general announcements, letters to the co-editors, and anything that will be of interest to the membership. Submissions longer than a few paragraphs should be sent on a disk in an IBM compatible format to: The Co-Editors, ATWS Newsletter, Center for International Studies, Landrum Box 8106, Georgia Southern University, Statesboro, GA 30460-8106. All discs will be returned. Short entries can be sent via e-mail to: [ rodell@gsaix2.cc.gasou.edu ].
Materials that arrive after March 1, 1996 cannot be assured of inclusion in the spring issue. The next issue after that will not be until the summer number, so make your publicity plans now.
NOMINATIONS BALLOT ATWS’ 1996 ELECTIONS
For those wishing to nominate a member for an office in the 1996 elections, the following Nominations Ballot should be completed and returned to the Chair of the Nominating Committee as soon as possible, and NO LATER THAN January 31, 1996.
You may nominate one individual for either or both of the following positions. These are vice president/president elect and executive council post 2. Please be sure you have asked all potential candidates if they wish to run before you nominate them. In addition, be sure they are CURRENT and PAID members. This will facilitate the entire selection process.
Vice President and President Elect (One year term)
1. Name: _______________________________________________
2. Institutional Affiliation/Address: ___________________________
___________________________________________
3. Home Address: _______________________________________
4. Phone Numbers: (office) ( )____________(Home) ( )_________
Executive Council, Post 2 (Three Year Term)
1. Name: _______________________________________________
2. Institutional Affiliation/Address: ___________________________
___________________________________________
3. Home Address: _______________________________________
4. Phone Numbers: (office) ( )____________(Home) ( )_________
MAIL NOMINATIONS TO:
Dr. William Head, Chair
ATWS Nominating Committee
111 Chantilly Drive
Warner Robins, GA 31088 USA
