PACI 411 Seminar on Indonesia

This seminar will focus on topics specifically relating to Southeast Asia's largest, most populous country. Contents of the course may vary from year to year. Most recently, the seminar was organized as an in-depth introduction to the political history of post-independence Indonesia.



Syllabus
[Week 1 ]
Background on the nationalist movement prior to World War II, the Japanese Occupation (1942-45), the Proclamation of Independence, and splits within the nationalist movement.
[Week 2 ]
Politicians vs. Pemuda; Regional Dynamics of the Independence Struggle/Revolution
[Week 3 ]
The Period of Constitutional Democracy 1949-1957
[Week 4 ]
Guided Democracy 1957-1965
[Week 5 ]
The Events of 1965-67: Coup, Countercoup, Eliminating the Left
[Week 6 ]
New Order History and Periodization
[Week 7 ]
The Indonesian Military
[Week 8 ]
State Ideology (Pancasila) and Counter Ideologies
[Week 9 ]
The Middle Class
[Week 10]
Reading Break
[Week 11]
Indonesian Islam
[Week 12]
Suharto's Fall and "Reformasi"
[Week 13]
The Wahid Period and Recent Events
 
Students were required to participate actively in the seminar through several in-class presentations/debates, and wrote a final 15-20 page research paper on a topic of their choosing related to Indonesia's post-independence political history.