Events

Eighteen years after Indonesia’s 1998 Reform Movement, the context of social and political activism has changed significantly, and so have public sentiments against them. While much attention has been given to analyse post-reform political and social changes, more attention is still needed towards examining whether the reform has transformed urban spaces sufficiently to both reflect and shape the attainment of citizens’ rights. Decentralization has devolved autonomies to cities to make certain decisions on their own policies, programs and developments, but studies on urban social movements remain few and far in between, in spite of many social initiatives and participation taking place in Indonesian cities.

Although much of pre-reform exponential urban growth of population and economic activities have been concentrated in Jakarta and the island of Java, development pursuits have also transformed the social and physical urban fabric of many localities, reconfigured rural-urban linkages, and urban networks. The opening of civil society political participation after the 1998 Reform did not curb these developments; rather, large-scale developments are growing various cities particularly after decentralisation. These developments have been changing the faces of various cities in Indonesia spatially, socially and environmentally. Urban landscape transformations, imposed on existing urban patterns as part of the historical trajectory, are constructing urban spaces that straddle between different patterns of social and cultural life. Forces that affect these changes are never equally comparable, as different actors throughout history have asserted imprints on city layers through wielding power or struggles to change and negotiate power structures.

This one-day symposium revisits the notion of urban social movements using case studies of cities in Indonesia. How do social movements transform relations between public spaces and public spheres? What is the relationship between physical spaces of the city and spaces of resistance? Why are urban residents and activists participating in social movements? What are the outcomes of urban social movements? How far do they challenge existing authorities and structures of power? Panelists and audiences are invited to join in the discussion to reflect on theories and practices of social movements in urban landscapes.

CONVENOR

Dr Rita Padawangi
Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore
E | aripd@nus.edu.sg

SECRETARIAT

Ms Valerie Yeo
Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore
E | valerie.yeo@nus.edu.sg