8 th Euroseas conference Vienna, 11–14 August 2015

— A Romance That Failed: Inter-ethnic Romance Between Ethnic Chinese and Other Ethnic Groups in Indone-
sian Cinema Post-Suharto
Julia (Leiden University)
This study stems from the recent development in Indonesia of the phenomenon of the “reappearance” of “Chinese-
ness” in contemporary films. This paper zooms into on the period since the end of the Suharto regime. As a number 
of scholars have observed if Chinese Indonesians were virtually absent from Indonesian films during the 32 years of 
Suharto’s rule. This also coincides with radical changes to freedom of expression and activism in Indonesia, includ-
ing to those within the film industry. To date, there have been at least 50 films of various genres and themes made 
and circulated in cinemas that raised issues concerning Chinese Indonesians as their subject matter or feature ethnic 
Chinese characters. 
In this particular study, I want to focus on films under “romantic” theme involving ethnic Chinese and other ethnic 
groups in Cinema Post-Suharto Indonesia. The study found that inter-faith romance between ethnic Chinese and 
other ethnic groups are frequently portrayed as the central or main theme.  Moreover, the study suggests that they 
are seldom ‘successful’ or long-lasting, and they rarely end up in marriage and tend to be short-term. When marriage 
does happen, it tends to be fraught, dysfunctional and tragic. Further, the study also found that ‘true love’ in films 
almost always occurs between characters who ‘share the same ethnicity’ which is between male-Chinese Indonesian 
and female-Chinese Indonesian. 

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— The Quest for Food for Forest-Dependent People in Sumatra, Indonesia
Ekoningtyas Margu Wardani (Leiden University)
A brief account of Orang Rimba or literally means ‘forest-dependent people’ in Jambi Province provides quite illumi-
nating information and evidence as well. They are forest dependent peoples, living in small colonies of tribal commu-
nities, eking a living by gathering and hunting forest products and wildlife. Jambi province used to have vast stretches 
of rain forests, which suffered severe degradation, attributed to rapid growth-focused development, poor forestry 
management practices since 1970s which promoted plantation crops (rubber, oil palm, and coffee, among others), 
increased accessibility through the construction of infrastructure; transmigrant settlements, logging practices (both 
legal and illegal), and slash and burn subsistence cultivation practices.
My paper will focus on the food security for Orang Rimba on the basis of ethnographic fieldwork. The special case of 
this paper is Terab Group, which is one of the groups of Orang Rimba living in the National Park of Bukit Duabelas 
in Jambi Province. With this, I hope to provide a clearer idea of the problems facing forest-dependent people living 
in Jambi Province, and offer a systematic overview of how they cope with the existing problems of food security. 
Moreover, I would like to understand the relationships between cultural traditions and customs as vital sources of 
indigenous knowledge as applied in Orang Rimba livelihood management, particularly in the protected area. 
In light of that, I would like to address the main question of my research which is: what is the current situation of 
food security of Orang Rimba in Jambi Province? The main research question will be followed by specific research 
questions: how do Orang Rimba maintain their food security? What challenges do Orang Rimba face in their efforts 
to maintain food security?; and how do Orang Rimba adjust and moreover reproduce their knowledge on their envi-
ronment to such changes? 
— Negotiating Borders, Re-Writing the Past: Literature as Alternative History by Southeast Asian Ethnic Chi-
nese Women Writers in English
Sri Mulyani (Universitas Sanata Dharma)
Legitimating the binary opposition of masculine/feminine and public/private spheres based on sex difference is “an 
ancient strategy of the male oppressor” (Cameron, 1990: 11). Such binary opposition had traditionally privileged man 
and excluded woman from participating in the public sphere. Yet even in her granted private sphere, woman was also 
dominated. Moreover, when woman was finally allowed to take parts in the public sphere, the gendered nature of the 
dichotomy had once again been reproduced within the public sphere itself (Walsh, 2001).
 Michele Rosaldo argued that the traditional separation of the public/private spheres is universal; however, she, her-
self, later revised and modified “the universality” of her theory (1980). As with the theory of patriarchy, this mascu-
line/feminine and public/private dichotomy is dynamic and constructed differently across cultures. Some feminist 
theorists viewed this distinction as the key to understand gender relation and gender construction; meanwhile, others 
refused to resort to this dichotomy in analyzing gender inequality. Thus, re-theorizing this public/private dichotomy 
is crucial in feminist theories and scholarship. 
The gendered division had historically barred women from gaining access to literacy and publication. Consequently, 
the production of writing and the writing of history, for example, had also been dominated by men. Southeast Asia 
ethnic Chinese women writers attempt to foreground the histories of the marginalized, muted, and silenced groups 
through women’s domains and modes in their novels. 
As a politics of writing, the Southeast Asian ethnic Chinese women writers’ novels in English can be perceived as a 
double strategy that seeks to challenge both Western literary production of novel and Confucian literary production 
of fiction. It serves doubly as aesthetic and political vehicles that result in the reproduction of alternative histories of 
Southeast Asia through literature.
 
— Being Moslem and Ethnic Identity Transformation of Orang Rimba
Adi Prasetijo (KKI WARSI)
Over the years, Orang Rimba, an ethnic minorities in Jambi - Indonesia, are forced to convert their religion and be-
lieves to Islam. These changes are always imposed by the State and supported by the Malays who are the dominant 
ethnic societies in the area. Under the impression for development and modernization, Orang Rimba were forced in 
numerous ways to change their religion. This conversion has resulted in cultural change, behavior ways and finally 

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ultimately affect their cultural identity which are their forest. These changes takes effect on the formation of their 
ethnic identity. It is necessary to understand how they now interpret and articulate their ethnic identity. This also as-
sociates with the globalization and its effect to local community. This phenomenon illustrates how ethnic minorities 
in Indonesia is also struggling with the same situation.This paper tries to see how they now see and elaborate their 
ethnic identity in contemporary issue.
— The Panthay and the Rohingya: The Politics of Religion and Ethnicity in Myanmar
Dewi Hermawati Resminingayu (School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London) 
Neither ethnic and religious background nor historical root could likely explain the fact that most Panthay have been 
granted Burmese citizenship while the Rohingya have not. Both groups are not adhering to the majority’s religion nor 
belong to the major ethnic groups. Also, their ancestors were not considered native nor settled in Myanmar before 
British colonization. This fact triggers question of how these similarities resulted in different outcomes. Therefore, this 
paper attempts to provide two arguments explaining how ethnic and religious background along with historical root 
has played the role in complicating the relation between the state and both groups. The first argument dates to the past 
when the Panthay and the Rohingya employed different forms of resistance towards the state’s construction of ethnic 
and religious identity. These different forms of resistance contribute to the denial of Rohingya citizenship but inclu-
sion of the Panthay. The second argument describes the present in which the notion of democracy in Myanmar has 
exacerbated the situation not only for the Rohingya but also the Panthay. Election as means to gain power has sparked 
Islamophobia even more, for this sentiment could unite voters and benefit the military-backed-party. Furthermore, 
the Panthay and the Rohingya are more at disadvantage as they are not the major ethnic groups. Aside from Islamo-
phobia, the animosity towards the Rohingya is derived from Kala concept which justifies majority’s unfair treatment 
towards them; meanwhile, the wealth of the Panthay threatens their existence against the major ethnic groups. In this 
regards, the Panthay and the Rohingya have to pay the price of democracy which apparently is beneficial for the major 
ethnic groups trying to escape from authoritarian regime.
— Desegregating the City: Spatial Organisation and Ethno-Religious Conflict in Ambon, Indonesia
Kadek Wara Urwasi (Northwestern University)
The study of ethno-religious conflict in Indonesia has led to a rich understanding of its root and proximate causes, as 
well as its consequences. Less prominent from this study, however, is the analysis of a spatial dimension. This paper 
aims at answering two questions: What role does the spatial dimension play in increasing or reducing ethno-religious 
conflict? Is there something that can be done spatially to enhance peace and reduce violence? I explore the importance 
of space through a study of Ambon in Maluku Province, a provincial city with large Christian and Muslim popula-
tions. I argue that space should be seen as a major contributing factor that can ameliorate or exacerbate conflicts be-
tween groups. In this study, I use archival data, on-site observation, and interviews to provide information about the 
dynamic of spatial organization of religious groups in Ambon prior and after the conflict. The preliminary findings 
show that space played a role as an opportunity-driven mechanism in which spatial segregation in Ambon increased 
the interaction within groups, mobilized groups to participate in communal violence, and facilitated the targeting of 
other groups during a state of conflict. The current condition in Ambon, however, shows emerging efforts from the 
community and the government to provide strategies for desegregating the city through the use of local knowledge 
and public policy.  
V.  Mobilities, Migration and Translocal Networking
Panel: Wheels of Change? Development and Cultures of Mobility in Southeast Asia 
convener: Arve Hansen (University of Oslo)
panel abstract
Cultures of mobility in Southeast Asia are and have been undergoing transformations along with the rapid economic 
growth in large parts of the region. These changes are often both drivers and outcomes of economic development. The 

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region has seen widely different approaches to public transport as well as different types of sustainable transport poli-
cies, but overall privatized forms of transport have dominated. This has brought about motorbike revolutions, a rapid 
increase in private car ownership, decline and (partial) re-emergence of the bicycle, and, more recently, the introduc-
tion of electric bikes and electric scooters. It has also brought about a region infamous for its traffic jams and urban 
pollution, and an increasingly inhospitable environment for non-motorized mobility.
How can we understand the dominance of privatized forms of transport in Southeast Asia today? What consequences 
does this trend have, and what are its possible futures? What is the relationship between economic growth and cultures 
of mobility? How can we understand hierarchies of mobility in Southeast Asia today? And how are migrant workers 
and the urban poor coping with mobility in the city? These are just some of the questions this panel seeks to address.
We are interested in case studies and comparative pieces within the broad field of Southeast Asian mobility stud-
ies that address issues such as consumption of transport, urban geography, urban and rural mobilities, the material 
agency of transport, cultures on the road, mobility and class, mobility and inequality, and sustainable transport.
— Jeepneys and More – Cultures of Mobility beyond Transport
Simone Christ (University of Bonn)
The Philippine jeepney is a prominent example for the reification of cultures of mobility. The privately-owned jeepneys 
provide a substitute for the lack of a public transport system in the Philippines. 
From the perspective of cultural anthropology, the presentation reflects on several aspects of the jeepney and the 
concept of ‘culture of mobility’ as a way to comprehend Philippine ways of life. For example, the jeepney is a space 
for socialization where values and norms such as paying respect to the elderly are transmitted. The system of the 
‘barker’ – a dispatcher – can even be considered as a kind of “moral economy”. Moreover, the owners paint and orna-
ment their jeepneys which not only allude to ideas about kinship and family – such as the unity of siblingship – but 
also to religiosity, for example the intimacy with the divine. But the jeepney also resonates with a culture of mobility 
that is increasingly defined by the experience of international migration. Many Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) 
decorate their jeepneys with images of their stay abroad, pointing to their hard earned money which enabled them to 
buy the vehicle. These images inform the spatial imaginary of Filipinos by announcing geographical mobility as a way 
to economic success and social mobility. The paper is based on ethnographical fieldwork on mobility and migration 
conducted in a province South of Manila, a significant sending region of overseas migrants.
— Hanoi on Wheels: Cars, Distinction and Middle Class Mobility in Vietnam 
Arve Hansen (University of Oslo)
While there is now an average of 2.4 motorbikes per household in Hanoi, cars have played a relatively small part in 
the motorization of mobility in Vietnam’s capital. Over the last 10 years, however, car ownership has increased rapidly. 
Cars are in general very expensive in Vietnam, and many of the cars in the street of the capital cost the equivalent of a 
lifetime of earnings for members of the working class. Based on fieldwork in Hanoi, this paper investigates who owns 
a car in Hanoi today, as well as the reasons behind the popularity of four-wheelers in this two-wheeled city. While 
concerns for health, safety and comfort are crucial for understanding the allure of the car, private automobility also 
brings along unique sign value as a symbol of success in the market economy. The paper locates many practices re-
lated to car ownership as processes and strategies of distinction among the new (upper) middle class in Hanoi. At the 
same time cars are vivid examples of the inequalities embedded in Vietnam’s “market socialism”. As a manifestation of 
uneven development, the car in Hanoi represents at best distant dreams to the majority, a source of great pride to the 
better-off, and just another mundane commodity to the very few.
— Filipino Tricycle on Trial: Living on Three Wheels 
Rolando Talampas (University of the Philippines Diliman)
Central to the lifeblood in Philippine rural and urban periphery is the tricycle-- the Honda (or Kawasaki) 100-125-cc 
motor/bike attached to a ‘sidecar’—that has become everyone’s transport mode. Counting millions but concentrated 
in urban centers, the tricycle is arguably the affordable “national car” or taxicab without which towns, cities, remote 
passes would be silently languishing in carbon pollution and road accidents would be considerably reduced. Local 
governments too would be less preoccupied with legislating against the tricycle on the main thoroughfares.

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This paper argues that the tricycle subculture and the slow Philippine progress and development are mutually rein-
forcing vehicles of the people’s social and cultural life. Relegated to short-haul journeys on narrow roads, tricycles 
reflect incapacities for long-stretch improvements for the 21st century superhighway.
An important facet of Philippine peripheral development that affords low, irregular income, low-maintenance ser-
vice vehicle, and portable testimony of some status, the tricycle challenges the ubiquitous jeepney as the ‘new king of 
road’ although both vehicles are deficient symbols of socio-cultural achievement. Either amortized in long and high 
monthly premiums or invested in by an overseas worker for his dependents’ daily sustenance, the tricycle resurrects 
hopes for less educated rural migrants as it is also the mobile poster wall of elites seeking remote publics.
Given these, however, the Vitamin C-deficient, HIV/AIDS vulnerable, drug/crime-implicated tricycle driver races 
with time against expanding roadworks(where tricycles are forbidden), local legislations (citing risks/dangers posed 
by tricycles), clean air advocacies (that ban 2-stroke engine bikes). It is within these modernizing setting that the tri-
cycle and its driver are driving to a future fraught with uncertainty, if not circularity.
Panel: Transnational Mobilities Into and Out of Thailand
convener: Alexander Trupp (University of Vienna)
panel abstract
This panel explores empirical and theoretical analyses of Thailand as both a source of and a destination for transna-
tional population mobilities. Especially since the 1970s, various types of Thai migrants seeking work, income, educa-
tion, romance and marriage, or individual freedom have ventured overseas and formed Thai transnational communi-
ties worldwide. At the same time, the Kingdom has received an increasing number of documented and undocumented 
labour migrants, refugees, displaced persons and asylum seekers, retirement migrants, international travelers, and 
long-stay tourists who have arrived in the already diverse Thai society. Certain forms of mobilities are approved of, 
even encouraged, by the Thai state while others are considered problematic at best. We seek to examine current global 
and local developments and the underlying spatial inequality that shape various forms of international mobilities into 
and out of Thailand. We pay particular attention to the ways in which social boundaries—gender, race, class and na-
tionality—are transgressed and/or reproduced as individuals and communities cross physical borders.
Panel conveners especially seek contributions related to aspects of Thai diaspora and transnational communities, mar-
riage migration, Thai outbound tourism, interrelations between international tourism to Thailand and Thai outbound 
migration, and expat life and amenity migration in Thailand.
— Thai Marriage Migrants in Austria
Kosita Butratana (University of Vienna)
The Marriage of Thai Women with western men is a popular phenomenon. It is stunning to see that the vast majority 
(more than 80%) of Thai migrants in Austria are female while more than 60% of them are married to Austrian men 
(Statistik Austria 2011). These statistics reflect the increasingly important phenomenon of international marriage 
migration. My PhD study deals with the case of Thai marriage migration and explores the aspirations, experiences, 
changing status of Thai marriage migrants living in Austria.
It is only recently that research on marital and migratory motivations in cross-border contexts has found its place on 
the research agenda (Yang & Lu, 2000; Constable 2011; Charsley 2012b). Marriage-related migration refers to migra-
tion in order to marry, to be re-united with a spouse, or other situations in which marriage is a significant factor in 
migration (Charsley 2012a). Previous research on Thai marriage migration mainly focuses on the relation of Thai 
female migration to sex work/prostitution (Cohen 2001) or human trafficking or primarily deal with economic im-
pacts of these cross-cultural relationships. Further research refers to the notion of hypergamy defined as the (female) 
practice of marrying men of greater wealth and status. Constable (2011) proposed the term ‘paradoxical’ hypergamy 
suggesting that migrants move up economically but experiences lower social status in the receiving society. Moreover 
people may plan to marry up but marriages can result in a worse economic or emotional situation. But many ques-
tions concerning the relationship between Thai women migrants and their new occupations and status, their Austrian 
husbands, and their life in a new country thus remain unanswered. My study aims to provide a more comprehensive 
picture about Thai women migration in Austria which has not yet been systematically studied by integrating eco-

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nomic, social and emotional aspects.
In this presentation, I will outline the development of Thai international (marriage) migration with a focus on the 
Austrian context and subsequently present and discuss the migration trajectories and experiences of Thai migrants 
in Austria. The author has carried out fieldwork including participant observation and in depth interviews as well as 
quantitative questionnaires among Thai marriage migrants in both Austria’s urban and rural areas.
— German Migrants in Pattaya, Thailand: Motivations, Lifestyle and Integration
Kwanchanok Jaisuekun (Mahidol University)
Trends of transnational migration have become more diverse. Traditionally, people move from developing countries 
to more developed ones, in order to seek economic opportunities. Nowadays, a new trend of migration--lifestyle mi-
gration-- has emerged as people from economically advanced countries move to less wealthy countries in search of a 
‘good life’. This study examines contemporary German migration to Pattaya, a beach city located on the east coast of 
the Gulf of Thailand. Ethnography and in-depth interviews have been conducted to study the German community 
in Pattaya and to explore motivations, lifestyle, and patterns of integration of German migrants. Preliminary findings 
reveal that German migrants in Pattaya are predominantly male and that finance, health, lifestyle and Thai women are 
among top motivations for migration. Integration into the Thai society is rather limited as German migrants tend to 
socialize among themselves. Over four decades of being an international tourist resort and foreign residents’ settle-
ment, Pattaya offers an environment that allows German migrants to live as if they were in Germany-- eating German 
food, meeting with other Germans or German-speaking persons, reading German newspaper and watching German 
TV programs. German migrants face various challenges living in Thailand and have formed formal and informal 
migration networks that provide support to migrant members in the lack of recognition by existing bodies within the 
host society.