volume-15-number-2

This article analyses the relationship between discourse and identity in the case of the People’s Republic of China in Africa. It assumes that the interests of the Chinese government in Africa can be understood from a theoretical constructivist approach. So, the activities of International Development Cooperation of China into Africa are a result of material and ideational aspirations. Thus, the ties of China in Africa have been boosted by the identity of the Chinese state in the international arena. To understand how identity and interest are linked, this article analyses the official discourse of China in Forum on China Africa Cooperation. Thus,14 official discourses are analyzed to determine how these discourses reinforce the identity of the Chinese state and how that identity is reflected in these discourses, inan intersubjective process.This article concludes that words and ideas have become an institutional mechanism that is consistent and well de ned, and in which the relationship between China and Africa has been oriented.

Keywords: China-Africa- Forum on China-Africa Cooperation-Constructivism-International
Development Cooperation

Religion, ethnicity, and politics are typical explanatory variables of violent conflicts. From an economic point of view, economic growth reduces the risk of civil war, yet the economic determinants of con ict have been little studied. In this article, we empirically study the impact of regional macroeconomic conditions on the number of violent conflicts in Indonesia, a country with potential risks of communal conflict because of the plurality of its society. We use panel data consisting of observations on 16 Indonesian regions from 2004 to 2013 to assess the impact of economic factors on conflict, reevaluating the religion effect using dynamic models (SYS GMM estimator). Our findings suggest that only the inflation rate predicts the conflict growth rate. Economic growth, economic development, poverty, and even religion, do not significantly affect the number of regional conflicts.

Keywords: Communal conflict, religion, economic growth, inflation, poverty, economic
development, Indonesia

This paper is based on a study on the phenomenon of loan diversion. Based on a primary survey carried out in two districts of West Bengal, India, it identities association between the socio- economic and demographic characteristics of the borrowers to the incidences of loan diversion (that is a permanent shifting of loans for purposes other than the stated one); and the extent of such loan diversion.The descriptive analysis reveals that loans mostly from micro nance institutions are diverted. Econometric analysis shows that probability of loan diversion is high for groups who openly reveal support for political parties, apparently pointing towards some nexus between the borrower and politics. This adds an interesting political economy dimension to our findings. Also, it is found that the higher the size of the total loan, the higher is the proportion of loan diversion and the proportion of loan diversion is lower in large families.

Keywords: borrowers, microfinance, loan diversion, formal loan, India

Migrant entrepreneurship prompts a series of fascinating research questions on the nature, culture, and interconnectedness of migrant situations within host settlements. The rise of migrant entrepreneurship is the outcome of the integration of these cultural-structural elements in order to mobilize resources to ful ll the demands of entrepreneurship and to obtain competitive advantages in business. This paper describes how the symbiotic relations between migrants and their socio-cultural conditions shape the patterns of Indonesian entrepreneurship in Taiwan. In practice, Indonesian migrant entrepreneurship in Taiwan involves entrepreneurs applying local values or customs in the host society and then (re) produce them in their business activities, expecting pro t from customers without losing the social cohesion of their business operations. Two interactive model apply in this practice: rst accommodate the basic social and economic needs of migrant workers and develop social cohesion among them; second, entrepreneurs engage in mutual relationships in their developing social networks in Taiwan. Indonesian migrant entrepreneurships are not independent economic business operations; rather, they are strongly linked to the social and cultural conditions of migrants. Entrepreneurs often play the role of “friends” in need, acting as a third-party resource to migrants so they can nd help and self-actualization, as well as acting as patrons and brokers to migrants in trouble. The data on which this paper is based was collected in Taiwan from June to December 2014 using participation observation and in-depth interviews as the basic research methods.

Keywords: culture-structure, migrant, entrepreneurship, co-ethnic relations, patron-broker,
Indonesians

Heteronormative society requires non-heterosexuals to come out in order to be recognized. Coming out is often the most challenging experience for non-heterosexuals and heteronormativity and homophobia are two powerful obstacles that they have to deal with. This paper considers how non-heterosexuals come out to themselves and to heterosexual others under the effect of Japanese cultural norms. Interviews with 24 non-heterosexuals and their experiences revealed that they have to deal with not only heteronormativity and homophobia like non-heterosexuals in the Western culture, but also “perceived homophobia,” which is created by the expectation of “respectable Japanese selves.” Thus, coming out in Japan requires a continuous process of negotiation with cultural norms embedded in a society. The paper raises questions about the necessity of considering cultural differences in coming out and explains how non-heterosexuals negotiate with themselves and others in order to live “happily” in Japan’s strongly conformist culture. This paper provides a better understanding of sexual minority issues in the Japanese context.

Keywords: Non-heterosexuals, coming out, Japanese cultural norms, heteronormativity, homophobia,
perceived homophobia

The objective of the present study is to examine the effects of socioeconomic factors on participation in physical activity among Malays in Malaysia. Drawing on a nationally representative sample that contains 17,515 respondents, a logit model is developed to estimate the likelihood of adopting a physically active lifestyle. The results of the present study show that income, age, sex, education, house locality, and employment status are significantly related to the levels of physical activity. In particular, there are negative relationships between higher-income earners, the elderly, females, the less-educated, urban dwellers, and the non-working adults, and the likelihood of being physically active. In view of these findings, several public policies toward promoting physically active lifestyle are proposed.

Keywords: physical activity, socioeconomic disparities, urban, Malays, Malaysia

The word reconciliation has become common throughout Thai society since the aftermath of the massacres of Red Shirt protesters in the heart of Bangkok in the months April and May 2010, which killed around a hundred people and injured 2,000 more. The word came into use by the government since the massacres, and has become an even more regular part of government discourse since the military’s successful May 22, 2014 coup d’état against Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra. The need for reconciliation stems from the incidents of national unrest created by protesters demanding Shinawatra’s resignation and the dissolution of her government between October 2013 and May 2014. In part, the military used the need for reconciliation and unity as justi cation for launching the coup d’état. Ever since, the military government has stated that it is creating genuine and sustainable reconciliation as well as encouraging harmony. However, the so-called reconciliation process carried out by the military government is riddled with problems. Many of the military government’s actions instead took the country back to a state in which true reconciliation in Thai society is impossible. Reconciliation as de ned and deployed by the military government is inconsistent with academic de nitions of reconciliation derived in the eld of peace studies, due to the free- oating signi cation of the term. In the hands of the military government, the term reconciliation is self-paradoxical, and takes on any meaning politically bene cial to the military government. When examined more closely, it is clear that reconciliation as implemented by the military government consists of 1) creating a surveillance kingdom, 2) obliterating political opposition and threatening and hunting of people with opposing views, 3) dismantling the history of the Red Shirt movement, and 4) organizing entertainment to “return happiness” to the Thai people as a form of distraction. These so-called reconciliation activities are incompatible with the established principles of reconciliation. Above all, these forms of so-called reconciliation actually lead to the suffering of Thai advocates of democracy, and to an even more uncomfortable cultural state in Thailand, where true reconciliation is rendered even more dif cult due to the suppression of honest political discourse.

Keywords: reconciliation, free-floating signification, human rights violation, military government,
Thailand