ICAS 11: Politics of Memory and Trauma
16 – 19 July 2019
Leiden University
The LDE Centre for Global Heritage and Development will organize a panel on the “Contested Heritage and the Politics of Memory and Trauma” as part of the International Convention of Asia Scholars, which will be organized at Leiden University from 16 – 19 July 2019. The panel intends to discuss the notion of “contested heritage”, in light of the politics of memory and trauma.
Wars and conflicts have a direct impact on the tangible environment. Military architectures, war ruins, wrecks and monumental memorials all together form what is known as conflict heritage. In Asia, a significant share of conflict heritage remains absent from the heritage discourse. This may be attributed to many reasons, of which: the lack of a proper recognition of this specific category of heritage. Second, the contested nature of the heritage prevent governments from touching upon the subject, especially in the cases where human causalities were involved. Third, the conflict of interests which results from the economic value of this heritage. For instance, the collection of rare types of aircraft wreckage or the activities carried by metal salvagers. What can we do to safeguard this type of heritage from its biggest threat: oblivion?
With this session we hope to raise awareness on this particular category of heritage, especially with policy makers.
While we welcome all contributions that are relevant to the theme of the panel, we particularly encourage contributions that address the following topics:
. New theoretical approaches to defining conflict heritage, with respect to the Asian context.
. Case studies from Asia that investigates the politics and dynamics of memory that surrounds contested heritage
Prospective participants may send their abstracts (max. 300 words) and brief bios to Professor Carola Hein at c.m.hein@tudelft.nl and John Hanna j.m.k.k.hanna@tudelft.nl by 01 October 2018.
For any inquiries about the panel and the conference, please write to c.m.hein@tudelft.nl
For further information on the conference, see here.