UPH International Relations Students Body organized an interactive dialogue themed ?Social Discord in Europe and Indonesia: A Comparison? on Wednesday, October 19, 2011.
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| This event is a part of International Relations Fiesta 2011 held from October 17-20, 2011. | (left-right) Charles Whiteley, Franz Magnus Suseno, and moderator Athalia Soemarko, UPH Faculty of Law students. |
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Universitas Pelita Harapan (UPH) International Relations Students Body organized an interactive dialogue themed ?Social Discord in Europe and Indonesia: A Comparison? at UPH on Wednesday, October 19, 2011. This dialogue invited speakers Charles Whiteley as European Union delegation and Franz Magnis Suseno as philosopher and Indonesian culture expert. The dialogue discussed about the cause of social discord happening in Indonesia and Europe. Starting the discussion, Whiteley mentioned several causes of social discord in Europe. Those are inequality, economic decline, discrimination, and cultural differences. Each aspect has different background of problem. ?There is inequality in terms of income,? Whiteley explained about one of the causes. In addition, as a result of economic decline, people look to apportion blame that leads to social discord. To cope this, cohesion policy is implemented. The policy is referred as Regional Policy of the European Union. The policy is hoped to be able to reduce regional disparities in terms of income, wealth, and opportunities in Europe. Different things happen in Indonesia. Magnis Suseno explained, ?it is very difficult to compare Europe and Indonesia because the situations are really different.? He stated that there is great tendency for riot to happen here in Indonesia as there is social inequality. People are fed up with government. ?Hopefully the reshuffle will solve the problem easily but most people are skeptical,? he told. ?We have a state whoe organs do not do what they should do,? he added. Magnis Suseno analyzed the causes of social discord in Indonesia. Moreover, the parliament is hopelessly corrupting. People do not put any hope on the parliament. Of course there are many things should be done in order to create peace in Indonesia. It may take a long process. Magnis Suseno suggested that the process can be started from the civil society. The discussion attended by approximately 80 people was a part of International Relations Fiesta 2011 that was held on Monday-Thursday, October 17-20, 2011 at UPH. Besides interactive dialogue, the event also featured education and cultural expo, competition, and music. (dee) UPH Media Relations |
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