Theme: 8. Negotiating Margins: Representations, Resistances, Agencies

Unveiling Social Realities in the Mekong Delta: Insights from the 2023 IBP Award-Winning Book “Intangible Spaces: A Social History of Survival in the Mekong Delta”

Program Coordinator(s)

• AU

  Aysun Uyar Makibayashi

  ICAS Book Prize 2023 - Secretary Japanese Language Edition
  Doshisha University, Japan

Chair(s)

• TN

  Toshihisa Nakamura

  ICAS Book Prize 2023 - Japanese Language Edition representative of co-organiser IDE JETRO
  IDE-JETRO, Japan

Presenter(s)

• HS

  Hisashi Shimojo

  ICAS Book Prize 2023 - Winner Japanese Language Edition
  Kobe University, Japan
• EK

  Emi Kojin

  ICAS Book Prize 2023 - Japanese Language Edition representative of co-organiser IDE JETRO
  IDE-JETRO, Japan

In the mid- to late-20th century, Vietnam and its neighbouring countries were embroiled in numerous wars and social upheavals and issues related to ethnicity, religion, immigration, and refugees became pronounced. Conflicts and population movements, language dynamics during decolonization, questions of identity, state governance and local order, wartime survival strategies—all these diverse issues are interconnected with the challenges posed by contemporary globalization.

The session will be introduced by the Secretary of the ICAS Book Prize 2023 - Japanese Language Edition, Aysun Uyar Mikabayashi.
In this session, we will delve into the award-winning book “Margins of the State: Social History of Survival in the Mekong Delta” by Hisashi Shimojo, which received the 2023 ICAS Book Prize in the Japanese language category. The award-winning book focuses on the social history of survival within the multi-ethnic societies of the Mekong Delta and the impact of socio-political changes on the local communities. By examining and discussing issues covered in the book, the research process towards the publication, and insights gained from the fieldwork in the Mekong Delta region, we will shed light on the social and economic challenges currently faced by the people in the region and the underlying causes.

Panel sponsored by: IDE-JETRO, Japan