HKAS: Hong Kong Anthropological Society






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				THE HONG KONG ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY AND THE HONG KONG MUSEUM OF HISTORY Barry Sautman Tibet's New Middle Class 3 December 2003 Wednesday 7:00pm Hong Kong Museum of History This talk analyzes the implications of the recent emergence of a well-off and well-connected segment of the ethnic Tibetan population in the Tibet Autonomous Region. It is based on interviews with about 75 members of the middle class (mainly business people) in five prefectures and assesses the probable political role of the middle class in Tibet in light of interview responses and the political behavior of the middle classes in China proper and elsewhere. Barry Sautman is a political scientist and lawyer who serves as an Associate Professor in the Division of Social Science, Hong Kong University of Science & Technology. His main research focus is on Chinese nationalism and ethnic politics in China, especially in Tibet, Xinjiang and Hong Kong. He has travelled to Tibetan areas six times in the past seven years. THE HONG KONG ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY AND THE HONG KONG MUSEUM OF HISTORY Amy Sim The rise of activism among Indonesian domestic workers in Hong Kong 12 November 2003 Wednesday 7:00pm Hong Kong Museum of History This presentation discusses how Indonesian domestic workers in Hong Kong have learned to organize collectively around issues of their rights as workers, and how their experience of labor activism has led to changes in how they perceive themselves and make decisions in their lives. At the same time, it provides insight into how some NGOs in Hong Kong play an instrumental role in teaching and training newcomers in methods of social contention, such as demonstrations. Amy Sim is a Ph.D. candidate in anthropology at the Department of Sociology, the University of Hong Kong. Her area of expertise is Asian migrant workers in Hong Kong and women's international labor migration. THE HONG KONG ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY AND THE HONG KONG MUSEUM OF HISTORY Alexander Mamak Understanding the Chinese Urban Experience Through Film 22 October 2003 Wednesday 7:00pm Hong Kong Museum of History This talk will focus on the new "urban" cinema and its usefulness in furthering our understanding of the far-reaching changes now taking place in some Chinese cities. We will analyze clips from a number of recent Chinese films -- Beijing Rocks (Mabel Cheung, 2001), Beijing Bicycle (Wang Xiaoshuai, 2001), So Close to Paradise (Wang Xiaoshuai, 1999), and Spring Subway (Zhang Yibai 2002 - viewing these films as ethnographies of Chinese urban life today, in all its emotional and interpersonal complexities. Alexander Mamak is a visiting scholar in the Department of Anthropology, Chinese University of Hong Kong. He was born and grew up in Hong Kong, and has taught anthropology and sociology at the University of New South Wales (Australia), San Francisco State University, and the University of California at Berkeley. He recently retired from the City and County of San Francisco where he served as Director of Communications and Public Affairs for the past 15 years. THE HONG KONG ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY AND THE HONG KONG MUSEUM OF HISTORY ��X�p�j Miss Franco Lai ��Tomboy�G �G��ƩʧO�H�~��P�� Lesbian Masculinities: Identity and Body Construction among Tomboys in Hong Kong 6 October 2003 Monday 7:00pm Hong Kong Museum of History ��y�N��Э��\|��@�s�W�V�ʧO�W�d��k�� - Tomboy(²��TB)�C��W�A�o�̤��ܨk�o��ܤk�F�~�ΤW�A�o�̩ڵ��ȻP�f��o�R�u�v�P��m�C TB��ݤW�Ӱ��F�ǲΩʧO�W�d�A��o�̨ëD�n�A�ЩʧO�W�d�A�ϦӦo�̬O�n�z�L�J�k��k��A�h��`��(normalize)�Φ۵M��(naturalize)TB�o�ʧO�C��y��եh��TB�p��Q�άJ�k��k��A�P�D�y��\|��ʧO�W�d�ͧP�A��X��G��ƩʧO�H�~��Ŷ��C ��X�p�j�O��j�ǩʧO��s/�H��ǺӤh�A��O��k�P�Ӫ��s��@��l�C THE HONG KONG ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY AND THE HONG KONG MUSEUM OF HISTORY Peter Cave Toil, Sweat and Cheering: Learning in Japanese School Clubs 16 September 2003 Tuesday 7:00pm Hong Kong Museum of History Extra-curricular clubs are one of the more dramatic features of Japanese schools. Most Japanese children aged over 12 spend hundreds of hours a year in school sports and culture clubs. The clubs are often very demanding of the time and effort of both children and teachers, as they often take place for two or three hours a day, five or six days a week. Yet the activities are not a formal part of the national school curriculum. This talk looks at the role of the club activities within the school, trying to explain why they continue and what the teachers and the students get out of them. Peter Cave lectures in the Department of Japanese Studies at The University of Hong Kong. He taught for three years in a Japanese high school and later spent eighteen months researching primary and junior high schools in Japan. Japanese education is his main research area. THE HONG KONG ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY AND THE HONG KONG MUSEUM OF HISTORY Cheung Yuk Man �K�Dè�g:��ݦn�Ӭ��饻�W�Z�� Crazy about the Railroad: Japanese Company Workers Who Live for Their Hobbies 15 July 2003 Tuesday 7:00pm Hong Kong Museum of History ��y�N��Ф饻��\|�W�䤤�@�جy�檺�ݦn�A�Y�u�K�D��v�A��Q�@�ǲץͥH�K��ȹC�B��K�D��~�Τ��v��H��쬰�ͬ��ؼЪ��饻�W�Z�ڡ��g�A�ݬݥL�̦p��U�c��u�@�ήa�x�t�ᤧ�l�A��ۤv�ͬ��@��H��A�ñq�ӧ��ܥD�y�饻��\|�u�k�K��H�u�@��v��ݪk�C��y��u�@�c��έ��{��~�M��Bı�o�ͬ��\��M�@�L�N�q��H�ӻ��A��঳�@�w��ҵo�ʡC �i�{�å��Ͳ{��䤤��j�ǤH��Ǩt��Ӥh��s�͡A�M��s�饻��\|�C��s��]�A�{��饻�H��u�@�P��v�ͬ��覡�B�饻��\|��P��ƭ��ǵ��C��쬰�K�D�ȹC�C THE HONG KONG ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY AND THE HONG KONG MUSEUM OF HISTORY Alison Cheng Tradition and Local Politics: The Village Representative Election Controversy in Po Toi O and Ping Shan 19 June 2003 Thursday 7:00pm Hong Kong Museum of History The principle of one-person-one-vote is an important basis of democracy. Yet, according to the customary rules of the New Territories, outsiders are excluded from village elections. Some indigenous residents strongly oppose offering non-indigenous villagers the right to vote and to be elected for fear of undermining their "tradition." What are the concerns of these indigenous residents? Are these concerns justified? Through in-depth discussions with indigenous villagers, I discuss how indigenous New Territories villagers of different cultural and economic backgrounds conceive of village elections. Alison Ying-shuet Cheng is an M.Phil student in the Anthropology Department of the Chinese University of Hong Kong and has earned a Bachelor's Degree in Journalism and Communication from the same university. She grew up and studied in Yuen Long. Many of her classmates in primary and secondary school were indigenous villagers, who showed her a different picture than that of the stereotype portrayed by mass media. With their contacts, she has been able to develop a long-term relationship with indigenous villagers, and a different image of them from that which is usually held. THE HONG KONG ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY AND THE HONG KONG MUSEUM OF HISTORY Tang Wai Man Searching for Self Between Religion and Sexuality: A Study of Gay Christians in Hong Kong 29 May 2003 Thursday 7:00pm Hong Kong Museum of History In Hong Kong, many Christian churches are fundamentalist and evangelical; they teach that homosexuality is a sin and strictly prohibited. Under this situation, many Hong Kong gay Christians suffer from a conflict between their sexual identity and religious identity. However, some of them have not been willing to succumb to this situation. They have formed a gay church, in an attempt to overcome the conflict and build up a new legitimate gay Christian identity. In this talk, Tang Wai Man discusses how these gay Christians attempt to reconcile and express their two identities. He also discusses how they deal with group dynamics: the new collective gay Christian identity that the gay church is attempting to give rise to. Tang Wai Man is an M. Phil. student in the Anthropology Department at CUHK. He used to go to an evangelical church that condemned homosexuality. Two years ago he began to go to a gay church, and significantly changed his views towards religion and sexuality-although not necessarily in the ways that one might expect. THE HONG KONG ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY AND THE HONG KONG MUSEUM OF HISTORY Dr. Lynne D. Di Stefano and Dr. Lee Ho Yin Shui Tau Tsuen and Shui Mei Tsuen: A Story of Changing Village Life in the New Territories 14 May 2003 Wednesday 7:00pm Hong Kong Museum of History This talk tells the story of two villages believed to be the oldest in Hong Kong. The two villages were founded some 900 years ago by one Tang Fu, the earliest Chinese on historical record to settle in today's territory of Hong Kong and the first ancestor of Hong Kong's oldest and most powerful clan-the Tangs. The villages are thus the historic birthplace of Hong Kong's clan-based village society, and are remarkable for their intact village culture and traditions, as well as their patriarchal social structure that has been in practice since the Ming dynasty. Today, however, these villages are at a crossroads, and their survival is at stake-they have been fundamentally threatened by the development and urbanization of the New Territories. What will be the future for the birthplace of Hong Kong's past? Dr. Lynne D. Di Stefano is Assistant Professor at the Department of Architecture, the University of Hong Kong; Dr. Lee Ho Yin is a Research Fellow in the University of Hong Kong's Architectural Conservation Programme. Drs. Di Stefano and Lee are the authors of the recent book A Tale of Two Villages: The Story of Changing Life in the New Territories (Hong Kong: Oxford University Press 2002), upon which this talk is based. THE HONG KONG ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY AND THE HONG KONG MUSEUM OF HISTORY Hong Kong Anthropological Society Annual General Meeting Grant Evans Revival of the Buddhist Royal Family Commemorative Ritual in Laos 24 April 2003 Thursday 7:00pm Hong Kong Museum of History This talk will look at the revival of a commemorative ritual for the former Laotian King in present-day Laos. The revival is being played out in the context of a liberalizing communist regime. Commentary and analysis will center on the question of whether this and similar rituals are really a form of ancestor worship. The lecture will be illustrated. Dr. Grant Evans is a Reader in Anthropology in the Centre of Anthropological Research, Department of Sociology at the University of Hong Kong. He has written widely on Asia and is a recognized world authority on Laos where at present he is on sabbatical research leave. His latest book is A Short History of Laos: The Land In Between (Allen & Unwin, 2002). Dr. Evans is a former Chair of the Hong Kong Anthropological Society. ��H��Ƿ\|�έ��v�ժ��]�X�� �� Mr. Ocean Chan �q�V�n��쭻��D�y��\| �u��V�n�C�~�v��G�� From Refugee Camps to City Streets: Young Vietnamese in Hong Kong �G�s�s�T�~�T��G�Q�C��(�P��\|) �ߤW�C�ɥ� ��v�ժ��]�a�U�t��U �o��y�N��Ф@�Ǧb�V�n��礤��~�C�H�A�ݬݥL�̦b�^�쭻��D�y��\|��A�p��b�o�ӷs�Ѧa�إߥL�̪��s�ͬ��C�b�o�ǫC�~�H��A��ǾǦ��Ҧ��A��ǥ��߱o�@�ޤ��A�o�S��@�p��H��F�ª��\|��C��o�ǫC�~�H�ӻ��A�L�̹L�h��禨��g��A��O��˪��@�^�ƩO�H�z�L��R�L�̪��G�ơA�ڭ̷��F�Ѩ�A�o�Ǧ~�C�H�b�B�X��p��b��䪺�D�y��Ƥ��A�V�o�@�v��w��ߩR��ҡC ��Ͳ{��䤤��j�ǤH��Ǩt��Ӥh��s�͡A�ۤ@�E�E�C�~�_�K�n��ѻP�V�n��窺�C�֦~�Ш\|�M��ɡC�L��O�@��u��N�a�v�A�g�`�P��P��@��´�C�֦~�ѻP�u��N�v�]Ĵ�p��e�Ч@�^�Χﵽ��Ҫ��ʡC THE HONG KONG ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIETY AND THE HONG KONG MUSEUM OF HISTORY Dr. David Palmer Qigong and Chinese Religious Modernity 20 March, 2003 Thursday 7:00pm Hong Kong Museum of History Qigong or 'breath training' has been the most widespread expression of popular religiosity in post-Mao urban China. Based on traditional forms of mind and body discipline, qigong gained a massive following in the 1980's and 1990's. Qigong became a contemporary expression of the sectarian subculture which, since the Ming dynasty, has occupied a large place in the Chinese religious landscape. At the same time, qigong can be seen as a Chinese expression of religious modernity, characterized by the weakeningof religious institutions and by voluntary, rather than inherited, adhesion to (often invented) spiritual traditions, a fascination with science and the body, and a focus on the individual's subjective experience and spiritual quest. David Palmer has a BA in Anthropology from McGill University, an M Phil in Ethnopsychiatry from the University of Paris-VIII, and a PhD in the Anthropology of Religion from the Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes (Sorbonne). His fieldwork was conducted in Chengdu, Sichuan; his dissertation on the Qigong movement in the PRC will be published by Columbia University Press. Currently he is Honorary Research Associate, Dept of Anthropology, CUHK and Associate Researcher, French Centre for Research on Contemporary China, Hong Kong. The Hong Kong Anthropological Society and The Hong Kong Museum of History Ms. Kathi Zellweger Humanitarian Aid to North Korea - Challenges and Change 20 February 2003 Thursday 7:00pm Hong Kong Museum of History This talk will discuss the present situation in North Korea in all its complexities, and the aid programs of organizations such as Caritas, in their efforts to alleviate suffering in North Korea. The talk will also examine the way forward, at a time when North Korea is at a crossroads. Kathi Zellweger is the Director International Cooperation for Caritas-Hong Kong. Her work includes a strong focus on assistance to North Korea, for which Caritas-Hong Kong is the lead agency for the international Caritas network. She has worked and traveled extensively in North Korea for the past seven years, working with donors, beneficiaries, government and UN officials and NGO colleagues to develop pioneering Caritas involvement in North Korea. The Hong Kong Anthropological Society and The Hong Kong Museum of History Prof. David Ip The University of Queensland Tourism Development in Hong Kong: Directions and Prospects 12 February 2003 Wednesday 7:00pm Hong Kong Museum of History In recent years, tourism in Hong Kong has reached a crossroads. Although tourist numbers have bounced back from the slump since the Asian financial crisis as well as 9/11, due to the increasing numbers of visitors to Hong Kong from the Chinese mainland, critics have argued that Hong Kong still needs to re-invent itself as a world-class tourist destination, since it is facing stiff global competition. This lecture discusses various of the ways in which Hong Kong might revitalize its image and its touristic future, including "health tourism," cultural appreciation tourism, and environmental tourism. David Ip is Associate Professor, School of Social Sciences, The University of Queensland. He has written extensively on the Chinese diaspora, including Diasporic Chinese and Mainland China: An Emerging Economic Synergy. The Hong Kong Anthropological Society and The Hong Kong Museum of History Cheng Sea-ling Money, Love and Sex in the Transnational Circuit: Filipina Entertainers in US Military Camp Towns in South Korea 23 January 2003 Thursday 7:00pm Hong Kong Museum of History This talk examines the ways Filipina 'entertainers' in US military camp towns in South Korea (kichich'on) negotiate their marginality between Home and Exile. Specifically, it is an ethnographic study of Filipinas who have been introduced to relieve the shortage of entertainers in kichich'on in the late 1990s. Contrary to nongovernmental organisations' (NGO) definition of these Filipinas as trafficked women, this talk looks at these women as transmigrants who actively engaged in cultural and social transformations. It will be shown that in the context of kichich'on clubs, the idiom of romantic love significantly functions as a platform for negotiations over sex, money and power. These women's migratory experience in Korea, in spite of its many pitfalls, further ushers them into the transnational circuits of people, money and images in the Asia-Pacific. Cheng Sea-ling is Visiting Assistant Professor in the Department of Sociology, University of Hong Kong. She received her doctorate degree in Anthropology at the University of Oxford. This talk draws on her dissertation research in Korea for two years. She served on the executive committee of the Hong Kong Anthropological Society as Vice-Chairperson and Secretary before leaving Hong Kong for her studies. She currently researches on issues of women's sexuality in Hong Kong.