The UP Asian Center hosted scholars from Japan and the Philippines for a symposium on “Migration within and from Southeast Asia” held last 6 September 2024 at the Seminar Room of the Asian Center, University of the Philippines Diliman. Researchers and students from universities such as UP Diliman, UP Manila, and Rizal Technological University attended the event. Director of Japan Foundation Manila, Ben Suzuki, also attended the event.

“Migration within and from Southeast Asia” gathered experts from Rikkyo University, Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, and UP Asian Center for an interdisciplinary discussion of Southeast Asian migration through the lenses of globalization, labor migration, political ecology, and cultural anthropology. The symposium was organized by Dr. Jocelyn O. Celero of the UP Asian Center, and Dr. Ikuya Tokoro, Professor of Cultural Anthropology at the Research Institute for Languages and Cultures of Asia and Africa (ILCAA), Tokyo University of Foreign Studies (TUFS).

THE PRESENTATIONS

Dr. Sari K. Ishii of Rikkyo University began the discussions with a problematique on the increase in migration of skilled Thai migrants to Japan despite the possibility of bigger income in their home country, Thailand. Her study revealed that self-actualization, better infrastructure, and social welfare as the main drivers for Thai migration.

Exploring other issues experienced by Southeast Asian migrant workers, UP Asian Center’s former Dean, Dr. Joefe B. Santarita shed light on the issue of ambulance chasing, the unlawful act of providing legal counsel to seafarers to press charges against their former employers, and  profiteering from the latter’s restitution. This phenomenon takes advantage of Filipino seafarers and leads to a general decline in foreign preference to hire Filipino seafarers, as evidence suggests. In this light, Dr. Santarita argued for the need to ratify the Magna Carta for Seafarers to protect them from the perils of scams and unlawful acts such as ambulance chasing.

Dr. Aya Kawai from Tokyo University of Foreign Studies presented the case of the Batek people in Peninsular Malaysia. The Batek people identify with a nomadic lifestyle, culture, and mobility patterns developed around their proximity to rivers. However, as Dr. Kawai’s presentation reveals, government policies such as resettlement and land conversions diminished the Batek people’s lived space and pushed them to sedentarization, which is incompatible with their cultural identity.

Similarly, Dr. Maria Cecilia T. Medina of the Asian Center also looks at the forced displacement of the Lumad indigenous communities in the Philippines through the lens of political ecology. She presented the case of the Manobo-Pulangihon people of Bukidnon, whose history is marred by violence and forced displacement by state and commercial actors from their lands, leading to inhumane living conditions. Dr. Medina asserts the need to encourage support from both public and private institutions to strengthen the leadership organizations of the Manobo Pulangihon clans, and to address land-leasing and sustenance issues.

HOME THROUGH MOBILITY AND IMMOBILITY

The presentations sparked a productive open forum, which covered issues such as racial discrimination, maritime labor decline, and forced displacement of indigenous communities. Dr. Ishii highlighted the tendency of Japanese enterprises to favor Southeast Asian coworkers less than foreign East Asian coworkers. Meanwhile, Dr. Santarita reported that apart from ambulance chasing, the decline in preference for Filipino seafarers can be further explained by the high educational requirement of the European Union, the emergence of artificial intelligence technology, and the high price demand of Filipino crewing agencies. During a discussion on the forced displacement of indigenous communities, Dr. Medina outlined some similarities between the stories of the Manobo Pulangihon and the Batek peoples. Dr. Kawai, in response, called for a rethinking of the colonial framework of Southeast Asian political institutions.

Giving a synthesis of the symposium, Dr. Celero reflected on the meaning of “home.” Drawing from the experiences of the communities whose stories were discussed in the forum, Dr. Celero reflected that home may not necessarily be a concrete space to which we identify ourselves. Rather, home may be lived through both mobility and immobility, and through the search for identity.

Dr. Tokoro moderated the symposium while Dr. Maria Dulce F. Natividad, current officer-in-charge of the Asian Center, delivered the opening remarks. The symposium ended with a quick photo opportunity followed by a networking session with the participants.

Research on human migration has become a significantly crucial subject in the era of globalization, especially in Southeast Asian economies. The symposium sought to engage researchers from Japan and the Philippines to discuss their works touching on issues in human migration, diaspora, citizenship, and the relationship between migrants and host societies in both domestic and transnational contexts. The UP Asian Center continues to strive to raise awareness and educate the public regarding these issues through the conduct free lectures and activities.  

MORE PHOTOS FROM THE EVENT

The Asian Center, University of the Philippines Diliman offers M.A. degrees in Asian Studies with four fields of specialization: Northeast Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, and West Asia. The UP Asian Center also has an M.A. program in Philippine Studies that allows students to major in Philippine society and culture, Philippine foreign relations, or Philippine development studies. It also offers a Ph.D. program in Philippine Studies in conjunction with the College of Arts and Letters and the College of Social Sciences and Philosophy. For an overview of these graduate programs, click here. As an area studies institution, the Asian Center also publishes Asian Studies: Journal of Critical Perspectives on Asia, the latest issue of which can be downloaded at the journal's website.