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Call for Papers
Theme: Power, Resistance and Justice in the International System
Subtitle: Perspectives from the South
Type: Annual International Studies Convention 2014
Institution: School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru
University
Location: Dehli (India)
Date: 21.–23.12.2014
Deadline: 10.10.2014
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The international system is conventionally understood in terms of
underlying material and normative structures that reflect the
distribution of power, institutions and value systems. But
international politics has never been short of resistance to these
material and normative structures. The multiplicity of resistance and
struggle since the advent of such systems, in many ways, is a
response to the prevailing injustice and inequities in the
international system. These are attempts to alter the imbalance of
power that exists in the system.
Traditionally, inter-state relations and ‘hard power’ were the
exclusive focus in International Relations; today notions such as
‘soft power’ and ‘smart power’ have been introduced by theorists to
describe the wide variations in the forms in which power manifests
itself. Also, the study of power is no longer restricted to states
but covers a wide range of actors such as trans-national
corporations, non-governmental organizations, inter-governmental
organizations, networks, and peoples’ movements. Further, the concept
is studied in IR not as military power alone but also as power in the
economic, social, cultural, technological, information and digital
realms. For instance, it is acknowledged that the asymmetry of
information impacts the power relationships between actors. Most
recognized binaries in IR – ‘North’ & ‘South’, ‘rule-makers’ and
‘rule-takers’, ‘donors’ and ‘receivers’, ‘governmental’ and
‘non-governmental’ – are characterized by power differentials.
In the century gone by, global transformations have engendered
contestation in multiple forms and at multiple levels while at the
same time, contestations have affected, if not defined, the future
course of transformation of the international system. This cycle of
transformation and contestation in the realm of international
relations is driven by the following key questions: Where does the
ability to bring about transformation reside? (power); in what forms
does contestation to transformation manifest itself and to what
effect? (resistance) and what should be the nature of the
transformations that ought to take place in the international system?
(justice).
While power drives transformation, the quest for justice is central
to contestation. The quest for justice challenges existing power
hierarchies and resistance seeks a particular version of justice to
be made applicable. It is important to recognize that the prevalent
and applied form of justice is normally the ‘justice of the
powerful’. Alternatively, addressing issues of rights, equity and
distributive justice becomes an integral part of imagining meaningful
transformation.
There is a fundamental tension between order and justice. While the
former is about the status quo, the latter seeks to unsettle the
status quo with an expressed desire for a better future. Goals of
justice therefore may carry within them the kernels of systemic
transformation. Justice here is meant to encapsulate its myriad
formulations. It includes redistribution (the quest for equality) but
an equally robust formulation on recognition (the quest for identity)
as also retribution (quest or adequate punishment), procedural (quest
for fair treatment) and restorative justice (quest for healing and
reconciliation).
Resistance to colonial and imperial domination for the cause of
self-determination historically occupied centre-stage in the study of
International Relations in the South. The forms of resistance can
vary from passive withdrawal, to active and at times violent
protests. The space and domains of protest may also vary from highly
localized to fairly globalized ones. At the local levels, the targets
are the proximate and immediate state authorities and institutions
because they are considered to be the carriers and perpetrators of
such power. More recent developments such as the ‘Arab Spring’ in
West Asia and North Africa to movements in Europe and the United
States reveal the continuing centrality of resistance in shaping the
international system. Issue-based social movements such as, inter
alia, on environmental and nuclear issues and the anti-globalization
protest movements have increasingly reached out across state borders
and become international in scope. In a broader sense, resistance
could be seen to include resistance by groups of states to the
existing structures in international politics, law and organization.
Counter-hegemonic regional initiatives in Latin America or
alternative fora formed by emerging powers exemplify resistance by
some states to the existing order. Emerging states of South, at their
level, seek to alter the existing international system either by
acquiring the privileged status for themselves or by creating
identical structures. The creation of BRICS for instance is an
institutional resistance and replication to the existing dominance of
the Bretton Woods institutions in the global politics. Similarly,
developing states have formed various groups in the multilateral
institutions such as the WTO and the UN where they cooperate whenever
their interests converge. The critique of contemporary capitalism
from different standpoints also contributes a lot to the rethinking
on the linkage between power, resistance and justice.
Clearly, there are strong interdependencies between the concepts of
power, resistance and justice. Further, each has specific
connotations when viewed from the perspective of the Global South.
Whether it is in terms of the nature of power, the accepted ideas of
justice or the nature and impact of resistance, the South is
identifiably distinct from the North. The central thematics in
international relations – security, development, trade, gender, etc.
– can all be analyzed within the frameworks of the notions of power,
resistance and justice as played out both within the South and more
prominently, in relation to the North.
It is to investigate and ponder on these intra- and
inter-relationships that the theme of the Annual International
Studies Convention for 2014 is proposed as: Power, Resistance and
Justice: Perspectives from the South. While submitted papers could be
theoretical, conceptual or empirical, and could focus on any of a
wide range of issue areas in IR – gender, development, human rights,
security, trade, migration, environment, identity, nationalism,
regionalism – to name just a few, it is expected that principally,
they throw light on the interplay among the three variables chosen as
the central theme of the Convention, i.e., power, resistance and
justice. It is assumed that the distinct experience as well as
perspectives of the Global South will feed into a more holistic
perspective on these concepts and their interdependencies,
contributing both to a better understanding of the concerns of the
Global South and more broadly to the study of International Relations.
Submissions
Annual International Studies Convention 2014 is being organised by
the School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University
(JNU), in partnership with various universities from 21st to 23rd
December 2014 at Convention Centre, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New
Delhi, India. The Academic Committee for AISC 2014 invites papers on
the theme: Power, Resistance and Justice in the International System:
Perspectives from the South.
Some of the panel themes for the Convention are as follows:
01. Southern Theorisations as Resistance
02. Identities on the Move: Ethnic, Religious, National,
Transnational and Diasporic
03. Democratization: Rhetoric, Reality and the Promise
04. Environment: Mainstream and Alternatives Perspectives
05. Peace, Power and Resistance: Cross-Country Theorisations
06. India’s Foreign Policy: Challenge or Convergence
07. Gender and International Relations
08. Religion and International Relations
09. Interdisciplinarity and International Relations
10. Social Movements and Globalization
11. Arab Uprisings: Persisting Issues
12. Imperialism in the 21st Century
13. International Labor Movement Today
14. Reflections on 1914
15. Global Law and Global Justice
16. International Relations and International Law: Intersecting
Disciplines
17. Migration as Resistance
18. International Institutions Today: Democratic or Hegemonic?
19. Culture and Resistance
20. Geographies of Resistance
21. Borders as Sites of Contestation
22. Globalization and Human Rights
23. Changing Nature of International Political Economy
24. Changing Conceptions of Power
25. Transformations in the World Order
26. Sustainable Energy for All
27. Asian Energy Security Structure and India’s Strategic Engagement
28. Crisis of Security State in West Asia: Contextualizing the Rise
of ISIS
29. Regional Orders in a Globalizing World
30. Civil Society as an Agent of Resistance
31. Emerging Powers and New Coalitions in International Relations
32. Evolving Notions of Development and the Idea of Justice
33. Natural Resources and the Global Commons: Concepts of Sharing and
Burden Sharing
34. International Trade and the Manifestation of Power
35. A New International Organizational Architecture for the World:
Issues of Power and Justice
36. Geopolitics as a Determinant of Power
37. State-Market Interaction and the Interplay of Power in the
International System
We invite papers under the aforementioned panels as well as entirely
new panels and paper proposals that resonate with the overall theme
of the convention. Paper proposals should be accompanied by a 400
word abstract and panel proposals by a 200 word description. If you
want your paper to be considered under any of the above panels,
kindly mention it at the time of submission. This is not required if
you are proposing an entirely new panel or a paper proposal
pertaining to the general theme of the conference rather than a
specific panel. Participants may present no more than one paper. In
case of joint papers, kindly specify the co-authors right at the
outset while submitting the abstract.
The deadline for sending in paper abstracts is 10th October, 2014.
Please submit your paper abstracts online:
http://aisc-india.in/AISC2014_web/submit_paper_abstract.php
Panel theme proposals can be submitted online:
http://aisc-india.in/AISC2014_web/submit_panel_theme_proposal.php
You will receive a reply to your submission as soon as the review
process is over, not later than first week of November 2014.
Venue
Convention Centre
Jawaharlal Nehru University
New Mehrauli Road
New Delhi-110067
India
Conference website:
http://aisc-india.in/AISC2014_web/
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