21 - 22 May 2009
Centre for Asian Studies, University of Hong Kong

The Centre of Asian Studies (CAS), at the University of Hong Kong (HKU), in conjunction with the Department of Community Medicine (HKU) and the Southeast Asia Research Centre at the City University of Hong Kong is calling for paper proposals towards a workshop on the topic of Unhealthy Governance: Securitising Infectious Diseases in Asia, to be held in May 2009. This workshop is being funded by the Ford Foundation (Beijing) and the Strategic Research Theme: Law, Policy & Development (HKU).

Asia is becoming an increasingly interconnected region. With this greater interconnectivity comes a compression of time and space that represents a fundamental challenge to those whose task it is to respond to infectious disease outbreaks. As such policies and practices towards infectious disease outbreaks in the countries of the region as well as those followed by regional/international organisations and institutions are an important topic for study.

It is the aim of this workshop to undertake a systemic review of threat-based responses to infectious diseases in Asia – both in terms of specific disease outbreaks as well as in terms of comparative responses between different disease outbreaks. These responses will be focused at the international, regional, state and sub-state levels. By analysing these responses through the combined lens of securitisation and governance it will be possible to understand the priority different actors accord the threats posed by infectious diseases as well as the interplay of different actors during the securitisation process. From this understanding, the workshop will be able to evaluate how committed Asian states and the related regional/international organisations are to countering infectious diseases outbreaks as well as to what extent other variables – political, economic, social or legal – alter the securitisation of infectious diseases.

We are now calling for paper abstracts for this workshop. Papers should be interdisciplinary in nature and could explore (but are not limited to):

• Theoretical and Historical Perspectives on Responses to Emerging Infectious Diseases
• Approaches by Asian states to Emerging Infectious Diseases
• Securitisation responses by sub-state (provincial, municipal, market, media and other civil society) actors
• Securitisation Responses in other regions or by other regional organisations (Africa/AU, South America/Mercosur, South Asia/SAARC, APEC etc);
• Securitising Role of – and Responses By – International Organisations; and
• Cross-sectoral variables in the securitisation response (political, economic, social, environmental and legal).

Successful applicants will be invited to participate in the workshop to be held in Hong Kong. Travel and accommodation expenses will be covered by the organisers. It is intended that the papers will be published either as a special issue of a major academic journal or as an edited volume and so will be expected to be original unpublished works, approximately 7-9,000 words in length. More information on the length and style will be provided to successful applicants.

The co-organisers invite the submission of Abstracts on the above themes. Abstracts should be around 400 words. A one-page CV, including a list of recent relevant publications, should also be submitted at the same time. The closing date for abstracts is Friday 2 January 2009. E-mail applications are preferred.

Please send paper abstracts and CV to:

Centre of Asian Studies, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam Rd, Hong Kong SAR

E-mail: Ms Cathy Wong clywong@hku.hk

For further information regarding the workshop please contact either Dr Nicholas Thomas, ndthomas@hku.hk or Professor Richard Fielding, fielding@hkusua.hku.hk.

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