Post-colonial states, ethnic minorities and separatist conflicts : case studies from Southeast and South Asia

Post-colonial states in the Asian region have frequently been subject to political tensions derived from their multi-ethnic make-up and, what some have argued to be, the failure of states to adequately represent the interests of their ethnic minorities. This article will look at examples of where states in Asia have failed to adequately represent or otherwise incorporate their ethnic minorities as full and equal citizens. It also considers the range of responses to such perceived or actual state failure in adequately incorporating all citizens, including inter-ethnic and racial violence and separatist conflict. The article will conclude by considering conceptual and actual models of state organization intended to resolve racial and ethnic tensions in the Asian region.

Forms of memory in post-colonial Australia

There are many forms of memory in post-colonial Australia, and many kinds
of haunting. This paper investigates the poetry of contemporary Indigenous poets Sam Wagan Watson and Tony Birch, and reads the script of the Federal Government’s February 2008 Apology to the Stolen Generations, asking how and why the nation should be haunted – historically and imaginatively - into the future.

Papers from Marrakech : a post-colonial reading of western women's travel writing in North Africa and the Middle East

This thesis takes the form of a collection of theoretical and fictional documents comprising a journal, letters and essays sent home to Australia by a woman travelling in Morocco. In different modes, these papers examine issues of colonialism, gender and desire in western women's travel writing about North Africa and the Middle East.

Just deserts in post-colonial society : problems in the punishment of indigenous offenders.

Revised version of a paper presented to the Australian and New Zealand Society of Criminology Conference, Sydney, 2-3 October 2003 - disproportionate number of indigenous persons in the criminal justice system - the concept of 'just deserts' in regard to indigenous punishment - legislative reforms are needed to empower the judiciary in the sentencing process - must take account of the historical fact of dispossession - destructive effects on indigenous communities.

Just deserts in a post-colonial society : problems in the punishment of indigenous offenders

An enduring aspect of the operation of the criminal justice system in Australia has been the disproportionate representation of indigenous persons. Under current sentencing principles, aboriginality can be taken into account as a factor in mitigation because of the nature of social and economic disadvantage suffered by indigenous communities. It is contended that such an approach is inadequate as it fails to comprehend the reasons for that disadvantage. In short, the effects of colonialism and dispossession. An account of punishment will be developed that colonialism and dispossession cannot be omitted from any satisfactory account of the theory and history of punishment of indigenous persons. By relying on the notion of ‘just deserts’ an account of punishment will be proposed that extends the categories currently put forward to justify punishing indigenous persons. Traditional, philosophical accounts of punishment and insights from critical race theory will both be used in an attempt to articulate what ‘just deserts’ means in the context of a post-colonial society.

(Post)colonial ambivalences : Christina Stead and Janet Frame

This thesis is an evaluative comparison of two significant writers, the Australian Christina Stead, and New Zealander Janet Frame. In a detailed analysis of the novels, the writerly ambivalences of each author are explored. Their writings are revealed to be creative of new possibilities for female (post)colonial agency.