October 10, 2024

Southeast Asia, Southeast Asians, and Gaza: Understanding the Connections

Palestine has been a focus of advocacy and concern in Southeast Asian and among Southeast Asians for decades now. Some of that engagement extends to the state level—especially in Malaysia and Indonesia, which officially recognize Palestine, but not Israel. That the region’s Muslim-majority states incline toward Palestine is perhaps unsurprising. But the support runs deeper in the region, along multiple tracks. Many Southeast Asians, including Southeast Asian Americans in the United States, share those sympathies; significant numbers have participated in recent protest actions around Gaza, including many who cite parallels with movements for human rights and social justice, and against neocolonialism and securitization, in their countries of origin. This webinar will probe the roots, character, extent, and intended impact of that solidarity activism. Panelists will address the trajectory of pro-Palestinian efforts in Southeast Asia, including its current efflorescence; what has motivated Southeast Asian-identified students in the US to take part in solidarity campaigns for Gaza now—and what messages such transnational activism conveys or what it might achieve.