Yogyakarta, 16 August 2019—The Uyghur issue cannot be merely seen as a form of “oppression of the strong against the weak.” Various social, political, cultural and psychological elements in the Chinese society has also influenced this matter. This topic was the focus of Beyond The Great Wall #4, which was held by the Department of International Relations last Friday.
“The decision-making process involves numerous actors that are always influenced by the existing social, environmental and historical aspects,” as stated by Irfan Halim, an expert in intellectual property rights from the Faculty of Psychology. At this event, he discussed the Uyghur issue using historical psychology and narrative psychology perspectives. Furthermore, Arindha Nityasari, a researcher from the Institute of International Studies UGM also presented a book review regarding artificial intelligence in China.
Arindha explained her review on “AI Superpowers, China, Sillicon Valley, and the New World Order” by Kai Fu Lee. This book focused on the history of the growth of China’s tech ecosystem. Arindha conveyed that currently, China is transitioning from the “age of discovery” to the “age of implementation.” On the age of discovery, Chinese scientists only focused on creating inventions. Meanwhile, on the age of implementation, Chinese scientists are demanded to be able to practically implement their technological advancements.
After the discussion session, this event was closed with several remarks from Nur Rachmat Yuliantoro, the Head of the Department of International Relations and also the initiator of this event. At the end of this event, Rachmat asked the audience to propose future topics for the upcoming discussions. Hopefully, such discussions can increase the knowledge of the students when it comes to China in world affairs.