International Conference on
HIGHER EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS AND PEACE EDUCATION IN
ASIA: EXPERIENCES & CHALLENGES
By
Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO)
&
Al-Salam Institute, Yala Islamic University (YIU)
And Southern Thailand University for Peace, STUFPeace, Thailand
Rationale of the Program:
Asia has been part of the world that experience conflicts in various forms and degrees that need peace-building strategies to transform conflicts into peaceful situations. Among efforts have been endeavored by all parties concerned in managing and solving conflicts region-wide is trough educational means. Peace education, then, has been lately added into many educational institutions in all level possible in many countries in Asia especially South Asia and Southeast Asia.
As for Thailand, Yala Islamic University is among the pioneer of this struggle for paving better understanding for its students by offering Peace Studies as compulsory subject under General Education category for all students in all modes of medium of instructions in the university i.e. Thai, Malay, English and Arabic. Apart from that cooperation with other higher educational institution in the region is, indeed, play very vital role in exchanging expertise, technologies in teaching peace studies and conflict management programs in the country specifically and the region generally.
Due to the above fact that, Al-Salam Institute, Yala Islamic University and Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO) are willingly to jointly organize An International Conference on Higher Educational Institutions and Peace Education in Asia: Experiences and Challenges and supported by Southeast Asian Conflict Studies Network (SEACSN), Higher Education Commission (HEC), Ministry of Education, Southern Thailand University for Peace (STUFPeace).
Program Objectives:
This program is intended to contribute to peace-building activities in Asia through exchanging issues, experiences, challenges and lessons learnt among participants from various higher educational institutions in Asia.
The specific objectives of the program are as follow:
1. To create platform for exchanging issues, experiences, challenges and success stories of peace education in various universities in conflict areas in the region
2. To enhance peace education and conflict studies networking through academic cooperation within the Asian region.
3. To come up with concrete plans of actions for peace education in conflict areas in the Asian region
4. To promote the peaceful and sustainable resolution of conflicts in the Asian region.
Participants:
The program intends to invite participants from Thailand, Malaysia, Philippines, Indonesia, Japan, India Cambodia, Jordan and Sri Lanka. Every university in Thailand that has peace centers or conflict centers will be invited to take part in this conference. Universities’ administrators, lecturers who are teaching or conducting their researches on peace studies and conflict management will be given priorities in attending the conference. Graduate students who are interested in this enterprise will be also given chances to get involve as well. As for foreign participant, the organizers will responsible for transportations, accommodations and per-diem only to invited paper presenters. Other parties interested in joining the conference are pleased and welcomed on their own expenses.
Approximately, the participants will be more than 300 participants from local universities including universities’ administrators, lecturers, and students, NGOs and 20 international participants from 10 countries, i.e. Malaysia, Philippines, Indonesia, Cambodia, Japan, Korea, Jordan, Sudan, India and Sri Lanka.
Honorable Quests and Speakers
This program will be participated by outstanding speakers from different institutions and organizations as follows;
· Dr. Abdul Aziz Othman Altwaijri, Director General of ISESCO & President of World Islamic University Federation (WIUF)
· Assoc. Prof Dr. Kamaruzaman Askandar, Co-odinator Research and Education for Peace, USM, Malaysia
· Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mustapa Kasim, Director, Institut Pemikiran Tun Mahathir,Malaysia
· Prof. Muhadi Sugiono, Head, Center for Security and Peace Studies, Gajah mada University, Yogyakarta Indonesia
· Mr. Zulham, Deputy Dean, Faculty of Social Sciences and Political Science, Universitas Malikussaleh, Aceh, Indonesia
· Prof. Dr. Hamid A. Barra, Dean, King Faizal Center for Islamic, Arabic and Asian Studies, Mindanao State University, Philippines
· Mdm. Ayesah Abubakar, Mindanao Peace program, REPUSM
· Mr. Jafar Mah, Interreligious organization, Singapore
· Assoc. Prof. Dr. Joseph Chinyong Liow, Nanyang Technological University Singapore
· Prof. Dr. Shamsurrahman Khan, Head, Postgraduate Department of Psychology, University of Jammu, Jammu Kashmir, India
· Prof. Dr. Amara Pongsapich, Center for Peace and Conflict Management, Chulalongkorn University
· Assoc. Prof. Dr. Gothom Ariya, Center for Peace Studies and Development, Mahidol University
· Assoc. Prof Dr. Mark Tamthai, Center for Religion, Culture and Peace, Payap University
· Mr. Zakee Phitakkhumpol, Peace Institute, Prince of Songkla University
· Mr. Shafi-I Baru, Al-Salam Institute, Yala Islamic University
Program:
This program will be held at Yala Islamic University, Pattani Province, Thailand from 23rd- 24th July 2008. There will be presentations by scholars and practitioners involved in peace education from around the region.
The organizers aim at creating networking activities among universities taking part for future plan of actions on peace education in the Asian region at the end of the program. Tentative program is as follows
Tentative Program
23rd July 2008
08.30-09.00 Welcoming remarks By the Organisers as follows;
- Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO)
- Al-Salam Institute, Yala Islamic University (YIU)
09.30-10.30 Keynote Address By Dr. Abdul Aziz Othman Altwaijri, Director General of ISESCO & President of World Islamic University Federation (WIUF)
10.30-11.00 Refreshment
11.00-12.30 Forum on Higher Educational Institution and Peace Education in Thailand:
Challenges and Experiences
- Mr. Shafi-I Baru, Al-Salam Institute, Yala Islamic University
- Mr. Zakee Phitakkhumpol, Peace Institute, Prince of Songkla University
- Prof. Dr. Amara Pongsapich, Center for Peace and Conflict Management, Chulalongkorn University
- Assoc.Prof. Dr. Gothom Ariya, Center for Peace Studies and Development, Mahidol University
12.30-14.00 Lunch and Zuhr prayer
14.00-16.00 Forum on Higher Educational Institution and Peace Education in Asia: Challenges and Experiences
- Assoc. Prof Dr. Kamaruzaman Askandar, Co-odinator Research and Education for Peace, USM
- Prof. Muhadi Sugiono, Head, Center for Security and Peace Studies, Gajah mada University
- Prof.Dr.Hamid A.Barra, Dean, King Faizal Center for Islamic, Arabic and Asian Studies, Mindanao State University
- Prof. Dr. Shamsurrahman Khan, Head, Postgraduate Department of Psychology, University of Jammu, Jammu Kashmir, India
20.00-22.00 Roundtable for Networking on Peace Education in ASIA
24rd July 2008
09.00 – 12.00 Forum on Roles of Higher Educational Institutions in building sustainable peace in Asia
- Ms.Sashiko Ishikawa, Japan International Cooperation Agency, Tokyo (JICA),Japan
- Mr.Jafar Mah, Interreligious Organization, Singapore
- Mdm. Ayesah Abubakar, Mindanao Peace program, REPUSM
- Mr. Zulham, Deputy Dean, Faculty of Social Sciences and Political Science, Universitas Malikussaleh, Aceh,
- Assoc Prof.Dr. Mustapa Kasim, Institut Pemikiran Tun Mahathir
- Prof. Dr. Joseph Leaw, Nanyang Technological University Singapore
