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R E S E A R C H @ F A S S Issue no. 4 | 2022

Diaspora and Post-Diaspora in Sinophone, Anglophone and Tamil
literature from Malaysia: constructing an inclusive national narrative

Researchers : Mr Looi Siew Teip (PI), Dr Teoh Hooi See, Dr We hope to make a significant contribution to the ongoing
Ravindaran Maraya, Dr Silllalee Kandasamy, Ms Lim Chia conversation about who and what we are as a nation and to
Yen (RA) directly address the acute sense of marginalization faced by
Chinese and Indian writers in the wake of the
Our project is centred on the question of the extent to implementation of the National Culture Policy in 1971,
which literature produced by the Chinese and Indian which largely defined Malaysian culture in terms of Malay
communities in Malaysia has moved away from a diasporic identity. This is a timely enterprise because the 2021
context to ground itself more fully in a Malaysian cultural revision of the National Culture Policy explicitly spells out a
landscape. To answer this question, we will be looking at more inclusive vision of Malaysian culture.
the texts themselves, written in Chinese, Tamil, English as
well as Malay; to tease out the underlying attitudes towards This year, FASS is encouraging more faculty members to
self, identity and belonging. We will also be engaging with apply for the FRGS. In support of this, the Faculty ran two
writers, academics and skilled as well as unskilled readers FRGS Application Talks:
to get a sense of where they think this body of literature is 1) “Things to Consider Before Applying for FRGS: Domains,
positioned in relation to present day Malaysian realities and Teams, Outputs, and More” by Dato’ Professor Dr Azizan bin
the homeland of the diasporic framework. This will be done Hj Abu Samah held on 2 November 2022. Professor Azizan
through one-to-one interviews, seminars and focus group is an evaluator, Head of the Heritage, Environment, and
discussions to generate qualitative data, which will be Culture Domain, and Head of the Climate Change and
supplemented by quantitative data generated from Environment Cluster for FRGS at the Ministry Level.
questionnaires. 2) “Reflections on the FRGS Proposal Development and
Application Process” by Professor Dr Hanafi bin Hussin
(2020 FRGS awardee) and Mr Looi Siew Teip (2022 FRGS
awardee) held on 23 November 2022.

Charting a strategy with our Research Assistant. From L to R: Mr
Looi, Ms Lim and Dr Teoh. Speakers and Attendees of the second FRGS Application Talk 2022

C O M M U N I Q U E
Academic staff from the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences have presented their expert opinions and viewpoints on
topics ranging from natural disasters to social issues and geopolitical equations in the media. Here are the noteworthy
mentions:
Dr Lai Suat Yan interviewed by Bernama News ‘Thirty Percent Seat Target Remains Elusive For Women’ by BFocus.
https://www.bernama.com/en/b_focus/v2/news.php?id=2137458
Dr. PTC Chang interviewed by CGTN America on the ASEAN summit. https://youtu.be/AkXjKOHBbBw
Dr. PTC Chang Published his Op Ed with South China Morning Post. ‘Amid US-China rivalry, middle powers are
coming together to build bridges.’ https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3202977/amid-us-china-rivalry-
middle-powers-are-coming-together-build-bridges?module=opinion&pgtype=homepage
Dr Vilashini Somiah interviewed by BFM Radio “Getting The Lay Of The Land In Sabah”
https://www.bfm.my/podcast/special-features/general-elections-2022/sabah-grs-kingmaker-ge15
Dr Florence Kuek interviewed By Berita Harian ‘Penterjemahan jambatan pemahaman sastera.’
https://www.bharian.com.my/rencana/sastera/2022/11/1032902/penterjemahan-jambatan-pemahaman-sastera
Professor Danny Wong interviewed by The Star, 16 Sept 2022. 'How Malaysia came to be/'
https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2022/09/16/how-malaysia-came-to-be
Professor Danny Wong interviewed by New Straits Times, 17 Sept 2022. 'Historian encourages more people to
document family history to understand past.' https://www.nst.com.my/news/nation/2022/09/832153/historian-
encourages-more-people-document-family-history-understand-past

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