Edward Aspinall, BA (Jurisprudence) (Adelaide), BA (Hons) (Sydney), PhD (ANU)
Fellow, Indonesian Politics, Department of Political and Social Change
Email: Edward.Aspinall@anu.edu.au
Biographical Statement
My interest in the politics of Southeast Asia began when I lived in Malang, East Java, as a teenager. After studying Indonesian language and politics at high school and university, I completed my PhD in the Department of Political and Social Change in 2000 on the topic of opposition movements and democratisation in Indonesia. Since then, I have been working on a range of topics related to Indonesian democratisation and civil society, and especially concerning the separatist conflict in Aceh. I am currently writing a book about the history of that conflict and of the nationalist ideology which underpinned it. After completing this book, I plan to pursue my research interests in the comparative politics of democratisation and separatist conflicts in Southeast Asia.
Research Interests
Indonesian politics, democratisation, social movements, civil society and nationalism. The separatist conflict in Aceh, comparative politics of separatism in Southeast Asia, and the relationship between Islam and nationalism.
Key Publications
- Opposing Suharto: Compromise, Resistance and Regime Change in Indonesia. Stanford University Press, Stanford, 2005
- Local Power and Politics in Indonesia: Decentralisation & Democratisation. (Coedited with Greg Fealy), Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, Singapore, 2003.
- The Helsinki Peace Agreement: a more promising basis for peace in Aceh? East West Center, Policy Paper series, East West Center, Washington, 2005.
- The Peace Process in Aceh: Why it failed (co-authored with Harold Crouch), East West Center Policy Paper series, East West Center, Washington, 2003.
- "The Construction of Grievance: Natural Resources and Identity in a Separatist Conflict", Journal of Conflict Resolution. Vol. 51, No. 6, 2007, pp. 950-972.
- "From Islamism to Nationalism in Aceh, Indonesia", Nations and Nationalism Vol. 13, No. 2, 2007, pp. 245-263.
Career Highlights
Lecturer in Southeast Asian Studies, University of Sydney, 2003-2005;
Lecturer in Indonesian studies, University of New South Wales, 1997-2001;
Coordinating Editor of Inside
Indonesia
