Issue #44 | July / August 2015 | www.pacific-geographies.org | ISSN 2196-1468 | € 6,00 Pacific Geographies Research | Notes | Current Issues from the Asia-Pacific Region

The Seedbeds of Active Citizenship? Community Gardens in Jakarta 40 Years after the End of the Vietnam War Interview Beijing - the Grey Capital Essay

The System of Rice Intensification (SRI) Challenges for Timor-Leste Heritage Preservation in Cambodia The Case of Battambang Whale Watching in Patagonia, Chile Guaranteeing a Sustainable Ecotourism? CONTENTS # 44 | July/August 2015

The Seedbeds of Active Citizenship? Community Gardens in Kampung Tugu Selatan, Jakarta – 17

Essay: Hanoi - The City that is continuously 'becoming' – 23 Essay: Beijing - The Grey Capital – 27

04 Predicting Potential Soil Loss in Pacific 23 Essay: Hanoi - The City that is Islands: Example in Tahiti Iti – French continuously ‘Becoming’ Polynesia Monique Gross Pascal Dumas 27 Essay: Beijing - The Grey Capital 11 Silent Politics – How local chambers Britta Schmitz of commerce in the Philippines fail to foster democratisation 31 Interview: 40 Years after the end Basanta Thapa of the Vietnam War Andreas Margara 17 The Seedbeds of Active Citizenship? Community Gardens in Kampung Tugu 32 Advertisement of photo book: Selatan, Jakarta Hà Nội: Capital City Prathiwi Widyatmi Putri Michael Waibel (ed.)

2 Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 IMPRINT: EDITORIAL Editorial Board: Dr. Michael Waibel (v.i.S.d.P.), ­ University of Hamburg Dear readers, Dr Julia N. Albrecht, University of Otago, NZ This issue of Pacific Geographies covers a wide range of topics, again, which will hopefully Dr. Matthias Kowasch, University find your interest. Among others, it includes two essays, one more personal and one more of Bremen academic reflection about Beijing respectively about Hanoi. Both essays were written by Scientific Advisory Board: long-time residents who have left those fascinating cities in the meantime and now throw Dr Tara Duncan, Department of a look back. Tourism, University of Otago, NZ Dr. Simon Batterbury, University of Melbourne, Australia Further, we glad to announce, that Matthias Kowasch has recently reinforced our edito- rial team. Since January 2014, he has been working as a lecturer at the Department of External Reviewers: Geography at University of Bremen. Matthias hold a PhD in human geography about the Anonymous Prof. Dr. Heiko Faust, University participation of the indigenous Kanak people in the development of the nickel sector in the of Goettingen, Germany French overseas territory New Caledonia. In this context he did extensive fieldwork in Kanak Wilfried Gebhardt, Free Con- villages. His research interests are resource exploitation, governance, indigenous people's sultant issues and textbook research. Before arriving in Bremen, Matthias worked at the University Dr. Harald Kirsch, GIZ/CIM, Ha Tinh City, Vietnam of New Caledonia and he was a postdoc at the Institute of Research for Development (IRD) Dr. Simon Batterbury, University in Noumea. In addition to his work at University of Bremen, Matthias is teaching in a high of Melbourne, Australia school near Bremen. Matthias will particularly contribute to the development and the inter- Philipp Zielke M.A., Hamburg University nationalization of our journal and is looking forward to receiving submissions - particularly dealing with Oceania. Layout Print Version: Michael Waibel The next issue shall cover again a specific topic. In case you are interested in guest editing All material published in the a Special Issue of Pacific Geographies, please let us know your topic suggestion as soon as Pacific Geographies expresses possible. the views and opinions of the authors of this material. We hope you enjoy this new issue of Pacific Geographies. Please submit your manuscript to: Dr. Michael Waibel, Dr Julia N. Albrecht & Dr. Matthias Kowasch [email protected] or [email protected] or [email protected]

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Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 3 Predicting Potential Soil Loss in Pacific Islands: Example in Tahiti Iti – French Polynesia

Pascal Dumas1

EA 4242 - News Centre Pacific studies (CNEP), University of New Caledonia1

Abstract: Soil erosion by water has become a serious problem in Pacific Islands mainly due to the tropical natural conditions and to the progressive and continuous human pressure (agricultural practices, bush fires, mining acti- vity…). In the current study, an effort to predict potential annual soil loss has been conducted in Tahiti Iti island in French Polynesia. For the prediction, the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) has been applied in a Geo- graphical Information System framework. RUSLE-factor maps were made. The R-factor was determined from the average annual rainfall data. The K-factor was estimated using soil map available and granulometric analysis of samples of soils. The LS-factor was calculated from a 5 meters digital elevation model. The C-factor was calculated using remote sensing techniques and particularly supervised classification methods based on SPOT 5 satellite ima- ges. The P-factor in absence of data was set to 1. The mean annual soil loss predicted by the model is 2.4 t/ha/yr. The results show that some 85% of the region of interest has a potential erosion rate of less than 5 t/ha/yr but an extended part of the area is undergoing severe erosion with a potential soil loss up to 50 t/ha/yr, demanding the attention of local land managers.

Keywords: Soil erosion, Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE), Geographic Information System (GIS), Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM), Tahiti

[Submitted as Scientific Paper: 30 May 2015, Acceptance of the revised manuscript: 11 July 2015]

Soil erosion and related degradation of land resources are significant environmental and socio- economic problems in a large number of countries throughout the world (Millward and Mersey, 1999; Hoyos, 2005). Soil erosion occurs naturally and its importance to humanity depends on a host of factors, including the nature of soil, climate, topography and land cover but most impor- tantly the nature of human activities. Soil loss is particularly associated with farming practices that do not conserve soil in situ, for example ploughing against the contours, rapid ground cover removal, overgrazing and deforestation - these are entirely natural and indeed needed for many semiarid and Mediterranean systems. Also important can be mining activities, construction and urbanization that does not consider hydrological conditions. Source: Pascal Dumas Pascal Source:

Figure 1: Tourism is an important source in income in Tahiti

424 Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 In the South Pacific region, the high tropical islands are most vulnerable to soil loss and land degradation. They have steep slopes, tropical storms and cyclones with extremely heavy rainfall and high natural erosion rates due to rapid soil weathering. Moreo- ver, most of the islands in this part of the world have an important and fast growing population and therefore a strong pressure on natural resources. The vast majority of rural Oceanian peoples practice subsistence farming and artisanal fisheries. Excessive soil erosion threatens sustainable agricul- tural production by decreasing the fer- tility of agricultural soils with a loss of soil rich nutrients. Streams in tropical areas have up to 15 times the natural sediment load compared to those in temperate areas (Simonett, 1968). But water quality is affected by increased sedimentation in rivers with large vo- Source: DEM, 5 m resolution, dydrology data, Service d' Aménagement de de l'Urbanisme lumes of terrigenous runoff. Figure 2: Tahiti consists of two high islands formed by young volcanic mountains Moreover, downstream of the wa- tershed, the degradation of lagoon tions centred on volcanic mountains: km². However, this population is con- biodiversity and fringing reefs during the bigger, northwestern part Tahiti centrated exclusively near the coast cyclonic floods, due to sediment trans- Nui (around 30 km in diameter) and and in the region of Taravaro, where fer, can be serious (Fabricius, 2005; the smaller, southeastern part Tahiti Iti density reaches 350 inhabitants/km² Jones and Berkelmans, 2014). For (around 15 km) (Figure 2). leaving the central part of the island the Pacific islands that comprise ne- These two parts are connected by a uninhabited. arly 25% of the world's coral struc- short isthmus named after the small tures, biodiversity and landscape pre- town of Taravao. The island is sur- Erosion modeling: servation are important concerns for rounded by modern discontinuous material and methods tourism. The effect of soil erosion on fringing reefs grading into a chain of In order to spatialise and quantify the agricultural land is also a concern, alt- barrier reefs, commonly interrupted erosion hazard on the Tahiti Iti Pen- hough the region's inhabitants have a and locally enclosing a narrow lagoon. insula, we choose an approach based fine array of traditional farming tech- The island is volcanically inactive and on modeling. The Revised Universal niques that avoid its worst effects. is deeply dissected by erosion (Hil- Soil Loss Equation was used, (RUSLE, An attempt to assess the erosion denbrand et al., 2008). The spatial Renard et al., 1997), an empirically hazard and quantity of sedimentary distribution of the rainfall depends based model founded on the Univer- material carried toward Pacific island mostly on the topography and most sal Soil Loss Equation, USLE (Wisch- lagoons will aid in planning for high particularly with exposure to prevai- meier and Smith 1978). These mathe- level of soil erosion, especially where ling winds: from 8 000 mm/year on matical models are the most widely Integrated Coastal Zone Management the east coast hit by Tahiti trade winds, used through the world for prediction (ICZM) is being applied. In this article to 2 000 mm/year on the west coast of water erosion hazards and for the the aim is to map the erosion process (Figure 2). The two sub-islands are planning of soil conservation measu- on Tahiti Island in French Polynesia, basaltic edifices, which over the mill- res. RUSLE predicts only the amount and to highlight the watersheds that ennia have eroded to form mainly late- of soil loss that results from sheet or are most affected. An empirical soil rite soils. Four main forms of terrain rill erosion on a single slope and does loss model for Tahiti Island is develo- topography are identified: the coastal not account for additional soil losses ped and presented. plain has a slope of less than 2°, the that might occur from gully, wind or plateaus and riverbeds with a slope tillage erosion. It estimates long-term Geography of Tahiti Island of between 2° and 15°, the planezes average annual soil loss rate using Tahiti island, located in the archipe- between 15° and 47° and the incised a factor-based approach with rain- lago of the Society Islands in the cen- valleys have more than 47° slope (Ye et fall, soil, topography and land cover tral Southern Pacific Ocean, is part of al., 2010). In 2012, the population was and management as inputs. These an overseas collectivity of the French 184 000 inhabitants making it the most five major factors are used in USLE/ Republic. This highest and largest populous island of French Polynesia RUSLE for computing the expected island in French Polynesia (covering (68.5% of its total population) focus average annual erosion through the 2 an area of 1 045 km ) was formed from in majority on Tahiti Nui. With 20 000 following equation: volcanic activity (around 1.4 Myear inhabitants, the population density ago). Tahiti consists of two round por- of Tahiti peninsula is 80 inhabitants / A = R x K x LS x C x P

Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 5 particle size of the soil, organic matter content, soil structure and profile permeability. If this information is known, the soil erodibility factor K can be approximated from an equation (Wischmeier and Smith 1978), which estimates erodibility as:

Where M = (%silt+%very fine sand) (100-%clay), MO is the percent orga- nic matter content, b is soil structure code and c is the soil permeability rating. In this study, soil erodibility was estimated with the help of the soil map provided by Jamet (1990) from IRD (Institute of Research and Development) at a scale of 1:40 000. This soil map has been digitalized and 13 major soil types were identified

Source: from et al 2010. Ye., (tropical eutrophic brown soils, Figure 3: The spatial distribution of the annual rainfall (Ye et al. 2010). The East coast, ferralitic soils…). A field campaign subject to the trade winds, receives more rainfall than the West coast. The rains are took samples of soils for each type of more abundant during the warm season (October to April). soil across Tahiti Iti. A granulometric analysis of these samples using the Where A is the computed spatial surfaces for global land areas. These gravimetric method, and organic average potential soil loss and data available for 1950-2000, expressed matter determination using the loss temporal average soil loss per unit in monthly average on a 1km scale, has on ignition method was conducted for area (t/ha/yr), R the rainfall-runoff been corrected in GIS environment to each soil type, allowing us to determine erosivity factor [MJ mm/(ha h year- match the spatial resolution of the the percentage of sand, silt, clay, and 1)], K the soil erodibility factor [t ha digital elevation model and compiled organic matter content. From these h/(ha MJ mm)], L the slope length to obtain results in the year for use values and using the texture triangle factor, S the slope steepness factor, in RUSLE. With these data it was of the United States Department of C the cover management factor, and not possible to compute longterm Agriculture (Figure 3), the soil texture P the conservation support practice rainfall intensity data in study area, of each type soil was identified (Brown, factor. The RUSLE was applied in a so we applied the simplified formula 2003). Most of soils in the region of Geographical Information System developed by Roose (1975): interest (mainly covered by ferralitic (GIS) environment, where every soils) have relative proportions of factor was calculated and spatialized as R = 0.5 * P * 1.73 sand, silt and clay similar (with a a raster/grid. Raster models are cell- percentage of sand superior to 80%). based representations of map features, With P is the average annual rainfall, They are thus characterized by the which offer analytical capabilities 1.73 the index conversion between same texture, which explains the low for continuous data and allow fast US unit and metric unit, and 0.5 an spatial variability of this factor (Figure processing of map layer overlay index of climatic aggressiveness that 4b). Then the table of correspondence operations (Fernandez et al., 2003). expresses the relationship between an between the standard textures and the In this case, a pixel value of each grid index of average annual rainfall and the K factor (Table 1) was used (Stone square is equal to a level of sensitivity height of the average annual rainfall. and Hilborn, 2000). In the study area to erosion for the factor in question. The spatial distribution of the factor R the values of the K factor range from obtained follows the variations of the 0.0026 to 0.0171 t.ha.h/ha.MJ.mm. Rainfall erosivity factor (R) rainfall and topography (Figure 7a). It This factor, by definition, is the sum ranges from 1.478 to 2.465 MJ.mm/ Slope-length (L) and slope steep- of individual storm erosivity value, ha.h.yr in Tahiti Peninsula. ness (S) factors EI30, for a year averaged over long The L and S factors in the model time period (> 20 years) where E is the Soil erodibility factor (K) represent the effect of topography total storm kinetic energy and I30 is The soil erodibility factor (K) on erosion. It has been demonstra- the maximum 30 min rainfall intensity. represents both susceptibility of soil ted that increases in slope length and Because of the lack of available data to erosion and the rate of runoff. slope steepness can produce higher from weather stations in French This factor reflects the resistance of overland flow velocities and corres- Polynesia, the World Climate database, soil to erosion caused by the force of pondingly higher erosion (Haan et al., developed by Hijmans et al. (2005) precipitation. A simpler method to 1994). Slope length is defined as the was used. WorldClim is a set of very predict K was presented by Wischmeier horizontal distance from the origin high resolution interpolated climate et al. (1971) which includes the of overland flow to the point where

6 Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 either the slope gradient decreases to a point where deposition begins, or runoff becomes focussed into a defi- ned channel (Foster and Wischmeier, 1974). The common equation used for calculating LS is an empirical equation provided by the USDA Agriculture Handbook (Wischmeier and Smith, 1978):

where λ is the slope length in meters; θ is the angle of slope in degrees; and m is a constant depen- dent on the value of the slope gradi- ent: 0.5 if the slope angle is greater than 2.86°, 0.4 on slopes of 1.72 to 2.85°, 0.3 on slopes of 0.57 to 1.72°, and 0.2 on slopes less than 0.57°. A limitation of using at regional scales the USLE/RUSLE soil-erosion models has been the difficulty in obtaining an LS factor grid suitable for use in GIS applications. Different models and methods have been tried to solve this problem (Hickey, 2000). Source: United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Thus, the algorithms adopted in the Figure 4: Texture triangle of the United States Department of Agriculture current work to estimate the LS factor were the raster grid cumulation at the many steep slopes in the central agricultural lands and the effects and maximum downhill slope watersheds of Tahiti Peninsula, with vegetation canopy and ground covers methods, which were developed by an average value of 12.8. Most of on reducing the soil loss in forested Van Remortel et al. (2001). A digital the values of the LS factor are under regions (Renard et al., 1997). As the elevation model (DEM) at 5 meters 5, and are the flatter plains and vegetation cover increases, the soil spatial resolution from the Urban coasts. High values (superior to 20) loss decreases. Usually, the vegetation Planning and Development Service are important in this part of Tahiti, cover C factor is based on empirical of French Polynesia, and an AML representing 22% of the total area. equations with measurements of many (Arc Macro Language) program variables related to ground and aerial under ArcInfo software based on Cover management factor (C) coverage collected in sample plots the equation of Renard et al. (1997), According to Benkobi et al. (1994), (Wischmeier and Smith 1978). This were used for the calculation of the the vegetation cover factor together method only provides point values LS factor. As a result, each 5 m cell with slope length and steepness for limited locations. The C factor of the grid surface of each one of the factors is most sensitive to soil values at non-sampled locations are study area was assigned an LS value erosion. C factor represent the estimated through spatial interpolation (Figure 4d). The topographic factor effects of cropping and management techniques. But, to compute C factor ranges from 0 in the flat zones to 116 practices on soil erosion rates in for the scale of large watersheds, it is Source: Pascal Dumas Pascal Source: Figure 5: Pineapple fields near Taravao Figure 6: Deforestation on steep slopes

Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 7 and roads) mainly localized on the a potential soil loss superior to 50 t/ coast, previous papers in the literature ha/yr and this largely has bare soils have proposed a value between 0.0001 (including construction sites) or at and 0.38 (Rosewell, 1993; Jabbar and areas where crops are grown on steep Chen, 2005). For Tahiti, we retain a C slopes. Thus, the croplands located in value of 0.003 (Zaluski et al., 2003) as the Taravao region represent one of the typical housing style is the small the areas most impacted by erosion creole cottage surrounded by gardens risk in Tahiti-Iti. (Ye et al., 2010). For crops areas mainly These results may be compared with include banana and pineapples crops, other studies. On Tahiti Nui Island, C factor is 0.3 (Roose, 1975) and 0.04 erosion plots without vegetation for savannah. With this method we cover reveal a soil loss above 35 tons obtain a GIS layer for factor C (Figure per hectare only for 423 mm a month 7c). of rainfall during the wet season (Servant, 1974). On the west coast Soil conservation practice factor (P) of the same island in areas subject The erosion management practice, to spreading urbanization, potential of P value, is also one factor that losses in excess of 75 t /ha /year governs the soil erosion rate. The were calculated (Ye et al., 2010). In P value ranges from 0-1 depending the Pacific region, estimations using

Source: Stone and Hilborn, 2000. on the soil management activities RUSLE from instrumented parcels Table 1: K factor for different soil texture employed and anti-erosion measure in are in the same order of magnitude, in US units place. Cropping in alternating strips or with for example in the Fiji Islands very difficult or impossible to measure terracing, agroforestry integration on where Liedke, in 1989, found soil every plot to obtain C-factor values. bench terraces, mounding and ridging loss rate between 16.6 and 80 t/ha/yr The interpolation results based on the are the most effective practices for soil near Lautoka and Morrison, in 1981, C factor point values could be poor due conservation (Juo and Franzluebbers, found soil loss rate around 36.7 t/ha/ to the limited number of sample plots 2003). Because of a lack of information yr under sugar cane near Nadi. in complex environments (Wang et on anti-erosion practices at the scale al., 2002). Therefore, remotely sensed of Tahiti peninsula (no spatial data Discussion and conclusion data have been used to estimate the and no map), we choose to adopt P This study has used a comprehensive C factor distribution based on land- = 1 over the area of interest. It’s also methodology that integrates the cover classification results (Millward important to consider that agricultural RUSLE model and Geographic and Mersey, 1999; Lu et al., 2004), practices are mainly localized in Information System techniques assuming that the same land covers Taravao region and on the coast to determine the soil erosion have the same C factor values. In around the small villages (the central vulnerability of many watersheds, our case, we used remote sensing part of the island and the south are on the island of Tahiti Iti in French techniques and particularly supervised not inhabited). So the P factor is not Polynesia. The spatial pattern of classification methods based on SPOT need to be taken in account in a large annual soil erosion rate was obtained 5 satellite images taken with a 5 m part of the study area. This factor by integrating geo-environmental resolution for obtain a land cover map will not impact the final product but variables, including rainfall, erosivity, of the area of interest. Unfortunately, soils loss will be slightly overvalued in soil erodability, slope length and a part of the image is covered by relation to reality. steepness and vegetation cover, in clouds and their shadows. Three main a raster based GIS method. The types of vegetation were mapped in Potential soil loss in Tahiti Iti estimated soil losses are significant, the peninsula: crops, mainly in the All the individual GIS layers, created but similar to other results of erosion plateau of Taravao or near urban for each factor in the RUSLE are rates found for mountainous tropical areas along the coast and low slopes, combined by cell-grid modeling islands with steep slopes (Liedke savannah on low hills, and forest, the (the size of pixels is 5m x 5m). The 1984; Dumas and Fossey, 2009). main type of vegetation, particularly result is a spatial distribution of Nonetheless, the values for soil loss in the mountain zones. For each type erosion, where each pixel represents a from RUSLE should be considered of vegetation and land use, a C factor quantity of potential soil loss (Figure as an order of magnitude and not as value was adopted based on some 4e). On Tahiti Peninsula, the values absolute values. One of the limitations research papers. Cover factor ranged obtained range between 0 and 3,126 of USLE, originally developed for from 0.003 to 1. Bare lands, bare soils t/ha/yr, with an average of 2.4 t/ mild slopes in agricultural areas, (construction sites), representing the ha/yr corresponding to 0.16 mm of can be its applicability in young greatest sensitivity to erosion, have soil loss for 1m² in one year. Some mountain areas, and especially in the highest coefficient (1) while the 85% of the region of interest has a areas with slopes higher than 40 areas covered by mixed forest, limiting potential erosion rate of less than % (Roose, 1996). In this case the erosion, have a low coefficient (0.007) 5 t/ha/yr and this corresponds to runoff is a greater source of energy (Ma, 2001). About C value over urban areas covered by dense vegetation, in than rainfall, and additionally, soil areas (residential and built-up land forested and the flatter parts of the creep and slumping is important and not totally covered by buildings catchment. Only 0.8% of the area has on such slopes. Nevertheless, Liu

8 Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 a) Spatial distribution map of R factor value b) Spatial distribution map of K factor value

c) Spatial distribution map of LS factor value d) Spatial distribution map of C factor value

e) Spatial distribution map of average annual soil loss Source: Pascal Dumas Pascal Source: Figure 7: Implementation of RULSE model with GIS for predicting soil loss in Tahiti Iti et al. (2000) showed the RUSLE interpolation of these data only allow values of soil loss. The model leads model can be successfully applied crosscutting the different layers of to better understanding of spatial on slopes up to 60 %. The quality the model. It is necessary to have distribution of the erosion hazard. of data sources implemented in the more detailed land use data, with Moreover, a comparison with a multi- model may introduce uncertainties in an agricultural land use typology criteria method (an expert approach) soil erosion estimates. In the present subdivided into specific crops. demonstrates that the results from study, the spatial scale of rainfall data However, in many situations, policy an RUSLE model in term of spatial sources or the soil maps are not really makers and land managers are more variation are similar (Dumas et al., adequate, although the other factors interested in the spatial distribution 2010). are more precise. The methods of of soil erosion risk than in absolute The map of soil loss obtained

Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 9 constitutes a document which can Brown, R.B., 2003, Soil Texture, Soil and Water Ma J., 2001. Combining the USLE and GIS for be used as a decision tool for better Science Department, University of Florida, Fact Soil Erosion Estimation in Fall Creek Watershed Sheet SL29, 8 p. in Ithaca, New York. CSS620-Spatial Modeling land management planning and for and Analysis. sustainable agricultural practices Dumas P., Printemps J., Mangeas M.,Luneau G., 2010. Developing Erosion Models for Integrated Millward AA, Mersey JE. 1999. Adapting (such as terraces on the steep slopes Coastal Zone Management. A Case Study of New- the RUSLE to model soil erosion potential in to reduce the slope lengths, which Caledonia West Coast, Marine Pollution Bulletin. a mountainous tropical watershed. Catena 38: will slow down runoff velocities). 61: 519–529. 109–129. Morrison R.J., 1981. 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Reinhold Book Corp, New approaches based on the modelling of pone.0084739 York, London. sediment transfer processes (as SWAT: Haan, C.T., Barfield, B.J., Hayes, J.C., 1994. Stone R.P., Hillborn D., 2002. Universal Soil Soil and Water Assessment Tool or Design Hydrology and Sedimentology for Small Loss Equation, Ontario, Canada, OMAFRA. WEPP: Water Erosion Prediction Catchments. Academic Press, New York. Van Remortel R., Hamilton M., Hickey R., Project) designed for limited areas 2001. Estimating the LS factor for RUSLE Hickey R., 2000. Slope angle and slope length through iterative slope length processing of digital and that require complex data, and solutions for GIS. Cartography 29: 1–8. elevation data within ArcInfo Grid. Cartography many field measurements for their Hijmans, R.J., Cameron, S.E., Parra, J.L., 30: 27–35 calibration, not available in this region. Jones, P.G., Jarvis, A., 2005. 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Spatial modeling of soil conservation planning, Agriculture handbook erosion potential in a tropical watershed of the No. 537. US department of Agriculture Science Colombian Andes. Catena 63(1): 85 – 108. and Education Administration, Washington, DC, Acknowledgement Juo, Anthony S.R. and Franzluebbers, USA, 163 p. I would like to acknowledge Julia K. (2003). Tropical Soils: Properties and Wischmeier W.H., Johson, C.B., Cross, B.V., Printemps who implemented an Management for Sustainable Agriculture. New 1971. A soil erodibility nomograph for farmland important part of the RUSLE model, York: Oxford University Press Inc., 304 p. and construction sites. Journal of Soil and Water Conservation, 26 : 189-193. and the support of the CRISP Liedtke, H., 1989. Soil erosion and soil removal in Fiji. Applied Geography & Ye F. Y., Sichoix, L., Barriot, J.P., Dumas, program (Coral Reefs Initiatives for Development, 33, 68-92. P., 2010. Modeling the erosion of shield the Pacific) for funding this research Liu K.W., Li Y.R., Bai S.H., 2000. The volcanoes: The Tahiti island case. In Proceedings project. Genealogy of River System in Yan’an Region. Interpraevent 2010, Taipei, Taiwan, pp. 690- Yan’an Teaching College Publisher. 699. Lu D., Li G., Valladares G.S., Batistella M., Zaluski, M.H., Consort, J.J., and Antonioli, Bibliography S.B. (2003). Soil Erosion and Deposition Benkobi L, Trlica MJ, Smith JL.,1994. 2004. Mapping soil erosion risk in rondonia, brazilian amazonia: using rusle, remote sensing Modeling in ArcGIS. Business and Industry Evaluation of a refined surface cover subfactor for Symposium: 108-113. use in RUSLE. J Range Manage 47:74–78. and gis. Land Degrad. Develop. 15: 499–512.

Corresponding author: Pascal Dumas [[email protected]] is senior lecturer in Geography at the University of New Caledonia. His research topics deal with the modeling of soil erosion, risk manage- ment, vulnerability, land-use dynamics and integrated coastal zone management (ICZM). His current re- search focuses around the impacts of climate change on coastal erosion and societies in the South Pacific.

10 Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 Silent Politics How local chambers of commerce in the Philippines fail to foster democratisation

Basanta Thapa1

Basanta Thapa, Research Training Group “Wicked Problems, Contested Administrations“ University of Potsdam, August-Bebel-Str. 89, 14482 Potsdam / Germany1

Abstract: Philippine democratic consolidation stagnates despite a vibrant civil society. A comparative exploration of three local chambers of commerce in the Visayas and Mindanao reveals that, contrary to established typologies, it is the decidedly non-confrontational stance towards government that keeps the chambers as civil society actors from contributing to democratic consolidation. Further, it becomes apparent that working within the existing clientelistic political structures is the most efficient strategy for interest groups to achieve political goals, while publicly confrontational strategies, which may be most conducive to democratic consolidation, can result in heavy political and economic costs.

Keywords: Philippines, civil society, interest intermediation, democratisation, clientelism

[Submitted as Scientific Paper: 09 March 2015, Acceptance of the revised manuscript: 14 July 2015]

“Democracy in the Philippines is a paradox” (Dressel, 2011). On one hand, the country possesses a complete set of formal institutions, its citizens are enthusiastic about politics, voter turnout is correspondingly high, and civil society is vibrant. On the other, the political system displays weak implementation capacities, a tendency towards elite capture, and entrenched informal political arrangements. However, conventional wisdom in political science invariably holds a strong civil society to facilitate democratisation (Mercer, 2002). Nonetheless, the Philippines’ democratisation stalls at a clientelistic “halfway house” democracy (Case, 1996) despite a “strong and vibrant” civil society (Quimpo, 2005). Source: Thomas Moritz

Figure 1: Lively business at Blumentritt Market in Manila

Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 11 One of civil society’s major affiliates of local important families (Clarke, 2012; Loewen, 2005). functions in democratic consolidation (Yilmaz, 2013). From campaign In conclusion, the Philippines’ is the institutionalisation of informal donations to the far-reaching formal democratic system is super- politics, specifically intermediation of political connections of the extended imposed on traditional, informal interest, in a democratic way. However, family networks, support from one institutions dominated by elites. Philippine civil society has so far failed of the competing camps of the The historical perseverance of to fulfil this role: “Specifically, one ‘oligarchy’ is almost indispensable these informal systems of interest of the most important questions for for Philippine politicians. In the intermediation within and outside research on Philippine politics and for Philippine Congress, more than 60 formal democratic institutions is the the broader literature on civil society percent of the representatives have main obstacle to deepening democracy. and democratization more generally is relatives within congress or lower As the key role in democratising these whether new actors in civil society can levels of government across up to informal institutions falls to civil society, effectively challenge traditional actors three generations (Mendoza, Beja, an analysis of the Philippines’ stagnating in political society in ways that lead to Venida, & Yap, 2011). In this regard, democratic consolidation has to address democracy’s consolidation” (Eaton, the Philippines’ democracy is actually the question as to why civil society 2003). a vehicle for dominance of the elite largely fails to live up to this task. The objective of this paper is to class, as political dynasties compete for shed light on the alleged failure of power within the formal institutions Theoretical framework: Philippine civil society to catalyse (Hedman, 2010). However, in Ambivalent civil society in democratic consolidation. To this end, comparison to other Southeast Asian democratisation I first contextualise my research with nations, the Philippines’ dynasties Merkel distinguishes four major a brief exposition of the economic are too numerous and fragmented to functions of how civil society contri- and political elites and civil society in capture the state in a structured way butes to democratisation (Merkel, the Philippines. Secondly, I present (with the exception of the Marcos 2004): a theoretical framework of the role years). They rather keep each other The Tocquevillian function refers to of civil society in democratisation. in check within the existing political the idea of democratically organised This is then applied to three case system (Kang, 2002). This stabilises associations as ‘schools of democracy’ studies of the political behaviour of the existing system, but also prevents where democratic practices are learned local chambers of commerce and further democratisation (Putzel, 1999). and new politicians emerge. This industry as examples of Philippine Over their long history of democratic function highlights the importance civil society. Thus, I attempt to answer governance, the Philippines has of the internal politics of civil society my overarching research question: developed a full landscape of relatively organisations. How does civil society contribute functional democratic institutions The Lockean function centres on the to the Philippines’ democratic and a free society with deeply held idea of civil society as a watchdog consolidation? democratic convictions (Dressel, that holds government accountable 2011). However, as a result of a weak e.g., by following up political promises Context: Elites, democracy, and party system, “democratic institutions as well as gathering and publicising civil society in the Philippines remain a stronghold and guarantee information about state activities. The Philippine democratic system is of oligarchic dominance” (Croissant, The Montesquieuian function focuses typically described as “deeply flawed” 2004). Hopes to break open on civil society as a balancing (Putzel, 1999) as it is an instrument patronage-based informal institutions intermediary between the state and its dominated by elites. The Philippine in Philippine politics have typically citizens. On the one hand, civil society elite consists of extended families been pinned to civil society, which limits the reach of state authority that control “large, diversified, family- is among the strongest and most through self-government of certain based conglomerates” (Kang, 2002) diverse in the region and has enjoyed spheres of society. On the other, it and constitute an additional layer of considerable respect since its crucial also mediates the rule of law towards politics, whose patterns of loyalty, role in the People Power Revolution the citizens and thus stabilises state patronage relations and shifting of 1986 (Abella & Dimalanta, 2003; authority. alliances interweave formal politics Rodan & Hughes, 2012). Accordingly, The Habermasian function takes up the as well as civil society. This “national the new constitution assigns a strong notion of a pre-parliamentary public oligarchy” had already emerged under role to civil society e.g., by requiring its sphere where political questions American colonial rule in the early representation in local special bodies are discussed. Here, civil society 20th century, and has successfully like the Local Development Councils organisations first aggregate and co-evolved with the development (Capuno, 2005). However, after articulate group interests and then of democratic governance in the toppling Marcos in 1986, civil society possibly negotiate balances of interest. Philippines over the last hundred years has ‘normalised’ and intensified its However, civil society can also (Hutchcroft, 2000). relations with government to access have a ‘dark side’, reinforcing non- Due to their economic prowess, funding and pursue particular interests. democratic norms through its external this elite wields impressive political Beyond political neutrality, Clarke and internal politics. Following this influence (Pacific Strategies & as well as Loewen argue that most idea, Lauth proposes four ideal types Assessments, 2013). At the municipal civil society organisations have now of civil society (Lauth, 1999): Strategic and provincial level, political offices embraced clientelistic strategies to the civil society which holds few democratic are typically manned by members or detriment of democratic principles values but represents its interests

12 Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 strategically. This is especially prevalent during the liberalisation phase of democratisation i.e., the initial breakdown of autocracy. During the institutionalisation phase of a new democracy, there is often the type of constructive civil society that may lack internal democracy and representativeness, but plays a constructive part in stabilising society by integrating social conflicts and establishing democratic processes, especially by serving as an intermediary. In the final stage of democratisation i.e., democratic consolidation, civil society can manifest itself in two different ways. As a reflexive civil society, it is fully aware of its role in democratisation and democratic governance and heeds those principles in its internal and external politics, thus contributing positively to democratic consolidation. Figure 2: Lauth's ideal types of civil society and their indicators (own translation and adaptation Alternatively, as ambivalent civil society, it based on Lauth, 1999: 117) - CS = civil society is neither in its internal nor external politics democratically inclined, and for phenomenal variation in strategic sectors or issues to engage more takes a purely obstructive stance political behaviour. members in their work. towards government, effectively Through the case studies, I explored Chambers are especially instructive preventing the establishment of and compared the chambers’ internal on the role of civil society in shaping democratic informal systems of decision-making processes, their the Philippine system of interest interest intermediation. preferred advocacy strategies, and intermediation. On the one hand, the their rationale for choosing specific local government reform of 1991 Research design political strategies. As the case studies grants them preferred (sometimes The study followed an exploratory touch upon sensitive political issues, even mandatory) access to government multiple-case design. Data was they are anonymised. and, as the voice of business, the collected and triangulated predomin- chambers hold political bargaining antly through semi-structured inter- Case studies: Chambers of power. On the other hand, chamber views with trustees, elected officers, commerce in the Philippines officials typically have personal ties and the administrative staff of the The chambers of commerce and with local politicians and high-ranking chambers of commerce, ordinary industry in the Philippines are private civil servants, allowing for clientelistic chamber members, non-member local voluntary organisations of varying size strategies to pursue the chambers’ businesspeople, and local represent- and professionalism. They provide interests. The chambers’ choices of atives of the political-administrative services such as training, trade fairs, advocacy strategies thus contribute to system who are regular counterparts business conferences, trade missions, shaping informal systems of interest to chamber advocacy. shared-service facilities, business intermediation in a more or less Cases were selected from an initial matching, financing, and political democratic way. population of all chambers in the advocacy. The Philippine Chamber Philippines’ Visayas and Caraga region, of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) is Chamber I: Carefully colla- where access could be facilitated by a national apex organisation, but the borating with government the Philippine German Chamber chamber of commerce landscape is After a traumatic experience with Cooperation Program. To ensure fragmented. Often, several overlapping less than transparent leadership comparability and representativeness chambers coexist and business- that almost led to the chamber’s of my case studies, I homogenised sector associations may or may not bankruptcy, Chamber I has embraced my sample according to the following be associational members of the democratic principles and is trying criteria: a membership base of chamber. However, as a result of PCCI to move towards more inclusive around one hundred members, a guidelines, all chambers have formal internal processes. This break with its secretariat with no more than five democratic procedures. The general previously president-centred decision- staff, political activity, current or assembly elects a board of trustees making process is only slowly taking former beneficiary of international (usually consisting of approximately hold among the membership and capacity building programmes, and 12 members) and a chamber president chamber officers as many structural roughly similar socioeconomic for terms of generally one to three changes e.g., activating the largely environments. Based on initial expert years. Additionally, many chambers dysfunctional chamber committees, interviews, I selected three chambers form internal committees for specific are still pending. While there seems to

Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 13 Source: JensSource: Marquardt Figure 3: Plaza Miranda in front of Qiuapo Church in Manila

be a bias towards electing individuals The chamber shies away from public decision-making within the chamber from well-known families, there are confrontations with politicians to appears only to be a low-level priority. also rather vocal ‘outsiders’ on the avoid possible retribution e.g., denied This is aggravated by a pronounced board. In this respect, the Chamber business or building permits, or internal hierarchy with a strong I is beginning to function in keeping possibly souring relations and losing focus on the chamber president who with the Tocquevillian school of influence. However, as a consequence, monopolises all external relations. democracy. Chamber I loses its capacity to hold Chamber II’s extreme inside Chamber I is represented in different government accountable to the public strategy, which stretches from its non- local special bodies and, after an and bring its viewpoints into the public adversarial stance towards the city electoral change in local government, sphere, therefore largely failing its government to grooming personal has a good working relationship with Lockean and Habermasian function. relations with senior officials and even the city government. Despite its rather running on the ruling party’s ticket, is weak representativeness, the chamber Chamber II: chosen not only because it seems the is consulted on all business-related Embracing government most efficient, but also because of the decisions by city government and has In expert interviews, Chamber danger of retribution from politicians. assumed an active role in investment II is presented as a very ‘traditional’ Rather than restricting the reach of promotion. In this Montesquieuian chamber with rather transparent government in a Montesquieuian sense of participatory government, internal processes and close relations sense, the chamber seems to aim Chamber I has begun to bring policy with the local government based on for greater integration with the fields under the self-government of strong informal ties. In effect, Chamber government apparatus. While this the private sector. By mostly staying II acts as an apex organisation for maximises the chamber’s influence on within the formal political processes business associations in the province, the government, the Lockean function of local special bodies, consultations which significantly increases the of holding government accountable and open resolutions, the chamber chamber’s representativeness and its and the Habermasian function of also strengthens these institutions. legitimacy as the voice of business, but creating a public sphere of political Nonetheless, personal contacts and also entails a strong concentration of discourse cannot be fulfilled. family affiliations are seen as the most power in the president. With this focus In conclusion, the chamber’s role efficient way to speed up and ensure on inter-associational negotiations, in democratisation appears highly a favourable outcome to these formal the chamber only partly fulfils its ambivalent. Its internal as well as processes, therefore reproducing Tocquevillian function as a school of external politics reflect a strong orien- patterns typical of the Philippines’ democracy. While interest aggregation tation towards personalistic strategies, democracy, which is dominated by the among business associations certainly reproducing typical patterns of Phi- elite. has its democratic value, democratic lippine hybrid democracy. While the

14 Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 Source: JensSource: Marquardt Figure 4: Pedestrian overpass in Iloilo City on the island of Panay chamber’s non-conflictive inside stra- in local family politics, prevents the to work successfully in the common tegy seems to be the rational approach chamber from acting as a constructive interest of its members and even the to protect and promote the interests intermediary between government business community at large, dissipa- of business, it renders the chamber a and the business community in the ting doubts about them being mere part of the ruling establishment that Montesquieuian sense. It can neither vehicles for the particular interests of cannot act as a controlling influence successfully present proposals to the specific companies and groups. on the development of democracy. government nor is it able to take over Weak representativeness: All three sectoral self-government responsibi- chambers have weak representativeness Chamber III: lities, as both require collaboration. based on membership numbers, Antagonising government However, as obstructing government enfranchising only about 2 percent Chamber III is well known in the policies and being very vocal in the of registered businesses, and regional chamber scene for its long- media are the only strategic choices associational membership of business standing conflict with local govern- left to the chamber, it scores well in sector associations is still vague. As a ment. Internally a professional organ- the Lockean and Habermasian func- result, chambers have to rely on the isation, the chamber is extremely vocal tions of civil society. local government’s goodwill to be in its external politics to the degree acknowledged as legitimate political that any hope of collaboration with Results of the cross-case actors. For example, Chamber III the city government is out of the analysis is easily denied access by local question at the moment. When comparing the cases, common government by highlighting its low Although Chamber III is run strategic rationales and environmental representativeness. professionally with decentralised factors can be identified. Vertical orientation towards government: hierarchies, and has several feedback Evolving internal democracy: The case None of the chambers sustain strong mechanisms between board and studies show different stages of inter- horizontal links with civil society general membership, it remains doubt- nal democracy. Chamber II relies on actors outside the business community. ful whether it acts as a Tocquevillian a traditional president-centred system Rather, the chambers focus on vertical school of democracy. The board of decision-making. Chamber III has links with government, typical for is dominated by a core “junta” of more devolved hierarchies and feed- clientelistic systems and a logical result relatives and friends that rather back mechanisms, but is effectively of the dominance of inside strategies seem to reproduce patterns of elite controlled by a small group. Chamber towards city government over dominance than democratic and I tries to move from a president-cen- pressure-based external strategies inclusive decision-making. tered system to more inclusive decis- (Brinkerhoff & Goldsmith, 2002). The confrontational relationship ion-making processes. Nonetheless, Informal institutions and elite politics: with local government, firmly rooted in all three cases, the chamber seems All three chambers reinforce existing

Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 15 patterns of informal interest not only fail to fulfil the Lockean Clarke, G. (2012). Civil Society in the intermediation. Chambers I and II and Habermasian functions of Philippines: Theoretical, Methodological and Policy use family ties and informal inter- civil society but also reproduce the Debates. Routledge. elite contacts as a cost-effective established pattern of personalistic Croissant, A. (2004). From transition to defective means to further the political agenda. and clientelistic informal politics. democracy: mapping Asian democratization. Democratization, 11(5), 156–178. On the other hand, Chamber III is Thus, my findings back Loewen’s Dressel, B. (2011). The Philippines: how much politically incapacitated because of and Clarke’s suggestion that real democracy? International Political Science family politics. Therefore, working Philippine civil society has embraced Review, 32(5), 529–545. the framework of elite politics to the established political system and Eaton, K. (2003). Restoration or Transformation? their advantage seems a more rational is, therefore, unfit to change it. In “Trapos” versus NGOs in the Democratization of strategy for chambers to achieve this regard, the institutionalisation the Philippines. The Journal of Asian Studies, 62(2), policy results than trying to disrupt of civil society participation in 469–496. elite politics. local government through the 1991 Hedman, E.-L. E. (2010). The politics of “public opinion” in the Philippines. Journal of Current “Silent politics” and collaboration with local government code may actually Southeast Asian Affairs, 29(4), 97–118. government: In all case studies, the danger have been detrimental to furthering Hutchcroft, P. D. (2000). Colonial masters, of retribution from city government democratic consolidation. national politicos, and provincial lords: central as a result of open confrontation As a theoretical implication, it has authority and local autonomy in the American was stressed. Chamber III is not only become apparent that it is not just an Philippines, 1900–1913. The Journal of Asian denied collaboration with government, overly confrontational civil society Studies, 59(2), 277–306. but the businesses of chamber officials that can have ambivalent effects Kang, D. C. (2002). Crony Capitalism. have been actively harassed. Hence, on democratisation, as suggested Corruption and Development in South Korea and the Philippines. “silent politics” – avoiding public by Lauth. Rather, the case of the Lauth, H.-J. (1999). Strategische, reflexive criticism and resolving disagreements Philippines suggests that an overly und ambivalente Zivilgesellschaften: ein privately – is the preferred strategy. collaborative civil society can lose its Vorschlag zur Typologie von Zivilgesellschaften im While efficient in producing policy democratising edge, as well. Systemwechsel. In H. Zinecker (Ed.), Unvollendete results and securing long-term access In conclusion, the case of Philippine Demokratisierung in Nichtmarktökonomien: Die to political decision-makers, silent local chambers of commerce clearly Blackbox zwischen Staat und Wirtschaft in den politics prevent the development of illustrates that civil society does not Transitionsländern des Südens und Ostens. a public sphere in the Habermasian axiomatically facilitate democracy. Loewen, H. (2005). Zivilgesellschaft und Demokratie auf den Philippinen. Südostasien sense. Accordingly, the incentive is to Especially in clientelistic systems Aktuell, 2/2005, 15–25. work as closely with government as similar to the Philippines, strategic Mendoza, R. U., Beja, E. L., Venida, V. S., & Yap, possible, maximising an inside strategy rationales based on the logic of D. B. (2011). An Empirical Analysis of Political for advocacy as is apparent from influence rather than civic virtues can Dynasties in the 15th Philippine Congress. Asian Chamber II. lead civil society to become part of Institute of Management Working Paper, 12 - 001. ‘undemocratic’ informal systems of Mercer, C. (2002). NGOs, civil society and Conclusion interest intermediation rather than democratization: a critical review of the literature. The original puzzle of this thesis is breaking them up. Progress in Development Studies, 2(1), 5–22. the Philippines’ stagnating democratic Merkel, W. (2004). Embedded and defective consolidation despite a vibrant References democracies. Democratization, 11(5), 33–58. civil society, which fundamentally Abella, C. T., & Dimalanta, M. A. L. (2003). Pacific Strategies & Assessments. (2013). Philippines Special Report: Political Dynasties: contradicts the established axiom of NGOs as major actors in Philippine society. Asia Pacific Philanthropy Consortium, 232–261. Stunting Development; Increasing Business Risk. democracy-facilitating civil society. Putzel, J. (1999). Survival of an imperfect From the analysis of the chambers’ Brinkerhoff, D. W., & Goldsmith, A. A. (2002). Clientelism, Patrimonialism and Democratic democracy in the Philippines. Democratization, internal and external politics, the Governance: An Overview and Framework for 6(1), 198–223. reasons for this failure have become Assessment and Programming. Report for United Quimpo, N. G. (2005). Oligarchic quite apparent: while the degrees States Agency for International Development, Office patrimonialism, bossism, electoral clientelism, and of internal democracy – and thus of Democracy and Governance. contested democracy in the Philippines. Comparative the capacity to act as Tocquevillian Capuno, J. J. (2005). The quality of local Politics, 37(2), 229–250. schools of democracy – seem to governance and development under decentralization Rodan, G., & Hughes, C. (2012). Ideological in the Philippines. University of the Philippines Coalitions and the International Promotion vary individually from chamber to School of Economics Discussion Paper, (0506). of Social Accountability: The Philippines and chamber, a clear pattern has emerged Case, W. F. (1996). Can the “Halfway House” Cambodia Compared. International Studies for the chambers’ external politics. stand? Semidemocracy and elite theory in three Quarterly, 56(2), 367–380. As the chambers understandably shy Southeast Asian countries. Comparative Politics, Yilmaz, S. (2013). Local government discretion away from vocal outside strategies 28(4), 437–464. and accountability in Philippines. Journal of and prefer non-confrontational, International Development, 25, 227–250. ‘silent’ inside strategies, the chambers

Corresponding author: Basanta E.P. Thapa [[email protected]] is a PhD fellow in public policy and administration at the DFG Research Training Group „Wicked Problems, Contested Administrations” at Universität Potsdam and former research associate of Hertie School of Governance. The presented research project was facilitated by two stays with AFOS Foundation of Cebu City in 2010 and 2012, funded by ASA Program and the German Academic Exchange Service.

16 Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 The Seedbeds of Active Citizenship? Community Gardens in Kampung Tugu Selatan, Jakarta

Prathiwi Widyatmi Putri1

Prathiwi Widyatmi Putri, CENTROPOLIS, Urban Lab and Research, Tarumanagara University Gedung Utama Lantai 15 Kampus I Jl. Letjen. S. Parman No. 1, Grogol Jakarta Barat 11440, Indonesia1

Abstract: This article seeks to contribute to the scholarly do- cumentation on Jakarta's spatial transformation. It does so by discussing one of the kampungs, settlements that could be seen as marginalised due to a loose association between the communities and urban citizenship. In kampungs, the idea of ‘state’ as the key actor to ensure universal and equal ac- cess to basic infrastructure services has eroded. This article situates such settlements under the terminology of 'grey sett- lements,' following Yiftachel's 'gray spaces' (2009). The grey settlements of Jakarta have been disintegrated from the for- mal infrastructure provision system, but to a certain extent they have also been integrated with many state-led politi- cal institutional processes. Such ambiguity brings advantages and disadvantages to different actors. This article specifically looks at the collective efforts to develop community gardens despite limited infrastructure conditions. The case study ex- emplifies the phenomena in which good initiatives emerge from crises. Such phenomena also call for a new conceptua- lisation of citizenship.

Figure 1: Jakarta’s Spatial Fragmentation Keywords: citizenship, community gardens, social innovation, neighbourhood infrastructure Kampungs that are categorised as slums by the Jakarta provincial government (data 2008) [Submitted as Research Note: 21 May 2015, Cleared slums (vacant areas in Master Plan 2030) Acceptance of the revised manuscript: 5 June 2015] Planned settlements and improved kampungs Source: redrawn by author based on Jakarta Master Plan 2030, data and maps from Jakarta Housing Agency (Dinas Perumahan, 2008), Jakarta Statistic Agency (BPS, 2008), and Tunas (2008) Industries, offices, commercial functions and high-rise apartments

Jakarta has poor environmental sanitation conditions as the management of its solid waste, wastewater collection and treatment systems are low. Moreover green open space is lacking, especially in areas with informal settlements. These factors all together reduce Jakarta's spatial quality and continuously harm public health. While in private housing estates most of the middle-class households can enjoy premium services of water, sanitation and leisure facilities, it remains a great challenge to meet such needs for lower-income community groups. The main reason is that the capacity of state service provision system might improve but with much slower pace compared to the increase of population growth and expan- sion of sprawl. Responding to increasing environmental issues, some lower-income communities have been under- going collective actions. This article exemplifies such actions and discusses the impacts. It shows how marginalised community groups could turn their deprived socio-ecological conditions into opportunities for improving urban spatial quality. It is increasingly difficult to ignore that such actions have been com- plementing state initiatives in development, but instead of solely being a matter for fulfilling short-term needs, such coexistence should also be effective to improve urban governance as a whole and open up a way for an active citizenship (see Allen et al., 2006; Moulaert et al., 2010a). This article is drawn on a case of a kampung in Jakarta. Following this introduction, a section explains what a kampung is and how this article situates its socio-ecological conditions. It then discusses a deve- lopment of community gardens in Kampung Tugu Selatan. The last section further discusses the kampung experience to reflect on urban citizenship. As part of a two-year empirical work in Jakarta for a doctoral research, this case study is written mainly based on the author's field visit in May 2011, in which some group discussions with community members were undertaken.

Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 17 Source: Author, 2011

Figure 2: A community garden in RW 2, Kampung Tugu Selatan

Urban Kampungs: the Grey coined by Yiftachel (2009). In such ment of Jakarta has data of the total Settlements of Jakarta spaces, communities are only parti- area and spatial distribution of slums. The kampung is one type of ‘infor- ally included in the urban polity, not In 2008, the Public Housing Agency mal settlement’ built by communities integrated but not eliminated; their of Jakarta, Dinas Perumahan, reported as active urban settlements, like the fa- existence is socio-politically impor- the presence of around five thousand vela in Brazil, barrio in Venezuela, cal- tant but their living characteristics do hectares of slums, forming almost lampa in Chile, katchi abadis in Pakis- not always comply with the idealised 12 per cent of the total housing area tan or colonia proletaria in Mexico (see norms of urban life set by the govern- in the city (Dinas-Perumahan, 2008). Hasan et al., 1999; Ward, 1976). But, ment and the private sector. The ter- ‘Slum’ has been used by the state as there is no single definition of kam- ritories of grey spaces are maintained a term to refer to the physical qua- pung in Jakarta, a city with a popula- ‘from above’ by ‘a “politics of un- lity of settlements that are lagging be- tion of over ten million. In colonial recognition” accompanied by mar- hind in certain health and architectu- times, the indigenous word ‘kampung’ ginalising indifference’ (Ibid., 2009, ral standards, but this categorisation was used to label non-European and pp. 89-92). But these are also spaces does not represent the real characte- non-Chinese settlements. Today, a that are formed ‘from below,’ invol- ristics of a ‘kampung’. There is other kampung is a socio-spatial entity em- ving governance modes that incorpo- data about the spatial distribution of bedding an economic production and rate several non-formal institutions poverty (e.g. Mercy-Corps, 2008), but settlement system that encompasses a for mediation and negotiation (see these also do not explain the characte- broad range of informal income ge- Chatterjee, 2004, pp. 53-78; Simone, ristics of ‘kampung’ in a comprehen- nerating activities. However, it is not 2012). Hence, a kampung is not a pas- sive way. Figure 1 on page 9 shows merely a spatial manifestation of the sive physical container. It is a form of a sketch of kampung spatial distribu- ‘informal economy’. Kampungs are dynamic socio-spatial organization tion within the spatial fragmentation neighbourhoods where blue-collar in which different spatial strategies of Jakarta. workers from the formal sector and from different actors are continuously The labelling of kampungs as grey workers of the informal sector live to- being contested (see Massey, 2005). In settlements in this paper has more gether and their co-existence has been kampungs, social networks of each than a metaphorical value; grey also supporting the economy of the city as actor are not isolated in such localities. describes the bio-physical condition. a whole. Moreover, many small busi- They are linked with wider territorial Kampungs can be termed ‘grey sett- ness activities in kampungs are part of dynamics (see also Van Dyck & Van lements’ for their continuously dete- larger business operations and often den Broeck, 2013). riorating sanitary conditions – lack of the local entrepreneurs are highly de- No one knows (nor may ever know) access to water supply, blocked drai- pendent on bigger economic players. the exact number of people living in nages, unmanaged solid waste and un- Kampung can fall under the ca- kampungs or the total area of kam- treated wastewater – as well as the lack tegorisation of ‘gray spaces,’ a term pungs in Jakarta although the govern- of open green spaces.

18 Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 Source: Author, 2011

Figure 3: A community garden in RW 3, Kampung Tugu Selatan

Community Gardens in Compared to some other kampungs presence of community gardens that Kampung Tugu Selatan in Jakarta, Kampung Tugu Selatan is re- produce various types of herbs, ve- Kampung Tugu Selatan is located latively young. According to one com- getables, fruits and fish for local con- in North Jakarta Municipality, in Tugu munity leader, even in the 1980s, there sumption (see Figure 2). Towards the Selatan Sub-district (or Kelurahan). A were still empty lands in this neigh- end of 2009, the governor of DKI Ja- sub-district is the lowest state adminis- bourhood; in the early 1990's many karta made an official visit to a pro- trative level that consists of two levels households who mostly had lived in gramme called ‘Rumah Sehat’ (Healthy of neighbourhoods units, the larger other parts of Jakarta began to occupy House). When the visiting team passed Rukun Warga (RW), and the smal- this area after purchasing lands from through a vacant plot in RW 2 that had lest one called Rukun Tetangga (RT). the local Betawi families (an interview been used for solid waste dumping, it Tugu Selatan Sub-district consists of with a community leader). The kam- was suggested that this land could be six units of RW, of which five form pung of Tugu Selatan does not have a developed as a community garden. the Kampung Tugu Selatan while one traditional name, which is typical for the Around a year later, the community is part of a large gated housing estate kampungs which began to densify from started constantly mobilising local la- named Kelapa Gading. the 1980s onwards. Hence, communi- bour power to deal with the large vo- The presence of the two neighbour- ties refer to the RW number and the lume of garbage and make space for hood units is legally regulated as they name of the Kelurahan (sub-district). cultivation. However, after several att- have been part of the controlled po- The community in Kampung Tugu empts using simple tools, the works did litical sphere established by the state Selatan suffered from the extreme floo- not bring satisfying results. The com- since the Japanese colonial era (see ding that hit Jakarta in 2002. After being munity members finally decided that Kusno, 2006); these units, together categorised as a ‘slum’ community, the it would require too much time and with sub-district and district, are men- Kampung Tugu Selatan was included in energy to remove all layers of solid tioned in every citizen’s official address. the 2005 to 2008 ‘Program Perbaikan waste; instead, they added a new layer Although their presence is regulated by Kampung Terpadu’ (Integrated Pro- of soil on top of the garbage pile. Work law, RW and RT have a certain degree gram for Kampung Improvement – a on this project began in January 2011 of autonomy and the involvement of variant of the Kampung Improvement and, by the author’s visit in May 2011, community members in their daily ac- Program first introduced in 1969) admi- the land had been turned into a beauti- tivities is voluntary-based (see Dwi- nistered by the Public Housing Agency ful green open space that has also been anto, 2003; Kusno, 2006). How these of North Jakarta Municipality. Many of- used for community gathering. Within neighbourhood units operate depend ficials have confirmed that this neigh- a relatively short-term period, the com- on how the (preceding) socio-political bourhood has been greatly upgraded, munity managed to organise collective configurations have been (trans)for- and has continued improving even af- efforts to develop the gardens. ming at the very local levels (see Dwi- ter the programme was concluded. Apparently it was the crises caused by anto, 2003; Logsdon, 1978). One tangible improvement is the regular flooding in Jakarta that encou-

Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 19 Source: Author, 2011 Figure 4: Green alleys in Tugu Selatan raged the community to address their contributions among themselves and author’s observation, they seem to be solid waste management issues. Using to seek assistance from others to keep quite influential within the local poli- the vacant land for a community gar- pursuing a better living environment. tical constellation. Some of them own den has been effective in preventing Such characteristics have become the rooms that they rent out to factory wor- garbage dumping in Kampung Tugu foundation for what can be called 'soci- kers working in the surrounding indust- Selatan. The community garden mo- ally innovative actions' in development; rial sites. The kampung is dominated by del has been replicated in other units these are actions with an immediate houses with rental rooms. The presence of RW (see Figure 3). RW 2 even has goal of fulfilling the basic needs of lo- of many neighbourhood green spaces another communal garden also crea- cal communities, but also a long-term makes this type of worker housing ap- ted on previously unused land. Other goal of institutional innovation invol- pear more comfortable. Some alleys in activities also address the problems of ving cultural emancipation, improved Kampung Tugu Selatan are also deco- solid waste management, for example social relations and better decision-ma- rated with greeneries (see Figure 4). the project of ‘one composter for every king processes (Moulaert & Nussbau- Apart from the social composition ten houses,’ and some women's groups mer, 2005). The land is actually ow- of the community that allow many which produce crafts from plastic waste. ned privately, and an agreement was collective initiatives from within the Tugu Selatan has been touted as a reached that allowed for its public use. community, on-going environmen- successful example of the most re- While most of the construction materi- tal quality improvement in Kampung cent version of Kampung Improve- als were provided by community mem- Tugu Selatan is also driven by many ment Program (hereafter KIP) in Ja- bers, seeds and young plantations were other joint initiatives from the govern- karta; it is the pride of both the local donated by the national government. ment, private sector and NGOs chan- government and community members. Community members and leaders nelled to Tugu Selatan Sub-district. Nevertheless, there was nothing parti- were highly motivated throughout the The national government has even cularly extraordinary about the four- four-year KIP project, during which acknowledged the kampung's contri- year KIP in Tugu Selatan. In many an organisation called ‘Masyarakat Pe- bution to restoring green spaces to other places, including in Kampung duli Lingkungan’ (hereafter MPL) was the city. Consequently, the initial suc- Kojan where the modular septic tanks formed in the kampung, and later part- cess attracted other initiatives. A pro- were introduced, similar interventions nered the sub-district government on ject funded by a paint company ena- have also been implemented, notably some other development initiatives. bled the community to create murals to build drains and roads, as well as MPL's leader encouraged community along the main alley (see Figure 5), wells to promote artificial groundwa- members to create a common vision and this artistic project has also lifted ter recharge and to reduce surface ru- of their neighbourhoods, defining eco- the pride of the inhabitants. noff. Earlier generations of KIP, no- tourism activities within the kampung. Despite all of these visible improve- tably those carried out from 1969 to Apparently, it is this vision that encou- ments, Kampung Tugu Selatan has no 1979, also delivered this kind of phy- raged community residents to continue proper wastewater management sys- sical development, but various parti- playing an active part in development tem. Moreover, Kampung Tugu Sela- cularities specific to Tugu Selatan led processes. Developing the community tan has to face an additional problem: to on-going development practice.One garden strengthened the feeling of be- drains are often blocked due to, accor- of the local characteristics is a higher longing to a shared community. ding to the community leader, it being social cohesiveness of the community This community includes many pen- located a higher altitude. These neigh- groups in the Kampung Tugu Selatan sioners who actively dedicate themsel- bourhoods are thus at risk of flooding compared with two other kampongs ves to community activities. As former during naturally occuring calamities. in Jakarta as researched by the author blue-collar workers or military person- This is a serious problem requiring during the same period. Community nel, they are the most educated inhabi- a larger-scale approach to water ma- members were motivated to organise tants within their age group. From the nagement that is beyond the capability

20 Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 Source: Author, 2011

Figure 5: Murals along a green alley in Tugu Selatan, panacea for blocked drainages? of the community and the scope of during the development of commu- long-term goals in developing their neighbourhood planning. nity gardens and the process of defi- neighbourhoods. ning 'needs' has accommodated peo- The success of community gardens Cultivating an Active ple aspirations. in Kampung Tugu Selatan not only Citizenship? It is often the case that the govern- lifts the group’s identity and confi- Perhaps the community dynamics ment already set certain forms of in- dence but also the level of ownership. in Kampung Tugu Selatan represent frastructure development, whether It is certainly increasing the bargaining the very basic idea of citizenship as a it provides better pavement, water power of the community over decis- mark of belonging and commitment supply or drainage. Within such top- ion making processes at the metropo- to a specific place (see Desforges et down approach, many urgent needs litan level.The gardens also function as al., 2005). An active meaning of com- according to community members green open space that if replicated in munity is embedded in such concept are often left behind. In the case of other areas would form the green lung of place-based citizenship; commu- the Kampung Tugu Selatan, it was the of the city and improve the spatial qua- nity members are enablers of citizen- community themselves who formu- lity of the city as a whole. Forced evic- ship rights (political, social, and basic lated the needs and assess their capa- tions of kampung communities have needs) while recognising and bearing city. From the problem of solid waste, been going on in Jakarta from time citizens’ responsibilities (see also Hof- creativity has emerged to proceed an to time and this has been going on mann, 2011; Moulaert et al., 2010b). integrated solution at the very local to give more room for private-sector- The concept of an active community scale, to also addresses the problem led spatial development strategies (see rejects the ‘conservative’ definition of of household food resource and the Harjoko, 2009). Like in other contexts ‘community’ as a group based on the lack of open space. within the region (see also for example politics of identity such as religion, Indeed, the meaning of place-based Talocci & Boano, 2015), many commu- ideology, profession or ethnicity (Mou- citizenship should not be reduced in nities performing different forms of laert et al., 2010b). In fact, as shown in such localities. As we have seen above, informalities have become the subjects many case studies, innovative collective there are many problems that need so- of evictions as they live in central areas actions have emerged within socio-cul- lutions on a larger scale which means of the city. Their presence at the heart turally heterogeneous neighbourhoods that such citizenship also needs to be of the city gives proof to the durabi- (‘spatialised urban communities’) and meaningful in advocating local needs lity of different networks of produc- from mechanisms of crisis and reco- at the metropolitan level. The pro- tive-reproductive activities supporting very (Moulaert et al., 2010a; Van Dyck cesses of advocating local problems the economy of the city as a whole & Van den Broeck, 2013). to be part of the planning agenda at (see Simone, 2010; Simone, 2012). While there are limited basic servi- the metropolitan scale also constitute Kampung communities provide cheap ces from the state, different governing the processes to redefine what a kam- housing and services for workers, and practices emerge performing citizen- pung is and in particular to envision often also different domestic helps for ship that has been re-scaled within a the community identity in Kampung the middle class living in the surroun- more local context, allowing the more Tugu Selatan. Certainly many grey in- ding housing estates (see again Figure contemporary conceptualisation of stitutions and procedures within the 1, the spatial distribution of kampungs ‘active citizenship’ in accordance with existing development processes in Ja- in Jakarta among commercial areas and the recent transition in governmen- karta need further clarifications for planned housing estates). The story of tality to give more space to commu- communities to hold commitments the community gardens has lengthe- nity participation (see Desforges et al., internally as well as from district ned the list of contributions from the 2005; Ghose & Pettygrove, 2014). In governments and other stakeholders kampung communities to the city. the Kampung there were certain me- together so that community as groups This article has shown that the idea chanisms to set rights and obligations could reframe their short-term and of place-based citizenship is promising

Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 21 for enabling community participation in Jakarta. This article helps ground Development, 3(1), 40-55. in development, but it remains a great the broad concept of citizenship Kusno, A. (2006). Guardian of Memories: Gardu challenge to create space for trans- within a local context by discussing in Urban Java. Indonesia 81(April), 95-149. formative participation in which citi- the actual meaning of active com- Logsdon, M.G. (1978). Traditional Decision Making zens’ empowerment could take place munity involvement in development. in Urban Neighbourhoods. Indonesia, 26, 95-110. and communities should not be seen What remains important to debate is Massey, D. (2005). For Space. London: SAGE as clients or consumers relying on de- the role of the state for long-term de- Publications Ltd. cisions of powerful others in solving velopment processes and calibrating Mercy-Corps. (2008). Urban Bulletin No. 3. Urban greater environmental problems affec- active community participations in Mapping, Jakarta. Jakarta: Mercy Corps. ting their daily environments (see also larger-scale development initiatives. Moulaert, F., F. Martinelli, E. Swyngedouw and S. Allen et al., 2006; Hickey & Mohan, Gonzales. (2010a). Can Neighbourhoods Save the Ci- ty? Community Development and Social Innovation. 2005). While there are potentials and References London: Routledge: Francis and Taylor. Allen, A., J. Davila and P. Hofmann. (2006). The challenges beyond the Kampung scale, Moulaert, F., F. Martinelli, E. Swyngedouw and S. progressive NGOs and civil society or- peri-urban water poor: citizens or consumers? Envi- ronment and Urbanization, 18(2), 333-351. Gonzales. (2010b). Social Innovation and Commu- ganisations are needed to partner with nity Development: Concepts, Theories and Challenges. the community for enhancing their lo- Chatterjee, P. (2004). The Politics of the Governed. In F. Moulaert, F. Matinelli, E. Swyngedouw and S. Reflections on Popular Politics in Most of the World. cal characteristics while securing their Gonzales (Eds.), Can Neighbourhoods Save the City? New York: Columbia University Press. Community Development and Social Innovation. longer term development goals. Desforges, L., R. Jones and M. Woods. (2005). New London: Routledge: Francis and Taylor Group. Geographies of Citizenship. Citizenship Studies, 9(5), Moulaert, F. and J. Nussbaumer. (2005). Defining Acknowledgement 439-451. the Social Economy and its Governance at the The author thanks Dr. Ramalis So- Dinas-Perumahan. (2008). The Spatial Distribution Neighbourhood Level: Methodological Reflection. ebandi (Ministry of Public Works) and of Slums. Unpublished presentation document. Received Urban Studies, 42(11), 2071-2088. Dr. Teti Argo (Institut Teknologi Ban- during interview 2010. Jakarta: Jakarta Housing Agen- Simone, A. (2010). On Intersections, Anticipations dung) for having made the field work cy (Dinas Perumahan Provinsi DKI Jakarta). and Provisional Publics: Remaking District Life in possible. Dwianto, R.D. (2003). An Existing Form of Urban Jakarta. Urban Geography, 31(3), 285-308. Locality Groups in Jakarta: Reexamining RT/RW for Simone, A. (2012). Securing the Majority: Living the post-New Order Era. Representing Local Places and Conclusion through Uncertainty in Jakarta. International Journal Raising Voices from Below - Japanese Contributions to of Urban and Regional Research, 36(2), 315-335. This research note has presented the History of Geographical Thought 8(August), 41-60 Talocci, G. and C. Boano. (2015). The politics a single case study which provides Ghose, R. and M. Pettygrove. (2014). Urban Com- of urban displacement practices in Phnom Penh. both empirical and conceptual con- munity Gardens as Spaces of Citizenship. Antipode, Reflections from Borei Santepheap Pi and Oudong tributions. It shows the heterogene- 46(4), 1092-1112. Moi. Pacific Geographies, 43 (Jan. / Feb.), 15-20. ous condition of urban Jakarta and Harjoko, T.Y. (2009). Urban Kampung: Its Genesis Van Dyck, B. and P. Van den Broeck. (2013). its spatial fragmentation. Further, it and Transformation into Metropolis, with particular Social innovation: a territorial process. In F. Moulaert, reference to Penggilingan in Jakarta. Saarbrücken: D. MacCallum, A. Mehmood and A. Hamdouch zooms in on the local dynamics of VDM Verlag Dr. Müller. one of its kampungs. As kampungs (Eds.), The International Handbook on Social Hasan, A., M. Younus and S.A. Zaidi. (1999). Innovation: Collective Action, Social Learning and are spread over the metropolitan area, Understanding Karachi: Planning and Reform for the Transdisciplinary Research. Cheltenham: Edward addressing kampungs as units of coll- Future. Karachi: City Press Elgar Publishing, 131-141. ective actions seems to be an effective Hickey, S. and G. Mohan. (2005). Relocating Par- Ward, P.M. (1976). The Squatter Settlement as approach to improve Jakarta's spatial ticipation within a Radical Politics of Development. Slum or Housing Solution: Evidence from Mexico quality as a whole. Situating the kam- Development and Change, 36(2), 237-262. City. Land Economics, 52(3), 330-346. pong within the dynamics of urban Hofmann, P. (2011). Falling through the net: ac- Yiftachel, O. (2009). Theoretical Notes on 'Gray governance opens up scholarly deba- cess to water and sanitation by the peri-urban poor. Cities': the Coming of Urban Apartheid? Planning tes to reflect on issues of citizenship International Journal of Urban Sustainable Theory, 8(1), 88-100.

Corresponding author: Prathiwi [[email protected]] is an Indonesian scholar whose research interests are urban informality, spatial development in transition, post-disaster reconstruction and urban infrastructure development. She obtained her doctoral degree in engineering science from KU Leuven and is a member of the research network of Planning and Development in Faculty of Engineering, KU Leuven. She has built a 10-year career in academic research and development consultancy work.

Book series PAZIFIK FORUM of the Association of Pacific Studies Volume 15

Waibel, M. & H. Hilbert (eds.) (2015) officially endorsed by: TP. Hồ Chí Minh: MEGA City. • Ho Chi Minh City University of Architecture Sách ảnh / Photo Book, 2nd updated edition • University of Social Sciences and Humanities PAZIFIK FORUM, Volume 15 • Department of Construction (DoC) Fine Art Publishing House • Vietnamese-German University (VGU) Hanoi / Vietnam • Southern Institute of Spatial Planning (SISP) 208 pages • Association of Pacific Studies (APSA) ISBN: 978-604-78-2038-2 • Saigoneer

22 Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 Essay Hanoi The City that is Continuously ‘Becoming’

Monique Gross

Hanoi is an incredibly visually stimulating city. Street after street is crammed with more details than a pair of human eyes is capable of registering at one time. Laser printed banners screen the facades of buildings, trees are hung with all sorts of objects, side- walks are covered to the centimeter with food options and vehicles... Everywhere you turn your gaze it is immediately filled. And all the forms, colors, graphics, shift on a daily basis, from the array on the footpath, to the window displays, to the signs advertising merchandise and services.

Drone photo of typical highly-densely built residential neighborhood, Ngoc Ha block looking towards West Lake, Ba Dinh District Photo Credit: Philippe Lê 2014 (excerpt from the photo book "Hà Nội: CAPITAL City".

Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 23 t Bách ệ ng Vi ổ Source: KhSource:

Khổng Việt Bách from series In/exterior 2013 Taking in the visual experience, the In neighborhoods that not so long current director of Institut des Mé- mood, whether at motorbike or bicycle ago were villages linked to the city tiers de la Ville de Hanoi (IMV), writes or walking speed, makes for a visually by dirt roads, it is common to see a about the rambling arrangement of a saturating pleasure. Birdcages, plants, building torn down and a new one city that was once a series of villages laundry hung out on a sunny day, ven- built, all in the course of three to six before they were absorbed by the ever- dors on bicycles or on foot, giải khát months. What is now a brand new ser- extending city in a process of organic (refreshments) stands with an assort- viced apartment or private house was spreading rather than rigid structuring. ment of plastic stools in the shade of three months previously a café spe- The visual contrast of these older sur- a tree or under a found piece of stri- cializing in organic weasel coffee that viving buildings in Hanoi with modern ped tarpaulin propped up with poles. A rented spaces upstairs to freelancers high rises is stunning. different street seems to appear depen- and three to six months before that it Architect turned visual artist Khổng ding on the time of year, the time of was a clothing boutique or a tailor shop. Việt Bách’s photo-series2 captures ‘or- day, the light that day These changes have accelerated since dinary people’ hawking their wares in What is it in the Vietnamese cha- the building boom in the early 2000s. front of private development posters, racter that enables this creative use of In a well-researched article1 mapping present-day reality in front of a distant space and constant renewal? Each ci- the historical development of Hanoi, dream3, a juxtaposition at once amu- tizen, inhabitant of the city, seems to Emmanuel Cerise, an architect and the sing and heart-wrenching. have claimed the space in front of their residence or work place or the place where they are sitting at that moment, creating a fluidity between the private and public, inside and outside, perpetu- ally sharing with the community. A slight deviation from the main road leads to the tangle of alleys ma- king up the authentic heart of the city. The inner streets of many neighbor- hoods appear to have five "seasons" each day, which correspond to the five ‘meals’ being sold. In the morning the rice cake seller and pineapple seller pull up their bicycles and squat beside their baskets waiting patiently for customers. Later on a woman carts in fixings, bowls and stools and serves chicken soup. She is replaced in the afternoon by a man selling buns, followed by a duck and noodle seller later in the evening. All on the same two meters of walkway. The effervescent dynamism of Ha- Source: Monique Gross 2015 noi extends to the ‘previously’ factor. Tây Sơn Road

20 Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 t Bách ệ ng Vi ổ Source: KhSource:

Khổng Việt Bách from series In/exterior 2013 In a city that is vigorously in deve- screen a visual disarray4. Five meters When bulldozers and laborers ex- lopment, the layout of the roads often high, and 5 to 10 meters wide, these im- pose the second layer of the densely undergoes some fundamental shape- peccable photographs of the Temple packed street block new, if epheme- shifting: a road clogged with traffic of Literature, the One Pillar Pagoda ral, opportunities are created for those can become a wide thoroughfare two and the Imperial City, were meant to previously hidden in the labyrinth of seasons later, the change coming at the impart feelings of national pride, reve- streets. A gutted building with a torn cost of a neighborhood that included rence for the past and the promise of off façade could become a pop-up ancient houses and a wet market that an iconic future. But the posters were motorbike repair and service shop. In were on the itinerary of some insider still too small to screen what was go- the rubble from the demolished buil- tour groups. Adaptability, or persis- ing on behind, namely the tear-down dings is an opportunity for tea sellers tence, characterizes the Vietnamese of the buildings lining these streets and birdcage merchants to trolley over spirit. to make way for the development of their set-up and make a little cash from During the roadway modification a smoother traffic artery which integ- the passers-by, despite the dust and de- the city authorities installed a several rated with public transportation lines, bris from the jack-hammers. large posters of Hanoi’s landmark mo- and the iconic symbols appeared like The elements that make Hanoi so vi- numents along a stretch of road being a comical gesture that made me blush sually alluring constitute an un-ignora- altered, a set of visual focal points to with embarrassment. ble articulation by its citizens proclai- ming their existence and expressing their own style. What some look upon as bird-cage buildings reflect the needs, and- me ans, of the residents. Add-on exten- sions not designed as part of the ori- ginal plan (and maybe not considered supportable by the original structure) make us a little suspicious that they were built surreptitiously and in flag- rant disregard for building codes. Ste- phanie Geertman, an independent ur- ban researcher who has lived in Hanoi for many years, has been investigating this question and explains5 that what appears to be ‘informal’ does not ne- cessarily mean ‘illegal.’ It also doesn’t mean that it works from the top down. Residents of Khu tập thể (KTT – coll- ective housing), initially highly formal structures set in place by the former socialist city planning practices of the government, evolved their spaces over Source: Monique Gross 2015 Tây Sơn Road time into what now appears to be ‘in-

Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 25 ates it with a sort of natural selection where certain hybrids create surprising volumes, spaces and forms that would not have been thought up or desig- ned by an architectural firm or master plan committee whose goals and aims would be motivated by the same needs as those who already live and/or work in the setting and experience the chain of events motivating and generating the accidental innovations. Hanoi will hopefully never become a tidy, ordered and blandly Interna- tional city. The sparks of brilliance that flicker amidst the seeming visual chaos are exciting and inspiring. The embarrassing attempts at poetic inflec- tion seem as relevant as the truly poe- tic and graceful moments. As it evol- ves, Hanoi would gain an advantage by recognizing the immense value of the historical assets that form its heritage.

Endnotes Source: Michael Waibel 2014 1 Cerise, Emmanuel “Le rapport entre ville Hanoi's architectural heritage in a state of neglect (excerpts from et villages à Hanoi à travers les plans histo- the photo book "Hà Nội: CAPITAL City". riques ou le plan comme outil de production formal’ (but now largely legal) buil- phology of urban spaces and develop- de paysages urbains”, in : les Carnets du paysage dings that expose the individual tas- ment. This direct participation impac- n°20 « Cartographies », Editions Actes Sud et tes of the residents who, after 1986, ting public space is fascinating in the l’Ecole Nationale Supérieure du Paysage, Ver- where able to buy their flats from state visual raucousness that results. sailles, pp.: 116, 133, 2010. and in this new era are a visual symbol Architectural heritage is under-va- 2 Khổng Việt Bách from the series In/exte- for residents that have found ameans lued in Hanoi, a city that is pre-occup- rior presented in Autopsy of Days, group in their building practices to operate ied with ‘catching up.’ However, what exhibition at Goethe-Institut, Hanoi, Spring autonomous of the state and its ins- may appear as a jagged discontinuity 2013. titutions. These residential ‘quarters’ from one architectural value to the 3 Nick Davies, "Vietnam 40 years on: how have become ‘reformalized,’ as resi- next actually articulates or develops a communist victory gave way to capitalist dents re-adapt to formal rules, nego- out of fluctuating in values and allian- corruption," The Guardian, 22, April 2015, tiating with formal government repre- ces7. The problem of maintaining an http://www.theguardian.com/news/2015/ sentatives in the form of a mediator identity while a city, especially a capital, apr/22/vietnam-40-years-on-how-commu- official, who also mediates to resolve develops isn’t unique to Hanoi. Most nist-victory-gave-way-to-capitalist-corruption conflicts. This neighborhood process developing cities have to deal with this 4 Photo by Monique Gross, Hanoi, March where a tổ dân phó, a residential or- issue in some form. But Hanoi’s desire 2015 ganization representative, and smal- to be modern unfortunately appears 5 Geertman, Stephanie, Doctoral thesis “The ler unit of governance for the 50-60 to be equated with building new high- self-organizing city in Vietnam; process of households making up a commune, rises at the expense of historical assets. change and transformation in housing in Ha- has its roots in the former village com- Historical assets are left to rot, or are noi,” Eindhoven University, The Netherlands, munities. Many adaptations are tolera- torn down, and replaced with atro- April 2007. ted and add to Hanoi’s visual flavor. cious monstrosities styled in a pastiche 6 Phạm Thái Sơn, Doctoral thesis « Morpho- Pham Thai Son, an architect and of archaic European grandeur. And logie urbaine, dispositifs techniques et pra- university professor, painstakingly in- yet in the smaller spaces of the nar- tiques sociales cas des quartiers de ruelles terviewed and analyzed6 the social row alley neighborhoods something hanoiens, » l’Institut National des Sciences practices of inhabitants who apply else is going on which Philippe Lê, an Appliquées de Lyon, 2010. what he refers to as ‘alternatives’ to architect who lived for four years in 7 Logan, William S. Biography of a City. Univer- technical options and social practices Hanoi, observes8 as the crystallization sity of Washington Press, 2000. and described the effects on the mor- of social /societal relations. He associ- 8 Personal interview, Hanoi, February 2015.

Monique Gross [[email protected]] made her way to Hanoi via Los Angeles, California, where she grew up, then San Francisco where she studied art history followed by Iowa City where she earned a Master’s degree in Information Science before moving to Paris, France to work in the cultural sector. Currently she lives with her husband and two sons in Abu Dhabi, UAE. She contributed an essay to the recently published photo book "Hà Nội: CAPITAL City".

26 Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 Essay

Beijing The Grey Capital

Britta Schmitz

I lived in Beijing for nearly 8 years – from 2007 to the end of 2014. At first I did not like this city. The story of me and Beijing did not start with “love at first sight.” But with the dynamic developments in the course of the preparation for the Olympic Summer Games 2008, the “fear of losing the old Beijing” and the revitalization of the old hutong-quarters I became more and more fond of the Chinese capital and now call it my second home town.

Modern Beijing: The Galaxy SOHO building along the East 2nd Ring Road

Picture source: Stefan Larsson

Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 27 The first time I travelled to Beijing ment right next to Dongzhimen, in the Bold new buildings in bright colours was 1998 and I don't remember much center of Beijing. The neighbourhood and futuristic shapes appeared – and of it. What I do remember is that it consisted mostly of uninspiring apart- immediately got cheeky nicknames by was one of those incredibly hot and ment blocks from the 1970s and 1980s the Beijing locals. There is the Olym- humid summer days in China's capi- and if they were not painted grey from pic stadium - the “bird's nest” illumi- tal. My friends and I were visiting the the very first, then the dust and pol- nated in bright red during nighttime, Forbidden City – sweating and trot- lution from coal heating, the millions and just next to it the “water cube” ting from one stone-paved courtyard of cars and the Eurasian steppe would the National Aquatics Center in shiny to the next. At that moment this ma- cover them completely and give them blue. Then you have the National Cen- gnificent monument of Chinese- ar a distinct ashen tone. One of Beijing's ter of Performing Arts (“巨蛋 = the chitecture seemed to me like a never hutong quarters was just around the giant egg”), the China Central Televi- ending row of stones and tiles. It to- corner. But while I was interested in sion headquarters (thanks to its extra- tally eluded me that the Forbidden the city's history, I failed to see the ordinary shape often referred to as “大 City was actually called “the purple beauty of these traditional alleys. At 裤衩 = the big pants”), as well as all the forbidden city” in Chinese or that its that time the majority of the traditio- “SOHO” real estate projects, many of walls and doors were painted red, not nal courtyards were in a state of dis- them with a visionary design, and all even to mention the yellow-glazed repair and the originally spacious ho- over the city you can now find scores roof tiles. What left an imprint in my mes were subdivided and disfigured by of ‘innovative’ shopping malls like brain was the grey colour of those informal construction and tacked on Sanlitun village (the term “innovative” millions of paving stones, and then additions. only referring to the design - the retail outside of the palace there was even The following year brought the Sum- chains inside those shiny cathedrals of more grey: the roads, the asphalt and mer Olympics to the Chinese capital consumption are the same as every- the concrete walls of thousands and and with it came changes over chan- where else in the developed world). thousands of apartment blocks. And ges in Beijing's cityscape: A brand-new Suddenly nothing seemed to be im- last but not least the overwhelming airport terminal designed by Norman possible regarding the shape, colour grey of Beijing's hutongs and their Foster, the opening of a new high- and structure of the new Beijing land- maze of endless brick walls. Beijing speed railway station, the doubling of marks. But while the architecture of and me - this was not love at first sight. subway lines and its capacity, the ope- the new Beijing got more and more And whenever I was asked about my ning of uncountable brand-new five adventurous, the soul – the essence thoughts about China’s capital after star hotels, shopping malls, office tow- of Beijing being Beijing – was still to this trip, my answer would be “it see- ers and much more. But the city chan- be found in the hutongs. And maybe med so very grey to me.” ged even on a very small level – someti- it was the rapid speed of Beijing's It was not until autumn 2007 that mes overnight. I remember waking up modernization and the fear of lo- I actually moved to Beijing. My first one morning and looking out of my sing the old Beijing, which made me months in the capital were the win- window onto a park, which literally had and others long for the simple, more ter ones. Gone were the green leaves just popped out of the ground. Cons- “traditional” things. We were more and summer flowers and most of the truction workers had rolled out lawn- and more looking for the hard to de- days the sky had the impenetrable, dull mats and transplanted full-grown trees. scribe “Beijing-feeling” with its make- colour of lead. I moved into an apart- All of this happened literally overnight. shift-barbeque grills selling the famous

Grey Beijing: Traffic along 2nd Ring Road Source: Stefan Larsson

2824 Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 “Chuanr” (串 = meat skewers), the dis- the choir, singing love songs in Rus- are often a mere nuisance. During the tinct sound of the local language “Bei- sian every night at eight or the group recent months, domestic and foreign jinghua” (北京话) with its r-coloured of grandfathers playing Chinese chess newspapers and websites reported re- vowels. Men walking around in the under some trees. peatedly about protests against ama- hot summer months wearing muscle But it does not need to be a park, re- teur dance groups in Chinese cities. tank shirts half rolled up exposing ally. Any open (or quasi-open) space On the one hand there are the groups their bellies, groups of old aunties sin- would do. There was a time, when my of mostly retired, elderly folk with ging and dancing in the evening hours bus to work would pass a certain traf- a lot of time but too little money to , stacks of cabbage piled up in front fic island at the second ring road and spend it in fancy indoor sport facili- of those typical Beijing brick walls. All every morning at seven there was a ties; their values mostly shaped by the those are things we long-term foreig- man standing there in the midst of this collective ideals of the Mao-era. On ners in Beijing would describe as “typi- six-lane-road practicing his trumpet. the other hand you have the younger, cal Beijing”. With this in mind the Bei- Just in front of the Beijing Worker's hard-working or studying city-dwellers, jing-grey suddenly seemed to be like a Stadium is the meeting point for a who grew up with more individualistic canvas or the perfect backdrop for the group of dance buffs, who practice ideas and a sense of personal space. To colourful scenes of everyday life in the their ballrooms moves several times a put it bluntly: the conflict of residents capital. week. One night I was standing right versus dancing aunties can be seen as Alleys, pavements, parks and other next to them, waiting to flag down a a clash of generations, with China’s public or semi-public spaces are the taxi, when one of them approached generational cohorts comprising only places where the better part of the me. He introduced himself as Lao 10-15 years and each of them showing actual life of many Beijingers takes Chen and then asked me if I would huge differences in regards to upbrin- place. And there are thousands and not like to join. His female dance part- ging, opinions, values. thousands of such places for every- ner had not showed up that night. I de- The growing complaints about noise one in Beijing. Go to any Beijing park clined politely, but this example shows pollution even led the Communist in the early morning or evening hours that it is easy to become part of one Party to action. Plans were voiced in and you will find people enjoying all of the groups and join their activities. March 2015 for restricted dance times kinds of sports, hobbies and entertain- After all, everything is taking place in and a stricter control of the volume in ment. A Beijing park, and the people, public and most of it is for free. parks and open-spaces. "Square-dan- who meet there, has something to of- But while the open-air activities are cing represents the collective aspect of fer everyone. Just have a look around for many Beijingers a much-loved part Chinese culture, but now it seems that and you will see Mrs. Xu’s group of fit- of their daily routine and a way to the overenthusiasm of participants ness enthusiasts, practicing Taiji every connect to each other, there are others has dealt it a harmful blow with dispu- day at the crack of dawn. Or Uncle who see them as annoying and back- tes over noise and venues. So we have Chen, who will stand somewhere in a ward. For many white-collar Chinese to guide it with national standards and quiet corner by himself, writing Chi- the groups of middle-aged “damas” (= regulations," Liu Guoyong, chief of nese calligraphy with a gigantic paint- 大妈, literally meaning “big mamas”) the General Administration of Sport brush dipped in water directly on the dancing their way through Gangnam- of China's mass fitness department pavement - no need for a desk, ink or Style or Michael-Jackson-songs co- said to China Daily (“Time for square- paper. And of course you will not miss ming from homemade sound systems, dancing to face the music” by Sun

Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 29 Source: Stefan Larsson (left and middle pic); Sanna Kallioniemi (pic on the right side) Traditional Beijing Xiaochen, China Daily, 24.03.2015). Ac- as “the typical China fog”. People star- – comfort objects for the uprooted Chi- cording to the newspaper China Daily, ted discussing the unhealthy air condi- nese youth. But one also has to admit the government has even ordered a pa- tions with their friends, neighbours and the downsides of this rapid hutong- nel of experts to work out unified cho- coworkers. Even for the government, it boom which are of course the over- reographies for the dancing aunties. became more and more difficult to pu- commercialization of traditional neigh- But will this stop the “damas” or blicly deny the seriousness of the situa- bourhoods, exploding real estate prices anyone else from their open-air acti- tion. People compared their memories in the old town as well as the tearing vities? No, I think they will continue of clean air during the Olympics with down and rebuilding of old structures, dancing wherever and whenever they their new reality of near-daily smog. and a decrease of community feeling. want. During all my years in Beijing, The American embassy installed an So, what is it that I am missing about I have seen a lot of political actions air quality-monitoring device and Beijing after I left last year? First of all against many of the Beijingers’ fa- began tweeting about pollution’s se- the food – and I am sure every Chi- vorite outdoor activities: The bans verity, but the official measurements nese living abroad will agree with me against BBQs, kebab-stalls and street of the Chinese Ministry of Environ- on this. But it is not only the food foot hawkers? Not effective at all. The mental Protection (the former State itself, it is the many different possi- standardization of breakfast stands? Environmental Protection Adminis- bilities of eating and drinking out in Barely a lukewarm success. And even tration, SEPA) often showed diffe- Beijing – from fancy restaurants to the “chengguan” (represents of the rent, lower levels. In 2010 it became sitting on tiny folding chairs next to a local law enforcement agency infa- official that the capital’s air pollution busy street drinking local Yanjing-beer mous for their aggressive behavior) levels were “crazy bad” when the pol- and eating donkey burgers. To put it can’t stop people from selling eve- lution exceeded the embassy’s index. more generally, I miss the stark con- rything from clothing to calligraphies Today, most Beijingers start their day trasts of tradition and modernity, ra- on Beijing’s streets. checking special apps on their smart pid development and down-to-earth Even the extreme smog in the last phones to see if they have to deal with daily life, high tech and history. These years did not stop a lot of Beijingers another “airpocalypse”, forcing them contrasts and the dynamics stemming from living parts of their lives outside. to wear their face masks or if they can from Beijing being one of the biggest Sadly, the smog stands for another kind enjoy one of the not too many “blue cities in the world make the life there of grey dominating the Chinese capi- sky days.” so exciting and also challenging. I am tal. While the government succeeded Smog and traffic situation aside, I convinced that one can only survive in to drastically reduce the pollution du- fell more and more for the charm of China’s capital with a lot of flexibility ring the time of the Olympic Summer Beijing. With the ever increasing mo- and optimism - the two character traits Games by closing factories and coal- dernization, I began longing and loo- I love and admire most in the typical fired power plants, introducing strict king for this special and hard-to-de- Beijing inhabitant. driving bans and exchanging old buses scribe “hutong feeling,” and I was not Looking back on my first impres- against more environmentally-friendly alone: Suddenly more and more Chi- sion of Beijing being the big grey city, ones, the pollution returned soon af- nese youngsters started to fall for the I can see now that the essence of what ter the games ended. Since 2009 the charm of Beijing's old town. What was I miss from Beijing – the “soul of Bei- air quality in Beijing and whole Nort- once regarded as backwards became jing” – is to be found in the hutongs hern China started to considerably de- trendy. Small cafes styled in cozy retro and in between their grey walls. And if teriorate again and pollution became designs popped up in the old parts of I now call Beijing the grey capital, then an everyday topic of conversation. In town. Young owners opened new little I say it with affection, because I know the years before the Olympics talking shops in the courtyards – selling tea, now that this is an elegant grey, which about air pollution had been a kind of art, handicrafts, stationery or just nos- helps us to see the savvy in the ordi- taboo – the smog being euphemized talgic items from 1950s and 60s China nary and mundane.

Britta Schmitz [[email protected]] studied Modern China Studies at the University of Cologne, Germany and Chinese language and culture at Nankai University, China. She knows China from many long-term stays since 1998. From 2007 to end of 2014 Britta lived in Beijing and worked for the Konrad Adenauer Foundation and the Sino German Center for Research Promotion.

30 Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 40 Years after the end of the Vietnam War

Interview with historian Andreas Margara Andreas Magara at Điện Biên Phủ, 2014

The 30th of April marked the 40th nal tourism in the 1990s, young peo- cide after the war. The lack of southern anniversary of the fall / liberation of ple look into the future with confi- representatives, who might be respon- Saigon which was the end of what we dence. They live by the motto “song sible spokespersons for the concerns call the Vietnam War, the longest mi- voi” which means live for today. The of the South, makes it hard to enable litary conflict in the 20th century and hardships of the past and the elder prolific negotiations between the dif- the first military defeat of the U.S. How generation’s sorrows of war are often ferent parties. has this been celebrated in Vietnam? left behind on the way to self-fulfil- The relationship between the people Contrary to the western perspective ment in the new consumerist society of the North and the South is difficult. where April 30th is commonly consi- of Vietnam. Both sides have very different mentali- dered to be the date marking the Fall Some of the historical sites of the ties. After the reunification, prejudices of Saigon, Vietnam officially comme- war have become profitable tourist and resentments predominated – simi- morates a day of victory in the defeat attractions today. There, the war is lar as in Germany after the fall of the of the biggest military superpower in nothing more than a commercial issue. Berlin Wall. Germans of two different the world: the U.S. Army. At the famous Cu Chi tunnels near Ho political systems also had to learn to This year, the 40th anniversary of Chi Minh City, for example, Vietna- grow together, however the GDR and the triumph has been celebrated with mese tourist agencies sell real life war FRG never stood against each other in grand military parades and traditional experiences to westerners. For a few an armed conflict. performances in Saigon, the city that U.S. Dollars, visitors can shoot AK-47 In some way the Doi Moi reforms, formally changed its name to Ho Chi and dress as Vietcong guerrillas during which combine parts of the free mar- Minh City after the reunification of guided tours. As souvenirs, the visitors ket system with the leadership claim of Vietnam in 1976. can keep the bullet casings. the communist party, can be seen as a In the presence of numerous govern- The legacy of the war however is progress in rapprochement of North ment representatives, members of the still present as the U.S. left Vietnam and South. communist party of Vietnam and war in a state of physical ruin. Roads, rails veterans, more than 6,000 people took and bridges were devastated by B-52 Bibliographical Details part in the historical re-enactment of bombings. In rural areas mostly child- Margara, Andreas: Der Amerikanische Krieg. Er- the arrival of the northern troops and ren still suffer from unexploded explo- innerungskultur in Vietnam. Berlin: Regiospectra the liberation of the city in 1975. For sives. During the war, several million Verlag 2012. ISBN: 978-3-940132-48-2 the victory festivities, the whole city hectares of forest had been stripped was blanketed in red banners and the of life by high explosives and toxic flags of the communist party. chemicals such as Agent Orange and Vietnam is a very young country. Agent Purple. The long-term impact Most Vietnamese living today in Vi- of herbicidal warfare continues to ef- etnam were born after the end of the fect health and ecology. Inevitably, the war. How is this young generation young generation still has to deal with dealing with the memory of war? the legacy of war. Today, more than two-thirds of The Vietnam War was also a civil Vietnam’s young population has been war to some extent. Have there been born after 1975 and does not have vi- efforts made to reconcile the different vid memories of the American War. parties? I am thinking of the political Although Ho Chi Minh still is res- efforts to reconcile the French and pected as the father of an indepen- the Germans after WW II. How are dent Vietnam and is popular among the relations between the people in the the young generation, successful busi- South and the people in the North to- nessmen like Bill Gates are more often day, in general? considered as role models. One of the key problems of re- Since the economic renovation Doi conciliation is that most of the high- Moi in 1986 and the first efforts to ranking South Vietnamese officials open up the country for internatio- escaped to the U.S. or committed sui-

Andreas Margara [[email protected]] is a historian with a main focus on Southeast Asia. He visited various countries in that region and spent several months in Hanoi, Vietnam. There, the APSA member carried out field research for his monograph „Der Amerikanische Krieg: Erinnerungskultur in Vietnam“ (The American War: Culture of memory in Vietnam) in which he analyses the often neglected Vietnamese perspective on the war.

Pacific Geographies #44 • July/August 2015 31 New Publication: Waibel, M. (ed.) (2015) Hà Nội: CAPITAL City. Sách ảnh / Fotobuch / Photo Book. Fine Art Publishing House, Vietnam, 308 p.

Excerpt from greeting of the Director of Goethe-Institut Vietnam, Dr. Almuth Meyer-Zollitsch: Institutional Hanoi, city of the rising dragon, has a history stretching back for a thousand years. All significant turning points Partner in Vietnam’s history have left their mark on the city. We invite you to go on fascinating excursions through Hanoi that will show you the city from a variety of perspectives - from bird’s eye views to portraits of its inhabitants. The picture of the city of Hanoi is multi-facetted and pulsing with vibrant energy - and on the move into the next thousand years. Officially endorsed by: Vietnam Urban Development Agency (VUDA) at the National Ministry of Construction (MoC), Hanoi Urban Planning Institute (HUPI), Hanoi University of Architecture (HAU), Institute of Tropical Architecture (ITA-HAU), Vietnamese German University (VGU), Institut des Métiers de la Ville de Hanoi (IMV), HanoiKultour Co., Ltd, Association of Pacific Studies e.V. (APSA)

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