29/10/2013 - Conference - Global Chalenges and Local Reactions in Two Young Democracies: The Czech Republic and South Africa Revisited

CONFERENCE DATE AND VENUE:

29 October 2013, 9 a.m.,
Metropolitan University Prague, Žižkov, Prokopova 16, Prague 3, Czech Republic

WORKING LANGUAGE: English

Aims of the conference:

“Global challenges and local reactions in two young democracies: the Czech Republic and South Africa revisited” aims to compare the socio-political, cultural and sociolinguistic developments of two “young” democratic societies, the South African post-apartheid state and the post-socialist Czech Republic. Although these two countries vary greatly, there are also some commonalities among Czech and South African society. In both countries, the year 1989 marks the termination of oppressive systems that were characterized by the lack of freedom and democracy, and atrocious crimes against humanity. The conference shall examine contemporary developments against the background of globalization. Diverse and complex challenges such as the upsurge of ethnicity, discourses of nationalism, linguistic hegemony, social stratification, political culture, power dynamics, and integration into bigger entities such as the European or African Union, etc. rank among them.

Conference programme:

The conference will offer reflections on South African IR and the challenges of decolonial thinking, as well as papers examining post-transition experience of both the Czech Republic and South Africa. Anthropological perspectives on the creation of new national identities: the South African and Czech experience will be presented as well as contributions that focus on new political culture in both countries. Representation of women in contemporary postcolonial women’s writing from Czech Republic and South Africa will add another scholarly perspective, as well as papers looking at the position of English and other languages at Czech and South African universities from the perspective of language management theory. Renowned scholars from South Africa and the Czech Republic, as well as junior researchers from different fields of interest will participate.

Programme

Registration at http://registrace.mup.cz

Inquiries:

Inquiries regarding the conference shall be directed at: horakova@mup.cz

On behalf of the scientific committee,

doc. PaedDr. Hana Horáková, Ph.D.
Department of International Relations and European Studies
Metropolitan University Prague