SCMP News: October 2006
- Alec Morgan's "Hunt Angels" has won the FCCA Awards
- ARC Fellowships Information Session - Friday 17th November, 2006
- The Goddess in Tamil Cinema
- SCMP Alumni Evening at 27th October, 2006
- SCMP Staff Promotion-2007
- Alec Morgan's "Hunt Angels" has been nominated for AFI Awards
- 'New Horizons in Social Inclusion' - CRSI postgraduate workshop
- Histories on Wednesday with John Hughes
- Philosophy Seminar 31st October
- 2006 SOCIOLOGY COLLOQUIUM-Thursday 19th October
- Anthropology Colloquium 12th October
- Philosophy Seminar 24th October
- 2006 SOCIOLOGY COLLOQUIUM-Thursday 26th October
- ARC Fellowships Information Session - Friday 17th November, 2006
'New Horizons in Social Inclusion'- CRSI postgraduate workshop
This is an opportunity to hear about what others are researching, share ideas, encourage your peers and strengthen networks.
When: This Friday 6 October 2006, 9:30am-3:30pm
Where: Museum of Ancient Cultures, 3rd Floor, X5B, Macquarie University
What: Presenters will speak for 20 minutes and there will be opportunities for questions (see program
attached)
RSVP: Please let Sheila Watkins know if you would like to attend by emailing Sheila.Watkins@scmp.mq.edu.au
Click here to download the workshop's time schedule
Histories on Wednesday with John Hughes
"Putting History on Film: The Archive Project."
Time: 18th October 12-1.15pm
Location: W6A 127
ALL WELCOME
To see more events offered by SCMP's Media department please click here
2006 SOCIOLOGY COLLOQUIUM-Thursday 19th October
Date: THURSDAY 19TH OCTOBER
Time: 3-5pm
Location: ROOM 501 C3B
MACQUARIE UNIVERSITY
To see rest of the Seminar Series schedule for semester 2, 2006 offered by SCMP's Sociology department please click here
Anthropology Colloquium 12th October
The colloquium this week will be presented by Dr Alberto Gomes of Latrobe university and is entitled: "Cultural Policies, Superlative Syndrome, and Neo-Liberalism in Malaysia"
Location: C3A 630
Time: 10.30am-12.30pm
All welcome.
To see rest of the Colloquium Series schedule for semester 2, 2006 offered by SCMP's Anthropology department please click here
Philosophy Seminar 24th October
PROF. JENNAN ISMAEL (Arizona, Sydney) will
present a paper entitled
'Am I Really Here?'
Location: Room W6A 107
To see rest of the Seminar Series schedule for semester 2, 2006 offered by SCMP's Philosophy department please click here
2006 SOCIOLOGY COLLOQUIUM-Thursday 26th October
Topic: Seeing through the Mountain: towards a visual ethnography of Carrara quarries
Speaker: Dr.Alison Leitch, Sociology, Macquarie University
Date: THURSDAY 26TH OCTOBERTime: 3-5pm
Location: ROOM 501 C3B
MACQUARIE UNIVERSITY
To see rest of the Seminar Series schedule for semester 2, 2006 offered by SCMP's Sociology department please click here
Alec Morgan's "Hunt Angels" has been nominated for AFI Awards
Media Lecturer Alec Morgan's wonderful film "Hunt Angels" has been nominated for four AFI Awards:
AFI AWARD FOR BEST DOCUMENTARY
AFI AWARD FOR BEST DIRECTION IN A DOCUMENTARY
AFI AWARD FOR BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY IN A DOCUMENTARY
AFI VISUAL EFFECTS AWARD
In addition to its four AFI nominations, "Hunt Angels" has been nominated for Best Feature Documentary at the Film Critics Circle of Australia Awards - to be announced this Saturday (28/10/2006) night in Melbourne.
Alec Morgan's "Hunt Angels" has won the FCCA Awards
Alec Morgan's film "Hunt Angels" won the Film Critics
Circle of Australia (FCCA) award for Best Australian Feature Documentary.
The awards were held on Saturday night (28/10/2006).
SCMP Alumni Evening at 27th October, 2006
Date: 27th October, 2006 Time: 6p.m - 9p.m Venue: E11A Function Room Invitation FlyerPhilosophy Seminar 31st October
Date & time: Tuesday OCTOBER 31, 11a.m-1p.m
Location: W6A-107
DR. SARA SORIAL (Macquarie) will present a paper entitled 'Sedition, freedom of speech and speech act theory"
Abstract
Since September 11 2001, the Australian Federal Government has passed a
series anti-terror legislation, including the ASIO Amendment (Terrorism) Act
2003 (Cth), the Criminal Code Amendment (Hamas and Lashkar-e-Tayyiba) Act,
and more recently, the comprehensive Anti-Terror Act 2005. This latest
addition to the legislative package includes an expansion of sedition laws.
The law of sedition prohibits speech or writing that is intended to lead to
violent conduct, or to 'incite' violence against and 'hatred' of the elected
government. The focus here is on the regulation of words spoken or written
rather than the act of violence or civil disobedience. Given that sedition
presents limitations and prohibitions against freedom of speech - widely
recognised as one of the most fundamental freedoms of liberal democratic
societies - the law of sedition presents a series of problems in the context
of western liberal democracies.
In this paper, I make three interrelated arguments. The first is that freedom of speech is a necessary condition of democratic society, and the attempt to limit it an erosion of democratic principles. Second, that the ambiguity in which sedition laws are framed and the way in which they have been used by the courts, leave it unclear whether the issue with such speech is that the speech itself performs acts of civil disobedience, or that it is likely to incite or provoke civil disobedience. Using Austin's theory of 'speech acts' I suggest that neither of these possible interpretations of sedition laws justifies them. If the concern is that the words themselves perform acts of civil disobedience on the basis that there is no clear demarcation between speech and action, as the courts have suggested, then two criteria must be met, according to speech act theory. Firstly, there has to be an appropriate context or a situational context, and secondly, an actual act has to take place. Given that sedition laws cannot meet either of these objectives, they cannot be defended on the argument that there is no clear separation between speech and action. The second possibility - that the words will incite civil disobedience - is also not sufficient to justify sedition offences. To ensure that these laws are not subject to abuse, specific criteria must be met, or as the US Supreme Court has held, the speech must satisfy the test of 'direct incitement.' That is, the speech inciting violence must be accompanied by other criminal offences against property or persons. Finally, I suggest that while freedom of speech is not an unqualified right, and that it can be circumscribed in particular circumstances, the sedition laws in their current form suggest that the government is more concerned with prosecuting unpopular political opinion rather than criminal conduct or civil disobedience and as such, present problematic limitations to freedom of speech.
SCMP Staff Promotion-2007
The following academic staff in SCMP were successful in their applications for promotion from Jan 1, 07.
ANTHROPOLOGY
Christopher Lyttleton
Alexander Edmonds
Pal Nyiri
CCS
Nicole Anderson
Goldie Osuri
Nikki Sullivan
MEDIA
Graham Meikle
PHILOSOPHY
Mianna Lotz
Jean-Philippe Deranty
SOCIOLOGY
Sean Scalmer
Pauline Johnson
The Goddess in Tamil Cinema
A compilation of film clips of Hindu goddesses in Tamil cinema.
Researched and produced by Kalpana Ram (Anthropology) and Selvaraj Velayutham (CRSI)
Now screening at the exhibition:
Location: GODDESS DIVINE ENERGY
Art Gallery of New South Wales
Date: 13 October 06 - 28 January 07
Time: Daily 12-1pm, 3-5pm,
Wednesdays 5.30-8.30pm
ARC Fellowships Information Session - Friday 17th November, 2006
ARC Discovery grants for funding commencing 2008 close February 2007. The Division of Society,
Culture, Media and Philosophy at Macquarie University is keen to encourage suitable applicants to apply
for a fellowship through the Division.
Invitation flyer