IPSA RCSCD 2020 WEBINAR 1
First online webinar organized by
International Political Science Association
Research Committee on Security, Conflict and Democratization (RC44)
23 June 2020, Tuesday, UTC 8:00 AM
(look for local times below)
New Threat and Risks:
The silent global calamity and securitization of COVID-19
Photo from webinar
Concept
As we watch the devastating impact of COVID-19 in horror, there are also unfolding developments such as the securitization of the pandemic that deserve to be understood as they also impact on people’s wellbeing and security on a daily basis. The pandemic is seen as the biggest security threat in the world today and some have styled the response as a “declaration of war” both in a symbolic and practical sense. Security forces are mobilized, borders are closed, citizen surveillance is increased and national emergency becomes the new normal. These have trickled down to the community sphere where daily culture has also been securitized as people avoid each other as “threats” and tare forced into lockdown in their own homes.
Old forms of prejudices have been invoked as racial scapegoating increases and new battles lines are drawn. The securitization of language through the use of terms like “war”, “wartime,” “battle,” “enemy,” “attack” and “defense,” reinforces the psychological atmosphere for military-type operations. The near-collapse of the neoliberal corporate establishment has given the state absolute control of economies as the last bastion of societal power. This is reinforced by the emergency laws which give almost unlimited powers to police and military and some presidents and prime ministers have even imagined themselves as “wartime” leaders. In many cases, the state’s authoritarian predilections and power re-centralization have been argued as justifications to flatten the curve. The global society has retreated into a siege mentality as if under assault by hostile forces.
Securitization has led to increased authoritarianism and invoked coercive measures in the name of wellbeing and stability. These securitized policies are unprecedented and are in response to the unfolding global calamities. The effects of COVID-19 are unimaginable with over a million people infected and thousands dead across the globe. Almost everything has come to a standstill with businesses closing; millions losing their jobs; schools and universities closing down; sports events cancelled; stock shares in free fall; cities in lockdown and people’s movements restricted. These have put a lot of pressures on resources, state response capacity, community resilience, social coherence, mental health and security systems.
It would be timely at this point to take stock of what is happening by sharing experiences, researches and observations from various parts of the world. The webinar will be part of a series of virtual dialogues starting with a small one for members of the RC44 board and other invited scholars on Tuesday June 23, as a build up to a bigger online conference in September.
List of themes
a) The securitization of COVID-19: How it redefines the notion of security (moderated by Steven Ratuva).
b) Changing mode of framing community security in relation to social behavior and culture (moderated by Radomir Compel).
c) How states have taken advantage of the crisis and emergency to impose and legitimize authoritarian rule (moderated by Rosalie Hall).
Instructions for webinar
1. The Zoom link will be sent out to registered participants a day before the webinar.
2. Each executive board member will invite other participants.
3. The webinar will be conducted on the basis of interactive discussions between participants based on the theme. There will be four themes, which will be introduced and moderated by Steven Ratuva, Radomir Compel and Rosalie Arcala Hall.
4. Each session moderator will introduce the topic for about 5 minutes, which will be followed by 5 minute presentations by participants who submitted abstracts, and 1-5 minute comments by discussants who registered for the theme. Afterwards, the floor will be open for discussions.
5. Each thematic discussion will take about 20-30 minutes.
6. The microphone should be muted when listening and not speaking and must be unmuted only when speaking.
7. To request your turn to speak, a message must be sent through the Zoom Chat Group, simply saying “me.”
8. Because of the time extreme differences, the following timetable will be drawn up to ensure that all participants are well accommodated.
Timetable (last updated 22 June 2020)
UTC 8:00-8:02 Opening (Steven Ratuva)
UTC 8:02-8:10 Self-introductions
UTC 8:10-8:40 Theme 1: The Securitization of COVID-19
UTC 8:40-9:00 Theme 2: The Social and Cultural Contexts of COVID-19
UTC 9:00-9:20 Theme 3: COVID-19 and Authoritarian Rule
UTC 9:20-9:30 General discussion or additional presentations
UTC 9:30-9:40 Wrap-up and Conclusion (Steven Ratuva)
Urgent updates (look here for emergency guidance before and during the conference)
No updates are available now, follow shortly before or during the webinar.
Time is in UTC
Deadline for short abstracts is 20 June 2020. As this is a preparatory conference, full papers will be collected in August.
The webinar will take place on 23 June 2020, from 08:00 AM, UTC. All time schedules for the conference are based on UTC universal time standard (Cassablanca, GMT time zone) and the timetable will be drawn up and advertised here to ensure that all participants are well accommodated.
Local times are:
You can find more on time zones and time converter here. In case of discrepancy with your local time, UTC will prevail:
https://www.timeanddate.com/time/map/
Venue
The whole conference will be held online over ZOOM hosted by the organizer. ZOOM link and password for the webinar is in the PDF program which has been sent to all participants by email on 21 (or 22) June. If you have concerns over connectivity, let us know.
Panel procedures
The chair and co-chair of the panel will be the shared hosts for the online panel. Links to the panel website will be available for all participants, who will be equipped with passwords for access. Presenters will deliver their presentations in person, and share their presentation software (PPT) through shared screens provided by the presentation platform.
Expenses
The conference will be free of charge.
Abstract submission form (~ 21 June 2020)
Organizing committee
Steven Ratuva, University of Canterbury, New Zealand
Radomir Compel, Nagasaki University, Japan
Rosalie Hall, University of Philippines Visayas, Philippines
Albert Somit, Southern Illinois University (ret., for RC12 Biology and Politics)
Contact
In case you need further assistance, or you would like to join the webinar, please contact us at cmplrad<a>gmail.com.