Jakarta, April 15, 2025 — The Faculty of Social and Political Sciences (FISIP) at UPN “Veteran” Jakarta proudly hosted an international academic event titled “Research Dissemination and Workshop Research Collaboration” in collaboration with the Department of History, University of Santo Tomas (UST), Philippines. This academic gathering aimed to deepen cross-border academic collaboration and highlight the dynamics of Politics and International Relations in Southeast Asia.

Taking place at the FISIP UPNVJ Auditorium, the event began at 9:30 AM and featured esteemed scholars from the University of Santo Tomas. Among them were Prof. Melanie DP Turingan, PhD, who presented on “Philippine–Indonesia Relations: A Partnership Between Two Republics,” and Assoc. Prof. Janet C. Atutubo, PhD, who offered insights into “The Lumad People of Mindanao, Philippines.”

A particularly compelling moment came from Assoc. Prof. Archie B. Resos, PhD, who critically examined the political landscape in his presentation “Political Culture and Partisanship: Distortion and Direction of Philippine Democracy: 1986–2022.” In his analysis, Dr. Resos argued that democracy in the Philippines remains far from the mature, meritocratic model idealized in the West. He emphasized how a deep-rooted “debt of loyalty” culture continues to dominate political life, fostering partisanship and undermining democratic principles such as transparency and merit-based leadership selection.

Additional speakers included Gian Paolo R. Mayo, MA, who discussed “The Mandate to Lead: Veteran-Presidents of the Philippines,” and Ms. Irene G. Borras, MA, who shed light on “Japan and East Asian Regionalism.” The event was moderated by M. Kamil Ghiffary A., M.Si from UPNVJ.

The collaboration highlights a growing commitment among Southeast Asian academic institutions to jointly explore and analyze the region’s political complexities, while fostering knowledge exchange and scholarly development across borders.