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Book Launch and Discussion “Sisters of Isan”
20 December, 2022 @ 5:30 pm - 7:00 pm
Sisters of Isan: one woman’s journey on the margins as the Kingdom of Thailand prospers and stumbles traces a family in Sisaket back to the beginning of the 20th century and then explores the profound changes over the past 50 years. By the beginning of the 20th century, Lao people west of the Mekong River belong to Siam while to the east and north they remain part of French Indochina. Grandmother was born in 1900 and then the mother born in the 1930s. Wan marries and with her husband begins raising a family in the 1960s. The birth of the second sister, Pon in 1971, is where the story line of the Sisters begins. At 13-years-old Pon is migrating to the big city to join her sister. It is not long before she is on her own, seeking to survive and support her family. The narrative on the Sisaket family covers 50 years, shifting between rural and urban landscapes. Core cultural beliefs persist amidst profound social change during the shift from subsistence farming to the market economy. The 21st century ushers in more change, and while inequalities persist there are increasing opportunities for people on the margins, but not without a struggle.
The book will be launched with a discussion with the author Allan Beesey on 20 December 2022, 5.30-7.00 pm at SEA Junction, 4th floor, BACC.
Author’s Bio
Allan Beesey’s introduction to Thai society was through an Oxfam tour in 1985, with memories of Isan villages and the politics that divided Isan and Central Thai. In the 1990s, he was conducting consultancies on HIV/AIDS from Chiang Mai, studying the northem culture and connections with the sex trade and the spread of HIV. Following stints in China and Vietnam in the 1990s Allan was full time in Thailand. From 1999-2002 he was working at the Asian Research Center for Migration (Chulalongkorn University) in Bangkok. He returned to consulting in the early 2000s, with a focus on HIV and migrants, shifting to migration and mobility issues across the Mekong Region. While based in Thailand he worked with local and international agencies, including the UN. Working on Asian Development Bank projects he spent several months in Laos and almost 3 years in Vietnam.
For information/reservation for our events, please email southeastasiajunction@gmail.com or phone: +66970024140.
Organizer:
SEA Junction, established under the Thai non-profit organization Foundation for Southeast Asia Studies (ForSEA), aims to foster understanding and appreciation of Southeast Asia in all its socio-cultural dimensions, from arts and lifestyles to economy and development. Conveniently located at Room 408 of the Bangkok Arts and Culture Center or BACC (across MBK, BTS National Stadium), SEA Junction facilitates public access to knowledge resources and exchanges among students, practitioners and Southeast Asia lovers. For more information, see www.seajunction.org, join the Facebook group: http://www.facebook.com/groups/1693058870976440/ and follow us on Twitter and Instagram @seajunction
