São Paulo – Created in late 2008 to help the University of São Paulo (USP, in the Portuguese acronym) increase the volume of research on Russia, Asia and the Middle Easet, the Laboratory for Studies on Asia (Laboratório de Estudos da Ásia – LEA) is preparing to release the first book of articles produced by its scholars in August. It is the LEA’s first action in its short lifespan. Prior to this book, resulting from academic work, the LEA will issue a book on Russia in partnership with the Institute for Applied Economic Research (Ipea).
A co-coordinator at LEA, professor Angelo Segrillo claims that the laboratory was swift in producing its first book featuring academic articles on the countries studied, but stresses that language is the main barrier for the researchers.
“When I joined, they wanted a contemporary history professor with an emphasis on Asia,” says Segrillo, who specializes in history of Russia and the former Eurasian URSS. “They wanted to leverage their studies on Asia. I used to think São Paulo was at a further stage in this respect, but even here, the production is still embryonic,” says Segrillo, who lives in Niterói, in the state of Rio de Janeiro, but is at the USP, in São Paulo, three days a week.
The LEA is divided into three workgroups. Segrillo coordinates the workgroups for Russia and, Central Asia and Asia. Another coordinating professor at the LEA, Peter Demant, manages the workgroup for the Middle East and the Muslim World, but he is on a leave of absence and should return in the second half. The LEA is an arm of the Department of History of the School of Philosophy, Languages and Human Sciences (FFLCH), but comprises researchers from other schools and universtiies. Whenever the native language of a given country threatens to bring some research project to a halt, the Department of Eastern Languages at the FFLCC provides assistance the LEA professionals.
“In order to study and develop their Stricto Sensu projects (master’s degree and doctorate), researchers must know the native language, they must consult the original document,” says Segrillo. Aside from the cultural barrier, Segrillo claims that the background of students also gets in the way of the development of work covering Eastern countries. “The training that students undergo is still Eurocentric. There are less works available on Asia than there are on Africa,” he says.
The Workgroup for the Middle East and the Muslim World usually attracts more students and researchers than the others. According to researcher Carolina Alberice, student inflow is stronger in this group because the countries and matters of the region receive greater exposure than the others. At present, this workgroup comprises nine researchers. “Many people read about the matter, they watch the news and become interested in learning more about what goes on in the region,” she says.
There is no set number of countries covered by this workgroup. The studies focus on Muslim countries (including the ones in Africa) and Middle Eastern countries (even non-Arab ones). Iran, Israel and Turkey are also study subjects at the LEA. But they are not the only ones. The workgroup will accommodate any matter pertaining to the region. One of the students, for instance, is developing an academic project on the role of women in Turkey and Egypt. The North African country was the subject of two student meetings this year after the resignation of president Hosni Mubarak, in February.
Carolina is standing in for the other co-coordinator of the LEA, Peter Demant. She intends to start a master’s thesis on Lebanon. “Whenever I read the paper, I look for the Middle Eastern news first. I have always been interested in the region and now I am going to seek deeper knowledge. To be able to study Lebanon, I must get to know and contextualize the Israeli-Palestinian conflict,” she claims.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
