Transnational History and ASEAN’s Young Scholars in Regional Connectivity: Perspectives from Mainland Southeast Asia

Abstract

Past legacies profoundly shape contemporary relationships between ASEAN’s countries. Unfortunately, voices of history do not always generate a healthy motivation for regional connectivity, but recall painful images of warfare and conflict between polities that developed into present-day Southeast Asian nation-states. Such histories can be seen in ongoing disputes over the South China Sea, or at a temple on the Thai-Cambodian border. Taking countries in mainland Southeast Asia as a case study, this paper explores the role history education and Southeast Asian studies play in managing past legacy and facilitating the ASEAN Community with a particular focus on the integration of regional young scholars. It argues that ASEAN’s connection cannot be achieved unless a sense of sharing history and culture is built up among its citizens and the pioneering responsibility falls to a new scholarly generation who are the future key players in bridging that river of mistrust and hostility.