Special Lecture:

“Is chess a fitting or a misleading metaphor/analogy/model
for understanding strategic interactions in international relations?”

Talk by: Visiting Professor KOPPER Ákos from Eötvös Loránd University (Head of Department of International Relations and European Studies), Budapest (Hungary)

On November 13^th 2019, Professor Kopper gave a special lecture at the College of International Relations of Ritsumeikan University about the potential and limitation of chess for serving as an explanatory model of international relations. International society is highly complex, and it needs a model to describe its various manifestations. Chess has been frequently used as a potential model for the illustration of international conditions, yet its limitation in doing so has not been sufficiently investigated yet. Professor Kopper in his lecture addressed this limitation by discussing the role of chess as a demonstrative tool for the study of international relations. In doing so, Professor Kopper first provided various examples of how chess, along with its diverse forms in history, had been used for the study of international relations. Thereafter he discussed its potential and limitation for international relation studies, by having recourse to three different approaches: chess as a metaphor, chess as an analogy, and chess as a model. As argued in the lecture, each of these three approaches has a different degree of explanatory power about, or in other words expressive modes of, reality: metaphors having the least and models having the strongest explanatory power. Through a careful consideration of the three approaches, Professor Kopper concluded that it was not possible to grasp the entire complexity of international society through chess moves, either as a metaphor or as an analogy or as a model. Yet, as also argued in the lecture, it is possible to throw light upon certain aspects of the actual conditions of international relations, by employing chess-pieces for, for instance, political cartoons.

Professor Kopper’s lecture contributed to the study of the core research subject of the College of International Relations to a great extent. This could be seen through both the large number of questions raised by the audience and their written comments collected after his lecture. Though a powerful explanatory model is yet to come, this special lecture provided an inspiring atmosphere for future research directions.

See a related article written by Professor Kopper for further details:

Akos, Kopper, What Image Does IR Project? Chess, A Visual Metaphor for IR (2017) International Studies Review, Vol. 19(3): 337–361

On Nov 28^th, the College of International Relations and Career Center at Ritsumeikan University hosted the “OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) Career Fair” on Kinugasa campus.

Executive Director Josée Touchette and Sam Holland, Talent Management Analyst at the OECD traveled from Paris, the hometown of their organization and gave a special career guidance session for Ritsumeikan students. 

Over 30 students from the Graduate School and College of International Relations, including Japanese and international students from various countries, joined the seminar. Students learned about the history and structure of the OECD, as well as the various opportunities for getting a position in the organization, like the Young Professional Programme, Young Associate Programme, and internship. After the lecture, students lined up to ask many questions and to request advice on their future career. 

Many graduates from Ritsumeikan University are now working in international organizations, and Kinugasa campus has hosted various sessions on organizations like the World Bank and the United Nations. 

Summary of the Symposium on State-building efforts in Afghanistan, October 25, 2019 (578 words)

The symposium started with a welcome note by Prof. Adachi saying that 2019 was a historically important year for Afghanistan that held a presidential election in September 2019. Peace and democracy are a core educational philosophy at Ritsumeikan University that hosted the event.

The first keynote speaker H.E. Mrs. Adela Raz, Afghanistan ambassador and permanent representative to the United Nations thanked Japan for its generous humanitarian assistance. She mentioned that 2015-2024 was termed a “transformation decade” in Afghanistan as the country aimed to achieve a level of self-reliance to stop depending on foreign aid and transform into an equal member of international community. Mrs. Raz emphasized the importance of regional cooperation platforms in enhancing connectivity of Afghanistan and stated major progress in providing essential healthcare service and reducing child mortality.

Next, H. E. Mr. Tadamichi Yamamoto, a special representative of the Secretary-General for Afghanistan and the head of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) mentioned progress achieved in the areas of electoral transparency, police reform, access to healthcare services, education of girls and women. The diplomat stressed the need for concluding a peace agreement with the Taliban to ensure respect for human rights and achieve sustainable socioeconomic growth. Other points emphasized by H.E. Mr. Yamamoto were the need for coordination among donor countries and inclusive participation in discussing issues of transitional justice and reintegration of former combatants to the society.

The first session was concluded by a brief Q&A with the keynote speakers and Mr. Shohei Hara, director of the South Asia department of the JICA who reiterated the importance of the triple nexus for the success of the transformation decade in Afghanistan. The questions related to the role of China in the peacebuilding and development process in Afghanistan and the “lost five years” for women’s education in Afghanistan during the Taliban rule.

The second session involved a panel discussion with Dr. Haruyuki Shimada, Mr. Shohei Hara, Ms. Sahar Hamdard, Dr. Masanori Naito and Dr. Shinichi Mizuta. Prof. Shimada worked for JICA for over 20 years, including several years in Kabul. Now a professor at Ritsumeikan, he continues his research on Afghanistan. Ms. Hamdard studied in Japan for two years under the PEACE scholarship and is now a head of Engineering and architectural design authority in Kabul. She is grateful for the opportunity to study in Japan. Ms. Hamdard emphasized the importance of securing women’s rights, freedom of speech and media to build a pluralistic society. Prof. Naito shared his experience of inviting the Taliban representatives to the peace conference at Doshisha University. Dr. Mizuta argued there should be no gap between humanitarian aid and development efforts. Waiting for the peace agreement to be reached, the UN and other international organizations are actively preparing for that time and developing post-peace assistance plans. Mr. Hara talked about JICA’s involvement in Afghanistan and mentioned Dr. Nakamura from JICA who recently received an honor citizenship of Afghanistan for his irrigation project.

The Q&A session included questions about the internal process within the Taliban to end the war, parallels with Islamist groups in Somalia and ways to reach agreement without mediation of foreign countries, the role of Afghani women in the household and broader society.

The event was concluded by the closing remarks from H.E. Dr. Bashir Mohabbat, the Ambassador of Afghanistan in Japan saying that 2019 is also the 100th anniversary of restoration of Afghani independence. Once again, he thanked Japan for showing true friendship and belief in Afghani people.

The Global Essay Competition

Meet the representative from

The St. Gallen Symposium, Switzerland

Get the chance to win the St. Gallen Wings of Excellence Award and qualify for

participation as a Leader of Tomorrow in the world's premier opportunity for

intergenerational debates.

The orientation session:

Date：Monday, Novermber 25, 2019

Time:    14:40 -15:40                　　

Place:  Koshinkan 3F, Room KS304　

Representative:

Dennis-Takuya Strotbek

Responsible to Japan, St. Gallen Symposium

    (English / Japanese speaker)

Abdennour Bidar is a French philosopher, writer and government official.After a short introduction by Prof. Suechika and Prof. Date from Tokyo University, the lecture started by introducing Prof. Bidar’s most famousbook Open Letter to the Muslim World written in the aftermath of the Charlie Hebdo shooting. France has an ideology of secularism withvery strict separation between religion and politics. As a French and aMuslim, Dr. Bidar attempts to reconcile those tendencies. He is often invited to the French television to talk about Islam. Some people question the possibility of being a Muslim and a philosopher, associating philosophy with exercise of critical thinking. Dr. Bidar thinks it is possible based on the teachings of the French philosopher Blaise Pascale who mentions the mysteries of the Universe that exceed the power of reason and the Pakistani philosopher Mohamed Iqbal talking about “insights” or “inner intuition” which is close to silence or faith. Following this logic, it becomes possible to be a Muslim philosopher.

Islam in Europe, in particularly in France stands onthe crossroads of many issues related to the French identity and encompasses political, religious and social issues. First, Islam forces France to ask itself questions regarding religion. The French society today is very secularized and lost the capacity to ask itself questions about religion and spirituality. Secularism is defined by the French historian and sociologist Marcel Gauchet as the loss of influence of religion on the consciousness and society. In that sense, Islam could bean opportunity for France.

Despite the considerable number of Muslim residents in France, their social integration remains a problem, not just because of the culture but because of political structure of the French society. In France, integration does not mean the same thing as in other Western countries having an ideology of multiculturalism. Politically, French are republicans in the sense that they attempt to build a united community of citizens based not only on the rule of law but also on shared values. This task is much more ambitious and there isa risk of the value conflict. Islamist terrorist attacks became a real shock for the French society, and since then, Muslims are generally perceived as a threat. General worry keeps increasing reaching at times the level of madness.

Some of the common fears around Islam include:

1) The loss of traditional identity. This fear led to forming the “theory of great replacement” of white and Christian population in France and “demographic mutation” of the French society. Deconstructing fears around Islam has become Dr. Bidar’s daily work.

2) Neglecting social and economic dimension of the problem. Most Muslims in France live in ethnic and social ghettos and they belong to disadvantageous class. Their faith becomes a refuge for them and the only way to reaffirm their human dignity. They do not have a feeling of belonging tothe mainstream French society in terms of space, financial resources orvision of the future. They are often victims of racism and discrimination, stigmatization, they constantly experience hostile staring in the streets, subway and other public spaces. Dr. Bidar believes that the French society does not have to fall in the trap of the cultural war if all the parties have enough intelligence and tolerance.

3) Inequalities in terms of religious attitudes. Some Muslims are more observant than others. While most understand that they need to adapt their practices and behavior in the country where they area minority, others do not want to adjust. They believe that their faithis created by God who is a founder of the Sharia, Muslim law. As Frenchlaw is constructed only by humans, they believe that Sharia is inherently superior. Dr. Bidar believes we need to make mutual efforts to achieve understanding, otherwise a truly multicultural society would be impossible. Multiculturalism does not occur automatically, simply because we come from different cultural backgrounds.

An example of misunderstanding is the law of 2004 prohibiting wearing the veil in schools. For most Muslims, this law is a proof that the French society is in war with religion in general and Muslims in particular, and they consider this law as oppression of their individual freedom. However, for the French, this law is understood differently based on the history of schools in France. Schools do not treat their students based on theirfamily background; they consider them as autonomous persons. As a result, there is a complete misunderstanding.

For the French society, the Muslim presence in the country constitute a double challenge. It calls to an exercise of self-criticism and self-examination. For Islam as well, the Muslim presence in France is a great opportunity of renewal. If a phenomenon wants to stay alive, it has to renew itself periodically since “intelligence is adaptation”. TheMuslim presence in France obliges individuals to reconsider their most personal values and beliefs. The idea of renewal of Islam comes from classical works of Arabic philosophers such as Ahmad Al Ghazzali (died in 1111) and is continued by Souleymane Bachir Diagne, professor at Columbia University, NYC. Building on their work, Dr. Bidar created a concept of “Islamic existentialism”. While existentialism dates back to 1960s and J.-P. Sartre saying that our life is our responsibility, Dr. Bidar disagrees with Sartre who thought that an existentialist cannot bea believer. Dr. Bidar thinks that God do not want slaves, that is why human beings are created free to choose their own destiny. It correlateswith Islamic notion of “amanah” (personal responsibility or trustworthiness). His recent book is titled as “Islam without submissionfor Muslim existentialists” (not yet translated into English).

Thanksto Muslims, the French society get a rendez-vous with their own consciousness and equilibrium of shared values is now needed. How to realize this unity in diversity? How to recognize minorities’ rights without renouncing the idea of forming a coherent society? Dr. Bidar sees two major risks here. First, abandoning the idea of unity can lead the society to its atomization and ultimately, explosion. The second risk is not recognizing the minorities’ rights, and this could lead to anew totalitarianism, new fascism.

Muslims become the scapegoats for the French society. It’s the favorite argument of populist politicians saying that once we close the door to migrants and particularly Muslims, we will naturally regain our equilibrium and our former greatness. Muslim presence in France is the best mirror for the French society, showing its healthy and unhealthy aspects.

Anotherpotentially problematic idea of the French society is their belief thatall the problems can be resolved by the law. However, Dr. Bidar thinks that without parallel efforts in education, the law cannot succeed. He also uses Habermas’ term “discourse ethics” to reach the situation when no one claims to have the ultimate truth in an argument but listens carefully to others’ viewpoint. In practice, it is difficult to really accept that our own beliefs may not superior. Dr. Bidar finds much immaturity in the contemporary French society, in both political and spiritual aspects and thinks we need to learn to accept differences to finally become adults and achieve a peaceful and harmonious coexistence on this planet. He believes in the universal brotherhood, regardless of religion and other factors.

The audience asked Dr. Bidar a numberof questions about French republicanism, discrimination against Muslimsin France and also Christian and Jewish minorities in Africa, perceivedthreats of ethnic replacement of white populations in Europe by the people of color.