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Law, Politics, and the Academy in Asia: Navigating Constraints as Public Law Scholars

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 March 2025

Maartje De Visser Open the ORCID record for Maartje De Visser [Opens in a new window] ,
Qian Liu  and
Victor V. Ramraj Open the ORCID record for Victor V. Ramraj [Opens in a new window]
Maartje De Visser*
Affiliation:
Singapore Management University, Singapore, Singapore
Qian Liu
Affiliation:
University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
Victor V. Ramraj
Affiliation:
University of Victoria, Victoria, Canada
*
Corresponding author: Maartje De Visser; Email: [email protected]
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Abstract

How do academics interested in the study of legal topics that implicate the state relate to and deal with pressures that shape the space available to conduct research? This article examines the nature and impact of such pressures on Asia-focused public law scholars who must contend with a more diverse socio-political environment than the liberal democratic setting in which questions of academic freedom are typically explored. We find that the Asia-centric academy is affected by a wide range of constraints that notably extends beyond intra-institutional demands to those put in place by the state. This article also highlights how the scholarly agenda as set in and by the Global North may reduce the room for Asia-centric research to engage in theory-building and concept formation and explores how Asia-centric scholars can assert agency in the face of pressures. We conclude by emphasising the need for greater self-reflectivity within the legal academy.

Keywords

academic freedompublic law scholarsnon-coercive constraintsscholarly activismlanguage
Type
Research Article
Information
Asian Journal of Law and Society , First View , pp. 1 - 23
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Asian Journal of Law and Society

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Footnotes

The authors are listed in alphabetical order. All three authors have contributed in equal parts to this article. The authors would like to thank their interviewees for their participation in this research project. We also gratefully acknowledge the transcription assistance provided by Kari Helene Dressler and Sana Fatima. Any mistakes are those of the authors. Funding for this project was provided by the Centre for Asia-Pacific Initiatives at the University of Victoria through the Chair in Asia-Pacific Legal Relations, currently held by Victor V. Ramraj. This project was conducted with the approval of the University of Victoria’s Human Ethics Review Board and Singapore Management University’s Institutional Review Board. Approval certificates are on file with the authors.

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