AN ETHNOGRAPHER'S TALE: ETHNOGRAPHIC RESEARCH IN NETHERLANDS (WEST) NEW GUINEA (1950 – 1962)1

A major part of the ethnographic literature concerning present-day Irian Jay a is based on research dating back to the 1950s and 1960s. Following the independence of Indonesia, West New Guinea remained a separate Dutch colony between 1950 and 1962. The Dutch colonial administration had had little ethnographic interest in the area since the beginning of the century, so that interest in knowledge concerning the indigenous population had yet to develop. Lack of manpower, finances and time to instigate adequate research meant that the resulting search for ethnographic data became itself a complex social process. People from a range of backgrounds and training - not only academic researchers, but also administrative and missionary personnel - became involved in the gathering of ethnographic material, often while engaged in quite different duties. In this article some light is shed both on the resulting structure of research and on the motivations behind the separate research efforts. At the end of the article some conclusions are drawn concerning the nature of the material gathered.     

Population and poverty in dependent states: Latin America considered

"Malthusians maintain that rapid population growth aggravates poverty, while Marxists contend that social formations determine its nature and extent. Each perspective is incomplete, however, since it ignores the insights of the other. Latin American states, characterized by dependent capitalism formations and dominated by ruling elites, are generally incapable of solving the problems of population and poverty. Since population growth under dependent capitalism weakens labor's bargaining position against capital, reduced population growth is emphasized as a labor empowerment strategy the poor can implement on their own to improve their socioeconomic conditions."     

STATE, CLASS AND INTERNATIONAL CAPITAL 1: BACKGROUND TO THE BRASILIAN STEEL INDUSTRY

By 1980, the Brasilian steel industry had grown to be the eighth largest among the market economies. It is a largely state-owned industry, much of the expansion of which has been funded by international capital. The pattern of development has not been externally imposed, however, but rather reflects the changing balance of class forces within Brasil as policies oscillate between nationalist, populist limits on foreign investment and open, pro-development strategies that rely on foreign investment. Both policies develop their own contradictions, that are reflected in frequent military interventions.     

DO METROPOLITAN AREAS MEAN ANYTHING? A RESEARCH NOTE*

This note analyzes whether central cities and suburbs of a metropolitan area relate to each other in a meaningful way. Specifically, it analyzes whether there is a factor specific to the metropolitan area in central-city and suburban growth once national and regional factors have been taken into account. Data are analyzed for growth of metropolitan areas from 1960 to 1980.