This month's decolonial dialogue in the VOC zaal features a special event that combines a book discussion, dance performance, and cello music to delve into the cultural reconstruction in post-colonial Indonesia. Join Rachmi Diyah Larasati, a professor of Gender, Women and Sexuality Studies at the University of Minnesota, as she discusses her book entitled "The Dance that Makes You Vanish: Cultural Reconstruction in Post-Genocide Indonesia."

The book uncovers the pervasive use of culture to suppress dissent and maintain authoritarian rule in Indonesia. It highlights the dual-edged strategy of the past authoritarian regime, where performers were persecuted and killed for being perceived as left-leaning, while "replicas" of their performances were reproduced and deployed as idealised representations of cultural elegance in submission to autocracy.

After the book presentation, there will be a dance performance by Rachmi Dyah Larasati with a live cello performance by Alfian Emir Adytia and discussion by Nuraini Juliastuti, a trans-local practicing researcher and writer, and Joss Wibisono, journalist and alumnus of UvA's Holocaust and Genocide Studies.

The event is hosted by Rika Theo, Information Specialist of Political Science and Media Studies University of Amsterdam, in collaboration with the human rights activist group Watch65.