As published on the official website of the Master of International Relations, regarding the question of why, in the midst of the era of Globalization and the 4th Industrial Revolution, the United States has to build a wall to separate itself from Mexico, and why, with its formidable military power, Israel has to build the Jerusalem Wall, the Master of International Relations (MIHI) Program at Universitas Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta held a book discussion titled “Diplomatic Walls” by Prof. Dr. Tulus Warsito (31/8).
The book, which is a sequel to Prof. Dr. Tulus Warsito’s monograph entitled “Border Diplomacy”, was also discussed by Wahyuni Kartikasari, a doctoral candidate and lecturer at the MIHI Study Program of UMY, and Rizki Dian Nursita as the moderator. The event took place in the Director’s Meeting Room on the 1st floor of the Kasman Singodimedjo building at UMY.
Prof. Tulus Warsito explained what he conveyed in his book, that there are a number of paradoxes that have occurred recently. In the midst of all the advancements, the 4th Industrial Revolution, and the integration of the world community like the European Union, why are there still dividing walls?
Historically, border walls have been built for a number of reasons, one of which is to mark power, and this has been done even by ancient civilizations. Uniquely, the purpose of building the Berlin Wall, which separated East and West Germany, is the opposite of the construction of the US-Mexico Wall. While the Berlin Wall was built to prevent East Germans from emigrating and seeking a better life in West Germany, the US-Mexico Wall was built by the US to prevent immigrants from Mexico. Interestingly, Mexico also has to bear the cost of building the wall, which is actually a US policy.
Prof. Tulus Warsito believes that the current era is not entirely disruptive, as many people claim. We cannot view the Era of Technological Disruption in black and white. There are patterns of relationships that shift, and some remain the same, one of which is the construction of border walls.
Wahyuni Kartikasari added that the issue of wall construction cannot only be seen from a political perspective, but also from diplomacy, migration, and architecture. From a migration perspective, for example, walls are not only physical border walls. In the era of globalization, we can migrate anywhere, but we are limited by visas and passports. Immigration offices can be an example of walls in modern times.
In the field of architecture, houses and walls, such as palaces, are not built without purpose. They also show which society has a political culture. Not just anyone can see the king’s building, and the farther away from the wall, the farther the cultural relationship.
