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Why Civilisations Can't Climb Hills: a political history of statelessness in Southeast Asia

Thursday 22 May 2008 | 1 hour 20 minutes 56 seconds

Professor Scott argues that the hill peoples of mainland Southeast Asia are fugitive, runaway populations, practising 'escape agriculture', 'escape social structure' and 'escape culture'. Jim Scott is Sterling Professor of Political Science and Anthropology at Yale University.