Ethnicity in Asia

Description

Since 1991, ethnic division has been among the most important sources of conflict and war throughout the world. Although the countries of East and Southeast Asia have not experienced anything quite as horrendous as the wars in the former Yugoslavia in the early 1990s, they have had their share of conflict due to ethnicity. Indonesia is the most illustrative example, but there have also been serious divisions in China, Burma, Philippines and Vietnam among others. This book is designed as a comprehensive comparative introduction to ethnicity in East and Southeast Asia since 1945. Each chapter covers a particular country and gives a brief historical background before addressing: * how to define each ethnic group * ethnic identification in the individual country * governmental policy towards ethnic groups * economies of the ethnic groups in relation to the national economy * social issues such as gender and education * problems of national integration * the impact of ethnic issues on the country's foreign policy This text is the first to bring together a coherent study of ethnicity in the region as a whole, allowing the contributors to build on the ideas developed for each country to form broader themes applicable more generally to East and Southeast Asia as a whole. With a map of each country, suggestions for further reading and a glossary this textbook is essential reading for all students studying the communities of East and Southeast Asia. Chua Beng Huat, National University of Singapore Grant Evans, University of Hong Kong Gerry van Klinken, The Royal Institute of Linguistics and Anthropology (KITLV), The Net

Colin Mackerras is Professor in the School of Asian and International Studies, Griffith University, Australia. In 1999 he was elected Fellow of the Australia Academy of Humanities and won an award for achievements in Australia-China cultural relations. He is a well known specialist on China with particular research interests in China's ethnic minorities, Chinese history and politics and Chinese theatre.

'For scholars whose specialized knowledge is often confined within the boundaries of one or a handful of particular nation-states, this volume offers a very useful, broad survey ot ethnicity in Asia, with contributions of consistent scope and quality. The writing style is also consistently accessible to general readers.' - The Journal of Asian Studies