43 SE Asia: Political Geography I – Market-Dominant Minorities
The concept of market-dominant minorities was introduced by Yale Professor Amy Chua in her book “World on Fire.” The breakthrough book melds Chua’s own family experiences and her analysis of international patterns to create this interesting concept. Although there are examples of this phenomenon across the world, the concept may be most apparent in Southeast Asia.
The situation of a market-dominant minority is when a small percentage of an ethnic group that does not match the titular group of the country actually owns a substantial proportion of that country’s corporate and entrepreneurial wealth. For instance, in the Philippines (the outlined borders in the icon above), the titular group (the group that matches the title of the country) is Filipino. Because there are several thousand islands in the Philippines, there are numerous ethnic groups that are native to the country. These we would group together as Filipinos. Who else lives there? During different colonial eras, both Spaniards and Americans were the colonial rulers. As a result, there remain descendants of Spanish and American heritage there. Other nations (remember that nations equal ethnic groups in political geography) are present as well, but the key group for this topic is the group of so-called “overseas Chinese.” These Chinese, whether recent migrants or descendants of migrants from as far back as the 9th century, represent only about 1.5% of the population. In the Philippines, these overseas Chinese are very successful in business, from giant corporations and banks to smaller commercial enterprises. These Chinese practice a restrictive insular lifestyle, as they work and live among their own kinds, isolated from most Filipinos, except for those employed in businesses or as servants.
Imagine if you will that you are part of a large population where there has been little economic success. You belong to a ethnic group that mingles easily with other similar ethnic groups in terms of your relative poverty or at least in your limited economic capacities. Through your work and through your daily observations, you repeatedly are aware of the another ethnic group, indeed those viewed as foreigners in your country, have 50% or 60% or 70% or 80% of the wealth in your country. What is your reaction to these foreigners? Certainly, it would be understandable for you to be envious. Perhaps not a good sentiment, but also it could be understandable if you literally hate this small group of foreigners who seem to have all the money.
Author Amy Chua is a Chinese-American who lives and teaches in America. However, she has quite a few relatives in the Philippines and who belong to this wealthy class of overseas Chinese there. Indeed, in author Amy Chua’s personal account, her wealthy aunt was murdered by her chauffeur, a Filipino. To Chua’s family’s dismay, the local authorities did little to apprehend the killer, who had fled the scene. Police records noted the motive for the murder as “revenge” – prompted by anger of the ethnic disparity of wealth.
In the Philippines there are clear patterns of violence against the overseas Chinese, sometimes expressed as kidnappings for redistributive ransoms. Meanwhile the Chinese hire bodyguards and security staff to limit their exposure. Of course, this increases the separation of Chinese life there from that of everyday citizens. In Indonesia, violence against overseas Chinese is not uncommon. Personal assaults, kidnappings, and destruction of Chinese-owned shops are among these acts of violence. At times these attacks have caused out-migrations of overseas Chinese. Their departures may provide satisfaction for native Indonesians; however, their departures combined with the movement of their wealth to other locations is counterproductive to economic success in Indonesia. Indonesia has about ten million overseas Chinese, a significant number, yet only about 4% of Indonesia’s total population, as it ranks fourth overall in the world. Thailand and Malaysia each have about seven million overseas Chinese, marking Thailand as about 10% overseas Chinese and Malaysia about 20%.
As the United States and European countries seek to promote the principles of democracy to countries across the world, including those in Southeast Asia, the core of democracy – the power of the people through voting – presents another opportunity for those resentful of the overseas Chinese. Since the native populations have much higher numbers than the overseas Chinese do, the native populations have the possibility to elect candidates who may seek to install checks and balances against the dominant of Chinese companies or to place onerous taxes or conditions upon those wealthy Chinese individuals and corporations.
Of Southeast Asia’s overall $369 billion in wealth, the overseas Chinese control about two-thirds, while only populating about 5% of the region.
There are other ethnic groups that have similar disparities between numbers and wealth, but in fewer countries than so with the overseas Chinese. For instance, sometimes the overseas Chinese are called “the Jews of Asia,” for Jewish populations may be small but prosperous in certain countries. Another example, Lebanese populations in West African countries often are quite successful commercially. South Asian Indians often are successful in small and large businesses in East Africa. The minority Igbo do very well in Nigeria.
Estimates say that the world ticked up to 7.9 billion people in November 2021. Consider the world as a whole with 7.9 billion people. China has 18% of the world wealth, while having 1.4 billion people or 18% of the world’s population. Thus, China itself equitably matches its national population and wealth. Note that the overseas Chinese are counted separately.
Four percent of that total population is about 315 billion people. The United States has 30% of the world’s wealth and about 4¼% of the world’s population. Thus, from the perception of the world as a whole, perhaps we as Americans are the world’s market-dominant minority. Noting that resentment of the overseas Chinese in common in countries where they are successful, perhaps it is not surprising to observe resentment of Americans by people of limited economic means across the globe.
Did you know?
While this topic certainly fits in Economic Geography, it also features the political elements of nations and States, as well as the political dynamic of wealth versus numbers of voters in democratic societies. Therefore, this time we have placed it in the Political Geography category.
The film “Crazy Rich Asians” of 2018 features extreme wealth of a section of ethnic Chinese population in Singapore. It was a bit controversial that the leading Chinese man in the film was played by actor Henry Golding who is not Chinese, but half Malaysian and half British in heritage.
Cited and additional bibliography:
Charting Overseas Chinese Families’ Wealth Prowess – DBS, EIU Study. https://www.wealthbriefing.com/html/article.php?id=192482#.YYQxxNbMKLs. Accessed 4 Nov. 2021.
Chua, Amy. World on Fire: How Exporting Free Market Democracy Breeds Ethnic Hatred and Global Instability. Doubleday, 2002.
Long, Simon. “The Overseas Chinese.” Prospect Magazine, 20 Apr. 1998, https://www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/magazine/theoverseaschinese.
Statista. “China: Countries with the Largest Number of Overseas Chinese 2020.” Accessed November 4, 2021. https://www.statista.com/statistics/279530/countries-with-the-largest-number-of-overseas-chinese/.
