State/Nation/Transnation

Perspectives on Transnationalism in the Asia Pacific

Katie Willis, Brenda S. A. Yeoh

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2004
• Print ISBN: 9780415859899
• eBook ISBN: 9781134414086
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Politik & Internationale Beziehungen
• Subtopic: Politik

This edited volume examines the relationship between the nation and the transnation, focusing on transnational communities in the Asia-Pacific region. Setting the book within a theoretical framework, the authors explore a range of themes such as migration, identity and citizenship in chapters on China, the Philippines, Malaysia, Vietnam, Japan, Indonesia, Australia, Singapore and Cambodia.

1 Introduction

Transnationalism as a challenge to the nation

Katie Willis, Brenda S.A. Yeoh and S.M. Abdul Khader Fakhri

Introduction

While it seems clear that notions of the ‘national’ are inherent in the concept of ‘transnational’, much early work on the processes of ‘transnationalism’, particularly in the field of cultural studies, dwelt on the ‘death of the nation’ (see, for example, Bhahba 1994). While this has been tempered somewhat with talk of ‘crisis’ rather than ‘death’, there is still widespread acceptance that transnationalism is a challenge to the continued existence of the ‘nation’, or more often, the ‘nation-state’. Arjun Appadurai, one of the key commentators on contemporary cultural processes, claims that ‘states throughout the world are under siege’ (1990: 305) and ‘I am … inclined to see globalization as a definite marker of a new crisis for the sovereignty of nation-states’ (2000: 4). Similar arguments regarding the role of the nation-state and challenges to state sovereignty are also propounded by authors such as Hirst and Thompson (1996), Sassen (1996), Castells (1997) and Tambini (2001). These challenges are, it is argued, coming ‘from above’ in the form of global governance organizations (for example, the International Monetary Fund and the World Trade Organization) and supranational institutions such as the European Union (Soysal 1994), as well as transnational corporations. ‘From below’, migrant networks and cross-border forms of political activism are regarded as usurping the power of the nation-state, as possibilities of transnational activities open up new spaces of resistance (Smith and Guarnizo 1998).

However, if transnationalism is understood as sustained activities across national borders¹ (Glick Schiller et al. 1992: 1; Basch et al. 1994: 7; Portes et al. 1999), then the importance of a ‘national scale’ and ‘national space’ that can be transcended through these processes is obvious. With no ‘national’, there can be no ‘transnational’ (Faist 2000a). Many authors (see, for example, Kearney 1995; Al-Ali and Koser 2002: 2) have argued that the continued importance of the ‘nation-state’ is a key feature distinguishing ‘transnationalism’ from the supposedly more deterritorialized concept of ‘globalization’.

While much of this work has used ‘national’ as a shorthand for pertaining to the ‘nation-state’, it is important to recognize the diverse ways in which ‘nations’, and therefore ‘national’, can be conceived. In later chapters, the contributors examine different dimensions of the ‘national’ in the context of greater cross-border processes, which have been termed ‘transnationalism’.

For many, the reference is to the nation-state, a political entity based around a defined territory, within which the institutions of the state have power to implement policies through legislation or diktat, depending on the nature of the state. Under international law, these boundaries are constructed as fixed, and states have the right to protect their borders and control mobility of people, capital and resources across them (Giddens 1985). What the concept of the ‘nation’ adds to this is the idea of ‘the people’ as a ‘nation’ with a shared heritage, values and culture. While some (for example, Smith, 1981) argue that these feelings of belonging are rooted in some form of essentialized and primordial identity, others have stressed the socially constructed nature of this form of ‘national community’ (Hobsbawm and Ranger 1983; Anderson 1991; Foster 1991; Billig 1995). As Stephen Castles outlines in his chapter in this book, the link between territory and a homogeneous national identity is a key theme in nation-state building projects. In many cases, this attempt to forge a national identity requires the subsuming of other ethnic, gender or religious markers into a common affiliation with ‘the nation’.

If ‘national’ space is conceived in this way, as territory within which a singular people reside, the challenges presented by transnationalism are very apparent. Much of the increasing interest in, and for some people the reason for, transnationalism in the early twenty-first century is the extent of migration across national boundaries (Castles and Miller 1998).² This, it is argued, is a reflection of greater ease of movement and access to information with improvements in transport and communication (Vertovec 1999). In addition, spatial shifts in production processes have created new opportunities for economic migration: highly skilled migrants are becoming increasingly involved in migration circuits, which are often associated with the activities of transnational corporations (Findlay 1995), while low-skilled or unskilled migrants are crossing international borders to work in agriculture, service-sector activities or, in some cases, manufacturing. Finally, in some parts of the world, vast numbers of refugees flee their countries of origin due to conflict or natural disaster. With such a level of migration, the policies of nation-states on immigration control and restricted access are threatened. In addition, new legal arrivals often contribute to a growing cultural diversity within the nation-state, creating added pressure to the contrived and contested identity of the ‘nation’ (Castles 2000).

Migrants are increasingly likely to maintain contact across borders, often back to their place of origin, becoming part of what have been termed ‘transnational social fields’ (Smith and Guarnizo 1998) through daily practices such as reproductive activities, remittances and business transactions. Faist (2000a, 2000b) stresses the importance of recognizing diversity within transnational practices. He identifies three forms of ‘transnational social space’: ‘transnational kinship groups’, ‘transnational circuits’ and ‘transnational communities’. While practices cross national borders, this does not necessarily mean that individuals’ ‘national’ identities are similarly fluid and malleable. In many cases, there is a continued identification with the nation-state they have come from (often because of the intention to return) and as such, they may be regarded as a challenge to the destination state. However, as shall be highlighted below and exemplified throughout the following chapters, what this transnational moment involves is not the death of the nation-state per se but rather a reconfiguration. While the power of the state has been challenged in some circumstances by subnational, supranational and transnational institutions, the organs of the nation-state still play a crucial role.

If the concept of ‘nation’ is decoupled from ‘state’, then the spatial fixity of the concept is often erased, as ‘peoples’ can form ‘nations’ without occupying the same territory. While these groups have, at times, been termed ‘diasporas’ (Cohen 1997), other terms such as ‘transnational communities’ or ‘transnational social fields’ may be used. As stressed by Faist (see above), it is important to recognize the diverse processes that can be captured by such terms. In his tripartite typology, ‘transnational kinship groups’ are engaged in reciprocal relationships based on social norms and expectations. Remittances would fall into this form of transnational activity. In contrast, ‘transnational circuits’ involve ‘exploitation of insider advantages’ (Faist 2000b), such as through ethnically based trading networks. Finally, he uses the term ‘transnational community’ to refer to communities of solidarity and collective identity, for example diasporic groups such as Jews, Armenians and Kurds. For many other researchers on transnationalism and migration, the scope of ‘transnational communities’ is much broader. This means not that these ‘communities’ are constructed as internally coherent entities but that there is some form of shared identification (Willis and Yeoh 2002).

In some cases, the term ‘nations’ may be used. In this situation, the notion of ‘transnation’ may be useful to distinguish this formation from the nation-state. This concept stresses a common identity, but the ‘trans-’ prefix emphasizes that this identity is not linked directly to residence in a particular territory and forms a type of ‘delocalized practice’ (Appadurai 1993: 424). A territorial focus remains in ideological or imaginary terms, for example in the Chinese diaspora (see Chapter 9) or among migrant Filipinos (see Chapter 5).

By calling the book State/Nation/Transnation, we wanted to stress the importance of these three forms of human organization in the era of globalization. While we have highlighted the distinct nature of the three concepts, it is clear that as they are socially constructed, so they can be interrogated, not only by researchers but also by other actors. New or expanded possibilities for transnational forms of activity have created opportunities for new expressions of power and challenges to existing processes of exclusion. However, throughout the remainder of this chapter and the rest of the book, it is clear that existing axes of power and influence are often maintained, or are reinscribed in new physical locations or spatial scales.

The Asia-Pacific

By focusing on the Asia-Pacific in this book, we aim to contribute to understandings of transnationalism and the locating and placing of transnationalism within specific ‘local’ configurations of economic, social, cultural and political processes (Mitchell 1997). As Al-Ali and Koser (2002: 4) highlight, much of the transnationalism research, particularly in relation to migration, has focused on Latin American labour migration to North America. While this is clearly important, there is a need to examine the concept in different spatial contexts.

However, by adopting this regional focus, we are not suggesting that the region is clearly demarcated and bounded (Appadurai 2000). As Kelly and Olds (1999: 2) stress in their introduction to Globalization and the Asia-Pacific, the label ‘Asia-Pacific’ is highly contested, but there is ‘a certain utility in its vagueness’. When considering ‘transnationalism’, with its supposed potential to destabilize and undermine existing spatial certainties, it is even more appropriate to use a term as fluid as ‘Asia-Pacific’. In general, we have included in this term the countries of Southeast and East Asia, and Oceania, but throughout the book, it is clear that the circuits of migration, political organizing, kinship and the tentacles of nation-states reach far beyond this geographically bounded space.

In terms of migration flows, the Asia-Pacific is one of the globe’s most prominent regions in numerical terms. High levels of economic growth in some nation-states have resulted in labour shortages and led to state-sponsored immigration (albeit within defined limits). These opportunities draw migrants from throughout the region, and elsewhere (see Willis and Yeoh 2000; Beaverstock 2002 for a discussion of highly skilled migration flows from North America and Western Europe to the regional financial centres), through both legal and illegal channels (Hugo 1995; Castles 2000). In addition, migration networks outside the region have also been developed across the class spectrum, from the so-called ‘astronaut’ families of well-off Hong Kong and Taiwanese migrants in particular to the globalized spaces of reproduction involving women from the Philippines and Indonesia employed as domestic servants (Skeldon 1995; Anderson 1999; Pratt 1999; Stiell and England 1999; Parreñas 2001; Chee 2003).

Trying to quantify the number of labour migrants in the region is complicated not only by problems of data collection and the extent of illegal movements but also by the very fluidity of the migration flows and migrant communities. While some migrants are willing and able to ‘stay put’, in many cases, as we shall see throughout the book, one migration experience is often only part of a shifting pattern of mobility and engagement across national borders. In the mid-1990s, Asian labour migrants working outside their national borders were estimated at about six million, with three million of these working within the region and three million elsewhere (Martin et al. 1996: 163). However, this does not cover illegal labour migrants and refugees. Within the region, the Philippines stands out as the labour-exporting country; it is now second only to Mexico in terms of global standing as a source of labour (Go, in OECD 2002: 265). A number of chapters in this book focus on mobility that has been forced largely by war and other forms of civil unrest. For example, ‘over 2 million people fled from Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia following the end of the Vietnam War in 1975. Over a million were resettled in the US, with smaller numbers in Australia, Canada and western Europe’ (Castles 2000: 109).

Thus, a key rationale for focusing on the Asia-Pacific is to give it a prominence not so much as a space of place as a space of flows, to use Castells’ terms, since it is a region constituted by intense and increasing flows of people (labour) within the region and beyond. It is the human flows that help to give shape and identity to the region. However, as supposed by the title of this book, the nature of the nation-state within the region also needs to be highlighted. The flows of labour (as well as capital) are not unregulated, but as is outlined in more detail by Castles in Chapter 2, the nation-states of the region are implicated in their construction. In many cases, these nation-states are recent formations, created as a result of decolonization in the postwar period by a number of European powers. Other states, such as China and Japan, have had longer histories, but the current configuration of state power is often relatively recent (post-imperial in the case of Japan and having undergone a series of transformations from imperial to communist in the case of China). The theme of this book in examining how transnationalism is experienced, moulded and promoted within the region is therefore set in a context where, for many, the nation-state is a relatively new actor.

Nation-states as gate-keepers

One of the key processes in the construction of transnational communities or social fields is migration. As highlighted above, greater global migration flows have resulted in millions of individuals living outside their nation-state of origin. Such movements contribute, it is argued, to the porosity of national borders, the declining power of the nation-state and the uncoupling of territorial base and identity. However, such celebratory (from some perspectives) interpretations fail to recognize the continued importance of the ‘national’ (in state terms) as a space that has to be negotiated and entry to which is still strongly influenced by state institutions. For all the talk of fluidity and porosity, nation-states still exercise power over who legally enters the national space (Ong 1999; Anthias 2001: 635–7).

In Chapter 2, Stephen Castles provides an overview of how East Asian states have used immigration policies to manage the different flows of migrants in the region. He points out that far from being a regional migration system within which there is complete freedom of movement, there is a differential incorporation of migrant groups into nation-states. For countries that are net importers of migrants (such as Japan, Singapore, Taiwan and Brunei), a key factor is the type of labour that is required in that country; thus, certain skills and qualifications are privileged over others, leaving some able to enter and excluding those regarded as less able to contribute to economic growth. Castles stresses that within the region, states have been keen to construct immigrants as sojourners rather than settlers, and they have developed policies to facilitate this process. He compares thi...

Table of contents

• Front Cover
• State/Nation/Transnation
• Transnationalism
• Routledge Research in Transnationalism
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• List of illustrations
• Notes on contributors
• Preface
• Acknowledgements
• 1 Introduction: transnationalism as a challenge to the nation
• 2 The myth of the controllability of difference: labour migration, transnational communities and state strategies in the Asia-Pacific region
• 3 Spheres of speculation and middling transnational migrants: Chinese Indonesians in the Asia-Pacific
• 4 Citizenship and differential exclusion of immigrants in Japan
• 5 Is there a transnation? Migrancy and the national homeland among overseas Filipinos
• 6 Expatriating is patriotic? The discourse on ‘new migrants’ in the People’s Republic of China and identity construction among recent migrants from the PRC
• 7 From nation to networks and back again: transnationalism, class and national identity in Malaysia
• 8 Indian information technology professionals’ world system: the nation and the transnation in individuals’ migration strategies
• 9 Beyond transnational nationalism: questioning the borders of the Chinese diaspora in the global city
• 10 Democracy, culture and the politics of gate-keeping in Cambodia: the transnation goes home
• 11 Internal transnationalism and the formation of the Vietnamese diaspora
• 12 Shifting the axis: feminism and the transnational imaginary
• Index