Diaspora Engagement

Abstract

Abstract This chapter reflects on what factors condition different Southeast Asian states’ responses to China’s influence in the region. It introduces a conceptualization of diaspora politics and how it affects Southeast Asian states’ relations with China. The chapter details the history of Chinese migration to the region and the different patterns of treatment migrants have received in Southeast Asia, using Indonesia, Myanmar, and Thailand as examples. The chapter then analyzes China’s changing diaspora governance practices in the context of its miraculous rise in recent decades by pointing out how such a changing power dynamic matters for Beijing’s relations with its diaspora and the three countries in Southeast Asia. The chapter concludes with some reflections on how the dynamics of diaspora politics is one important aspect that will continue to define China is perceived by regional states in Southeast Asia and their future relations.