Laos ethnic group theory

Author: Huang Xingqiu
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-08-01
Features: Contemporary China is an open China. An open China must not only "know itself" but also "know others," understanding the entire world outside China. The "China-ASEAN Studies Series" is a window for Chinese people to explore an important part of the world—Southeast Asia. "Southeast Asia" is a specific geographical concept that emerged during World War II. At that time, Allied nations established the "Southeast Asia Command" to strengthen unified coordination and command in the South Pacific anti-fascist war, covering a vast area including the South Pacific islands and the mainland of Indochina. On August 8, 1967, foreign ministers of Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, and Thailand met in Bangkok and issued the "Declaration on the Establishment of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations" (the Bangkok Declaration), officially proclaiming the founding of ASEAN. By 1999, Brunei, Vietnam, Myanmar, Laos, and Cambodia had joined ASEAN one after another. At this point, all ten Southeast Asian countries had become members of ASEAN. In 2000, East Timor, after a referendum, declared independence from Indonesia and became the youngest country in Southeast Asia. Currently, East Timor has not yet joined ASEAN. In the past, the Chinese referred to Southeast Asia as "Nanyang." After the Opium War and before the founding of the People's Republic of China, many Chinese, especially those from coastal regions, left their hometowns, crossed the seas, and went to Nanyang to seek livelihood and development, commonly known as "going to Nanyang." These were among the earlier Chinese who went abroad and settled overseas, making Southeast Asia one of the most concentrated regions in the world for Chinese overseas communities. They brought Chinese traditional culture and advanced technology to Southeast Asia, while also introducing many new things to China, such as crops like corn, sweet potatoes, and tobacco, which were spread from Southeast Asia to China through overseas Chinese.