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Unraveling Asian globalization
There was a time when the notion of globalization was defined narrowly as the asymmetrical flow of an economic structure from advanced Western countries to developing ones
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There was a time when the notion of globalization was defined narrowly as the asymmetrical flow of an economic structure from advanced Western countries to developing ones.
Under this definition, the source of globalization was those countries that control the most powerful economic and financial structures.
However, Culture, Power and Practices: The Globalization of Culture and its Implications for Asian Regional Transformations, a new collection of articles written by authors hailing mainly from Asian countries ' Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand, Japan, Vietnam and Malaysia ' deconstructs the above idea of globalization and erects a new, more comprehensive understanding.
In analyzing the constructs of culture, identity and power, all the writers concur that globalization is multifaceted in dimension, comprising not only economic systems, but also incessant flows of peoples, ideas, ideologies, cultures, local knowledge and arts.
Using many examples drawn from ethnographical research, the authors introduce a completely different notion of globalization, a sort of 'from the ground up' globalization, or what is commonly dubbed 'globalization from below'.
The authors determine that globalization of this kind has in fact taken place in the Asian countries ' a phenomenon that has transformed these nations into the world's economic and cultural epicenters.
Amid the strong forces of global modernity, with the predominantly Western model often being used as the archetype, the authors attempt to dig up the rich cultural and ideological resources found in Asian countries and through them, show the reader that despite prevailing stereotypes, 'modernity' is far more convoluted, diverse and incoherent than previously assumed. They examine, among other things, Japanese modernity, Islamic modernity and Buddhist modernity.
These multiple modernities are revealed through real examples of globalization occurring in the art, media and performances, as well as the spiritual and historical lives of local communities. These instances are framed by the authors as clear manifestations of typical identity constructions for each Asian country.
Apart from issues of local modernities, the authors see local knowledge and traditional practices long preserved by communities as containing globalizing forces.
Local cultural traditions help reinforce the process of social transformation into modern and globalized communities. Similarly, indigenous people's engagements with local government through hukum adat (customary law) impact political decisions made by governments.
Also, the persistence of local spirituality, traditional culture and tourism, traditional medicine through the consumption of local food, vegetables and herbs, and conventional 'master planning' as a way of life all contribute to the process of local globalization.
Admittedly, globalizing the local is not easy. There are too often clashes between what modern life demands of local communities and what these communities do to safeguard long-practiced cultural traditions, which, in the eyes of modern communities, are often deemed obsolete and out of sync with the spirit of globalization.
For example, one captivating ethnographic study by a Filipino writer compellingly shows the disharmony between local Javanese wisdom and practice of kejawen (a Javanese religious tradition) with modern scientific knowledge of disaster risk reduction, especially in the case of the Mount Merapi eruption in Yogyakarta.
Other significant issues elucidated in the book are related to power relations, individual agency and social justice, which are contextualized in international, regional and local globalization.
Prompted chiefly by the rise of China as an economic giant, some authors are concerned about Chinese ideological and cultural imposition on other Asian nations. Other writers pay specific attention to the possibility of women's participation in politics, analyzed from a Feminist perspective, and discuss issues of gender equality in general.
What lends strength to the book is that the authors represent radically different professions, yet each has an authoritative voice in his/her field: public historian, architect, artist, scholar, movie critic, curator, environmentalist, choreographer, sound designer and journalist.
Furthermore, all the issues discussed are empirically probed using data and a rich insider perspective ' two typical features of ethnographical research. However, one limitation worth mentioning is that some of the articles lack explicit research methodology.
For those passionate about issues on globalization, identity and culture, this book is enlightening and helps generate valuable and refreshing insights. Thus, a reader would be remiss to skip it.
Culture, Power and Practices
Surichai Wun 'Gaeo, Michiko Yoshida, Chadapan Malipan (editors)
Sunta Press, Bangkok; 2013
268 pages
