Chinese Diasporas: In the wake of the Dragon’s Beckon

First, allow me to do some confession...
This was sometime in December 1974

“Jab-pun?” A fellow guest in a hotel lift in Kathmandu broke the silence while we were going up the floors.

“No, Malaysian Chinese.” I answered.

He took another good look at me. Sounding a little incredulous, he asked again, “China?”

And when I shook my head, he followed up with, “where is Malaysia?”

“A country in Southeast Asia, north of Singapore.”

Everyone in the world already knew Japan. It was the emerging economic power. To a Nepalese then, every well-attired East Asian-looking man had to be Japanese, I supposed, since only Japanese could travel and stay in style then.

I was sent to attend a week-long foundry technology workshop under a UNIDO sponsorship in Calcutta. I took the opportunity to swing to Nepal for sight-seeing, since it was “just next door”. Naturally, I was in my best – a new suit, complete with necktie.

Chinese in China were blue ants then!

Nonetheless, I continued to take pride in my Confucian Chineseness – its pre-Qing (清  ) history, especially in the periods of Han (汉), Tang (唐) and Sung (宋), the writing of Kung-tze (孔子), Men-tze (孟子), Lao-tze (老子), Sun-tze (孙子) and many others, classics such as the Annals of the Three Kingdoms (三国演义), Water Margin (水浒传), Romance of The Red Chamber (红楼梦), Journey to the West (西游记), Canonization of Deities (封神榜), etc, and the more modern writings from scholars like Lu Shun (鲁迅). His “Ah Q’s Biography (阿Q正传)” has had a profound impact on the way I conduct myself in life. I was also fascinated by Jin Yong’s (金庸) martial arts series, even though we all knew they were outlandish tales. (I loved his mastery in connecting the protagonists in his stories to the historical facts of the time!)

Even when I had to go to China often on Genting Group’s errands in the early 1990s, I would always attract some curiosity, probably because of the way I spoke and dressed. To those foreign visitors and locals who cared to ask whether I was Chinese or where I came from, I would always make it a point to assert, “Malaysian Chinese.” As if I was one class higher!

How silly I could be then! 

********

Earlier Waves

The Mighty Ming’s Armada

Chinese began to settle down in Southeast Asia as early as the 1400s, when Admiral Zheng He, who was a Muslim, of the Ming court made epic voyages down south and several in his entourages remained behind to transform the political landscapes in the Malay Archipelago. (Lynn Pan in her book Sons of Yellow Emperor (1990) has chronicled this very extensively; however, Arab records did say that Chinese were already migrating and settling down afar in the 7^th to 8^th and the 10^th centuries. Professor Wang Gungwu, the doyen of academic authorities on China history and culture, says Chinese have lived in the Indonesian Archipelago since at least the 13^th century.)

One of the historical facts that many Indonesians today are still not aware of is the ethnic origin of a national hero of theirs: Trenggana. He was the son of the founder of Demak Dynasty in East Java, a Muslim Chinese named Cek Kok Po who adopted the name Raden Patah. It was Trenggana who in 1521 started to expand his reign westwards. Java turned green after that. (Paul Michel Munoz, Early Kingdoms of the Indonesian Archipelago and the Malay Peninsula (2006)) (President Abdurrahman Wahid, popularly known as Gus Dur (1940-2009), could also trace his lineage to a Chinese Muslim missionary in Fujian.) There are also claims that the Malacca sultanate’s Hang Tuah and Hang Jebat were also Chinese; however, I am in no position to verify.

 

The Demak expansion, thanks to Admiral Zheng He

 

Borobudur, a 7th-century Mahayana Buddhist temple in Central Java

 

I dare argue that it was Admiral Zheng He that helped Islamized the whole Malay Archipelago, which together with the great Khmer Empire (9^th -15^th century) was hitherto Hindu/Buddhist.

Abject Poverty: The Driving Force
But the big wave came only when abject poverty began to overwhelm China in the dying days of the Qing dynasty, especially in the southern provinces of Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, and the island of Hainan. Hunger forced them to seek new lives in South Sea (南洋), which was not too far a destination down the coast. The more adventuresome ones braved the oceans and sailed further.

1840s saw thousands braved the journey to the gold mountains in America, Australia and even New Zealand in search of gold, despite the treacherous waters. Apparently, in 1861, almost 40,000 or 3.3% of the Australian population had been born in China! From 1863 to 1869, roughly 15,000 workers went to America to help build the transcontinental railroad there. And in World War 1, some 14,000 labourers signed up to serve the British and French forces.

Left: Chinese gold diggers in California; Right: Building cross-continental railroad in the US

                    

   Left: Modern day gold penners (the author’s grandchildren!) in Ballarat, Australia; Below: a largely forgotten Chinese temple north of Queensland. Apparently Chinese introduced groundnuts to the region.

 

Author in Arrow Town, one of the first Chinese settlements in New Zealand

 

Many made good, especially in South Sea (南洋) – the then Malaya, sub-continental Southeast Asia, Dutch Indonesia, even Portuguese East Timur. And they continued to look to the Qing court for recognition. They remained “Chinese” in every aspect of their social life.

The Adaptation to Local Realities
After a generation or two, some became totally assimilated in their adopted land, especially those who settled down in the Philippines and Siam (Thailand then). Filipino national hero José Rizal’s (1861-1896) ancestry could be traced to Fujian. King Rama I (1737-1809) was partly Chinese, so was his predecessor, King Taksin (1734-1782) whose Chinese father hailed from Chaozhou.

Indonesian Chinese went through a more tumultuous time, often at the mercy of the Dutch colonial government. Chinese in the then Malaya (which included Singapore) felt more welcomed, albeit simmering discontent about their hold of the economy. Singapore has become a country that is predominantly Chinese, but thick with western observances.

But in South Sea, Chineseness stays strong…
However, after the overthrow of the Qing dynasty in China, many threw their lot for Sun Yat-sen (孫逸仙/孫中山/孫文). When the then Malaya was invaded by Japan, many local Chinese, after seeing the ineptitude of the Chiang Kai-shek regime in China, became resistance fighters and converted to Communist causes. When the British returned, they tried unsuccessfully to bring them into the fold, and this resulted in the declaration of Emergency (1948-1960) which forced them to go underground. Many young men and women packed up to return to China. However, the bulk remained, since China was no longer a motherland.

Elsewhere in Southeast Asia, this phenomenon was only visible in Indonesia when many chose to return in the wake of Suharto’s purge. But today, save for some pockets where there are still underlying lurking hostilities towards ethnic Chinese, Indonesian Chinese are generally happy where they are. They are proud to be Indonesian and in their Independence Day celebrations, even those who have since migrated to Australia and elsewhere would make it a point to gather at their respective embassies or consulates to pledge loyalty to the nation.

In the Western World, the Inevitability of Anglicization
Not so in the US, Australia, New Zealand, and Europe. Here is a different phenomenon altogether.

Early Chinese settlers were largely marginalized or suppressed by the Whites, not only socially but in an institutionalized manner, in these countries. In the US, you have the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, in Canada, the Chinese Immigration Act of 1923, in Australia, the Immigration Restriction Act of 1902 (more commonly known as the White Australia Policy), and in New Zealand, the Chinese Immigrants Act of 1881.

Few could grow roots under these institutionalized situations, many therefore packed their bags and returned to China. Those who remained slowly became anglicized. In Australia, I often ran into people with Chinese surnames and upon inquiry they confirmed their great or great-great grandfather was Chinese. But few had anything more to offer other than this fact.

No New Waves, But Dribs and Drabs to the West
Taiwan from the 1960s…
After China came under Communist rule, Taiwan actually became a favourite choice for those Chinese-educated Southeast Asian Chinese who wanted to further their studies. (Going to China was not an option; few Chinese dared to openly associate themselves with the “motherland” in the wake of anti-Communist stances taken by countries like Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand.) However, many Taiwanese themselves were also looking out to migrate to America, especially those who followed Chiang Kai-Shek to the island, and those who wanted to do post graduate degrees.

From Southeast Asia after the 1960s
Suharto’s New Order after he came to power in Indonesia in 1966 did prompt some ethnic Chinese there to return to China. However, most remained and became assimilated. However, they did retain their culture albeit on a low-key basis until Gus Dur became the president, when he was happy for Chinese to practise their traditions.

Malaysia’s ethnic Chinese population could roughly be divided into the English-educated and the Chinese-educated. Siblings in the same family would end up in different medium schools. Some like the author had the benefit of both – primary education in Chinese and secondary and beyond, English.

From young, we already understood the need to live harmoniously with our schoolmates. Then came the racial riot in May 1969. We became acutely conscious of our racial origin. The affirmative policy that followed was hurting. We realized we were about to become second-class citizens.

We lay low and kept to our books. Fortunately, the economy picked up, thanks to Japan’s industrialization. American and European money was also pouring in.

Nonetheless, many had already begun to contemplate migration, the favourite destinations being Australia and New Zealand. Others just drove across the Causeway. Jobs were plentiful in Singapore and Malaysians were very welcomed. But going to destinations like Australia was not a piece of cake. A coffin maker, or a nurse, or a hairdresser stood a better chance of getting admitted than a trained engineer!

A Story About a Friend…
This was in 1974. I remember I had a colleague who was hell-bent to migrate to Australia then. He had a first-class honours degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of New South Wales. Even though he had been officially offered a place to do his post-graduate in his alma mater, the High Commission in Kuala Lumpur would not issue him the necessary visa. Out of desperation, he camped out at the High Commissioner’s official residence. At the first instance when he saw the High Commissioner’s wife emerging, he rushed to approach her. He was literally on his knees. He finally got his visa!

Moving forward, this friend of mine, who had long settled down in Sydney, did not live up to his dreams. Much of his life was spent as a junior engineer in one of the state’s utility authorities. He has since retired and has to count on pension to sustain his very modest lifestyle. He has two children, both of whom are totally ignorant of things Chinese. I do not believe he is happy with his circumstances.

Elsewhere…
In Melbourne I often met Malaysian Chinese who had “jumped” ship and stayed illegally to earn a living. They knew the score. Upon their exit, their passports would be stamped “No Entry Allowed for X Years.” Those unlucky ones who got caught faced swift deportation.

Ditto many who went to the US, Canada, and Europe, especially the UK, under similar circumstances. They are living under the radar but what if McCarthyism 2.0 intensifies? (A distant relative and his wife jumped ship more than 40 years ago. They are now living in a predominantly Chinese quarter of San Francisco. They possess no green card but strangely, their children were able to attend Yale. Another friend disappeared suddenly but only to write to tell me months later that he had landed himself a job in London’s Chinatown. I am sure many readers do have comparable stories to share.)

The bulk of immigrants are of course legal. They had done their tertiary education in these countries and were happy to return to settle there. There is also a group who were disillusioned with their existing environment and were looking for greener pastures.

This propensity to take chances to change status quo leads to something I have always wanted to say about we Chinese in general.

In most societies, people who are plagued by poverty or calamities would usually be resigned to their fate and continue to stay put. Not Chinese. They would uproot and move on.

I was intrigue by what Silvana Condemi wrote in her A Pocket History of Human Evolution (2019). She says scientific consensus is that Homo sapiens left Africa about 60,000 years ago. However, the latest research shows that earlier migrations took place, one reaching China more than 100,000 years ago. Homo sapiens only entered preglacial Europe, Siberia, and northeaster Asia around 45,000 years ago.

People moved to look for food those days. Were these 100,000-year-old Homo sapiens the forebears of Chinese today? If so, does it say something about our DNA? The branch that was heading to China obviously did not wait to be “pitied” or “saved” or for food to run out.

Hua-jiao (华侨)and Hua-ee (华裔)- Need to Split Hair?
Professor Wang makes it a point to distinguish between Hua-jiao and Hua-ee. I began to appreciate his philosophy in making this distinction. I should not call myself a Hua-jiao anymore, since the term would imply that my motherland was still China. Being a Malaysian, my future was with this country. I should instead call myself a Hua-ee – someone whose heritage is Chinese but living in an adopted country.

Except for the diehards, most Hua-ees did not hold any great affinity for the China then. The China of the 1960s was turned upside down by the Cultural Revolution. News flowing back from relatives in China gave a very pathetic account of lives there.

Achievements by its ping-pong team, however, remained a source of immense pride to us. The “Ping-Pong” diplomacy was played out, which paved the way for Richard Nixon to visit China in 1972. Even then, everything about China was largely doctrinaire and Maoist There was not much to be proud of really, until Deng Xiaoping got rehabilitated. The rest is history.

It was not until the late 2010s that I began to realise the China I used to frown upon had changed. It had become a nation that the world would henceforth hold in awe. Then I began to turn to the writings of Professor Wang Gungwu, to understand the background leading to the reemergence of China.

The West’s Demonization of China – A New Awakening
Millions of Hong Kongers are said to qualify for BN(O) and there is also Biden’s offer of “safe haven” to Hong Kong residents in the US. These were dished out by the UK and the US for only one purpose: To spite China. It has nothing to do with their “care” or “love,” or “concern” for Hong Kongers. These were political decisions of Boris Johnson and Joe Biden, not something that is popularly supported because there was a real calamity coming out of that island. Simply put, these are lip-services devoid of any “heart-felt” touch.

How many Hong Kongers will take up these offers? My guess is that only the hardcore Yellow Bananas will.

Once the fundamental issues of Hong Kongers’ unhappiness are addressed, namely, (a) poor housing availability and affordability for wage earners and (b) the lack of pride in Chineseness amongst the young (as a result of years of indoctrination in the education system), Hong Kongers will surely come around to accept they are in fact Chinese.

With the type of Sinophobia that is playing out in the US, Canada, the UK, and Australia, which were the traditional destinations for those who want to seek a new life, migration has now come to a crawl.

Putting up a Brave Front out of Status Quo
To the author, the waves of the Chinese immigration over the last two hundred years are an aberration in Chinese anthropology. Be that as it may, there are already at least 50 million ethnic Chinese outside China.

The Chinese in Southeast Asia are already in their third, fourth or even fifth generation. They are generally loyal to their country but are proud of their Chinese roots. Perhaps 70% of the top 20 richest men in Malaysia and Singapore are Chinese, so are many tycoons in Thailand, Indonesia, and the Philippines. And many are extremely philanthropic – greats like Malaysia’s Robert Kuok and Jeffrey Cheah, Thailand’s Dhanin Chearavanont (Chia Kok Min), Tahir (Ang Tjoen Ming), the Philippines’ Henry Sy Sr, and Singapore’s Lawrence Lien and Lee Seng Tee, and many others. The societies’ professional class are thick with Chinese doctors, lawyers, engineers, accountants, IT experts, etc. Many of them are world-class. Most of the successful small and medium enterprises are owned by them too.

With the reemergence of China, these diasporas have generally adopted a new worldview about China. They can be more openly proud of China, even though they may not be entirely comfortable with the political system there. They no longer have to worry about natives’ perceptions of Chinese, from to be spat-upon coolies on one extreme to exploiters of their land on the other.

However, I cannot say this for those first-generation immigrants in the western world, though.

The New Chinese Sin-kehs[1] in the West
They have crossed the Rubicon and there was no way they could turn history back. Many have become reasonably comfortable in their adopted country – decent job, decent house, decent car, and decent-what-have-you. Some have made great fortunes, like David Teoh and wife of the TPG Telecom fame in Australia. Many have achieved national or international recognition professionally. But their numbers are few and far between. By and large, there is always a glass ceiling, in politics and in corporate offices.

With the way the Western politicians are demonizing the China now, impact on local Chinese is definitely going to be profound, even though these politicians insist they are not targeting China or Chinese. They are just being hypocritical in declaring this.

This is likely going to create a sense of identity loss and even inferiority complex amongst their Next Gens.

And this worries me.

Most of them were born or brought up young in their parents’ new adopted country. Few get to know much about China or Chinese during their formative years. Learning Chinese in a foreign land where few speak the language is a dreadful effort to many. Many parents are therefore content to leave them to their own circle of friends or devices. And some grow up to become quite ashamed of their heritage in the process.

Besides these Next Gens, there is also another shamed-to-be-Chinese source. These are mainly young students heading to America to do their advanced degrees. They are usually state-sponsored scholars and have come from very humble backgrounds. Theirs would be their first-time out to a new new world. They are like Grandma Liu (刘老老) visiting the grand mansion (大观园) in the novel Romance of the Red Chamber (红楼梦), or Convent girls going to Hollywood, or Alice getting lost in the Wonderland, or Cinderella meeting a prince.

Thus, many would succumb to the so-called Patricia Hearst[2]’s syndrome. Generally, they have no compunction in buying into views which are anti-Mainland China and even their own very heritage.

They write venomously about China for New York Times or the Wall Street Journal, they supply fake research reports to western think tanks, or be anchored men or ladies for Aljazeera. So on and so forth.

A New Trend in the Making?
Chinese in the western world, even if there is no anti-Asian racism, will slowly get fully melted into the big multi-cultural pot. They may marry an Asian, but who knows when it comes to the next generation, and the following?

Even in majority-Chinese Singapore, HSBC Bank is now running an advertisement featuring a Chinese woman getting married to a South Asian and the news was well received by her parents in China. They represent the sophisticated elites of the two societies.

The HSBC way: Born in China and India, married in London, settling down in Singapore? And producing Olympiad champions in Mathematics and other Sciences?

 

To me, this is perfectly fine. As long as there is no racism. Genetic strengthening through DNA exchanges is always good for the future of humanity, isn’t it?

Chinese Vs Chinese: Christianity the Seed of It? Or Just Not the Right Understanding?
Let us reflect a little…

It is the intolerance of Chineseness amongst our Next Gens that I find in many about which I am most concerned. I like to put forward a thesis that many may find uncomfortable about.

Old China had traditionally been a Daoist society. On philosophy and wisdom, they could count on sages like Kung-tze (孔子), Men-tze (孟子), Lao-tze (老子), Sun-tze (孙子) and many others. Buddhism got a big boost under the Tang (唐) emperors and became the state religion after that. Despite this, Islam and even Judaism were tolerated.

 

However, Christianity was made illegal during the Ming (明) dynasty. The religion was thought utterly strange and incomprehensible to the Chinese. During the dying days of the Qing dynasty, Jesuits was able to establish an enclave in Macau. They introduced western science, astronomy, and cartography but as we all know, their primary mission was to bring Catholicism to China; They were able to convert several who were close to the imperial court. Soon the protestants followed. By 1840s China became their major destination. They set up schools and hospitals but achieved few mass conversions. It was not until the Taiping (太平)Rebellion (1850-1864) when Hong Xiuquan (洪秀全), who called himself the younger brother of Jesus Christ, established the Heavenly Kingdom of Great Peace (太平天国)with the capital at Nanjing that Christianity became widely followed. At its height, it ruled over about 30 million people. It was eventually put down by the Qing army with a death toll of between 20 and 30 million.

It is said that Yung Wing (容闳 Róng Hóng, 1828-1912) was the first Chinese student to graduate from an American university, the Yale College. After finishing his studies, Yung returned to China and worked with western missionaries as an interpreter. He first gravitated to the Taiping rebels, but in 1863 turned around and was dispatched by the all-powerful Zeng Guofan (曾国藩) to the United States to buy machinery necessary for opening an arsenal in China. He persuaded the Qing court to send young Chinese to America to study Western science and engineering. With the government's eventual approval, he organized what came to be known as the Chinese Educational Mission, which saw 120 young Chinese students sent to study in the US beginning in 1872. The Educational Mission was disbanded in 1881, but many of the students later returned to China and made significant contributions to China's civil services, engineering, and the sciences. Yung and most of these students were amongst the first to become intellectual Christians, which is just natural, given the decadence and the feudalism they personally had to endure at that time.

But soon foreign missionaries became a prime target of attack and murder by Boxers in 1900.

The fortune of Christianity in China took a great turn when many early leaders of the Chinese Republic converted, the most prominent of whom is none other than Sun Yat-sen (孫逸仙/孫中山/孫文). In 1915 Sun married Soong Ching-ling (宋庆龄) whose father was the American-educated Methodist minister Charlie Soong (宋嘉澍), who made a fortune in banking and in printing bibles. He was followed by Chiang Kai-Shek (蔣介石/蔣中正) who took the hand of a younger Soong sister. Christianity in China never looked back since then.

The earlier Chinese hostility to the missionary was based on the fact that Western Christianity was utterly strange and incomprehensible to the Chinese. The Boxer Uprising was in large part a reaction against the spread of the religion in China.

Why have I deviated to talk about Christianity?

Following the decline of China, the elites in China began to consider the Confucian or Ru (儒) school of thoughts as archaic. Practices in Daoism (道教) and Buddhism (佛教)were deemed superstitious. Only Christianity could save China.

Today, maybe as many as 20% of the Chinese diasporas are Christians, the rest practise a blend of Daoism and Buddhism and the Confucian or Ru traditions as their guiding faith in life. But maybe 70% or more of the Next Gens in the west, Hong Kong, and Taiwan, are Christian or pro-Christian.

While many amongst Chinese Christians have understood the distinction between religion and culture, some literally treat them as inseparable. To be a Christian, you have to cleanse yourself of anything deemed “traditional Chineseness,” aka superstitions, in the conduct of your life. And anything about Mainland China is no-no Communism. This mindset is now deeply etched, particularly the younger ones, in the west, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Singapore.

Have we wondered why overseas Japanese are so proud of their heritage? Some may be Christians, but they still pay respects to their Zen temples. And how many Chinese Christians will pick up joss sticks to honour their departed loves ones?

To rebuild the civilizational pride in them is a tall order, but without which, China will always face “subtle sabotages” from their own kind in the western world, or in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore. They are convinced of the evil of China and are more than happy to help destroy “Communist” China.

Need for Realignment and How Can China Help?

With the national security law in place, Hong Kong has finally nipped the “not proud to be Chinese” cancer (of its detractors and saboteurs) in the bud. With the right leadership, a new sense of belonging will surely grow. (The pro-west organisations are quick to realise their folly and have started to disband themselves.)

However, the pro-Independence leaders in Taiwan are still blind to the inevitability of history. As long as they are in power, they remain the cancer in the Chinese souls. With the ignominious exit of the US forces in Afghanistan, let us hope a lesson can be learned by these leaders in Taiwan.

China can serve its Hua-ee by projecting a Strong but Gentle image. I am extremely impressed with its performance in Tokyo Olympics 2020. Besides the medals its athletics won in their traditional turfs of table tennis, badminton, gymnastics, and diving, they have made headway into fencing (Sun Yi Wen) and track and field (Su Bingtian). Such feats exude a great deal of freshness in the minds of the Hua-ee young.

   
       Sun Yin Wen

Need for a Deep Reflection…
I call on all Chinese to make an effort to understand their roots. I am not asking them to be disloyal to the country of their adoption. I just want to say that spirituality is NOT incompatible with our culture. The fact that China can remain distinctively Chinese is because of the sustenance of its 3,000 years (or more) of cultural practices. No other civilization has come close to this. Be proud even if you cannot help to sustain, but do not sabotage, consciously or unconsciously.

Parents amongst diasporas have had a key role to play in this. Do not just leave the things to the devices of your children.

Communication is challenging when most of Chinese diasporas in the western world have already lost proficiency in Chinese language. China, please take note: The means to win the hearts and minds of Hua-ees is through English, English, English!

English is the only language most Hua-ees know. The uniqueness of China’s history, and the philosophies expounded by its sages, and the contributions it made in science, art, and literature should be conveyed in good English. Illustrations should be done with great taste. Those moral stories that have been handed down generation after generation are often poorly depicted. They may suit traditional taste buds, but they can look very infantile or ridiculous to those who are brought up in the western or pseudo-western worlds. (The late Lim Goh Tong erected a temple in honour of a hometown deity in Genting Highlands. He commissioned artisans in Fujian to specifically carved out a series of granite tablets to exemplify filial piety. One of the tables depicted a son offering his arm to mosquitoes so that they would not bite his mother. How silly?)

The translations in museums and cultural sites all over China are also another case in point. They should be totally redone.

The New Good Warriors

Good stories will prompt them to trace their roots. And discover Confucianism. Few Next Gens outside China watch CGTN channels or read China Daily. Apps like TikTok is the way to go to rein them back.

Lai Yue Qian (赖岳谦)

 

I love to tune in to listen to this Taiwanese scholar-thinker, Lai Yue Qian(赖岳谦). Lai specializes on cross-strait issues between China and Taiwan. He is a regular guest commentator at CGTN. He also podcasts his analyses on world affairs via Facebook's "Watch" video links. His thoughts are incisive. He strongly believes in the unification of Taiwan. I wish all he says can be translated for the western-educated Chinese. Any Chinese would certainly be proud of him.

End

  

Acknowledgement

This is a truncated version of a composition penned by the author – to spare readers of the details which they may find too self-centric.

The author would like to thank his da-jie (Big sister) Ms Lau Chee Eng, good friend Ms Lilian Low, school and university mate Mr Chew Hai Hong and university mate Major (Rtd) Ng Chun Ho for taking the trouble to read through the manuscript and helped correct many typos and grammatical mistakes. They have also made many suggestions and they have largely been incorporated.

The views expressed by the author above are strictly his. Some may find them objectionable. Please feel free to disagree. Facts are all from secondary sources. He stands corrected.

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[1] A South Fujianese term for new arrivals (新客).

[2] An American heiress; kidnapped in 1974 but turned a sympathizer of the abductors