Indian Diaspora in South-East Asia

Its Importance, Problems and Prospects

Term paper submitted

in partial fulfilment of the award of the degree of the Master in Arts

Submitted by: Prafulla Rana, IV semester

Centre for the Study of Social Systems, School of Social Sciences,

JNU, New Delhi-110067

Assignment 1: Term Paper Writing Course: South - East Asia foreign relations Submitted to: Prof. Ganganatha Jha

Abstract:

Since the time immemorial, there has been the movement of human beings from one place to the

other. This process was on when there was no concept of the state and even after the emergence of

state boundary this process is still on. People are compelled to move due to various reasons whether

it is the need of a livelihood or the atrocity of the environment, loss of land due to conquest or the

activity of trade. These people now have got a new identity particularly after the reorganisation and

formation of Jew state – Israel. This identity is known as ‘The Diaspora’. It refers to the people living

outside of the parent country (sometimes and somewhere referred by the scholars as mother

country) having a strong cultural and racial continuity with the natives of the mothers country. In the

south-east Asia, there are found a large number of Indian communities because of its relationship

with the region in the distant past and in continuity of it even during the recent period of

globalisation. These people are found in each and every country even in significant numbers except in

Cambodia where the number of Indian diaspora is too meagre. These Indian communities have a

great sense of honour and a rich cultural continuity with India. They observe and celebrate each and

every Indian festival and national days; they seek the Indian system of education and live like Indians

with a huge sense of patriotism and ‘the non-resident nationalism’. They contribute to the Indian

economy, they act as bearers of the great Indian tradition and culture and even they bear a great

strategic significance as we have noticed during the 30s and the 40s when the Indian National

Army(INA) was formed and had great support from this region. Now, with the changing time these

communities are facing a lot of difficulties because of the rise of nationalism and regionalism of these

states and due to the apathy of the local govt. in dealing properly with the Indian diaspora. In this

term paper, an attempt has been taken to illustrate the presence of the India diaspora in this region

and its various problems due to the aforementioned reasons.

Introduction:

Etymologically, the term diaspora is derived from the Greek word ‘Dia’ (through) and

‘Speiro’ (to scatter). Literally, the meaning of diaspora is scattering or dispersion. It was

originally mentioned in the context of Jews or Jewish com-munities scattered in exile

outside Palestine. During the latter half of the twentieth century it is being applied to

dispersal of any ethnic group or community outside the country of their origin. Diaspora is

the term often used today to describe practically any population that is considered

‘Deterritorialized’ or "transnational" that is, which has originated in a land other than in

which it currently resides, and their social, economic, and political networks spreads across

the borders of nation-states or, indeed, span the globe. The so-called diaspora populations

are growing in terms of their numbers and they are expected to play significant roles in the

life of the countries of their adoption as well as the countries of their origin.

According to Arjun Appadurai (1997), “A diaspora implies a deterritorialized fertile ground,

characterized by a global circulation of capital, commodities, and human beings. The

deterritorialized populations, in the abiding sense of placelessness and timelessness, carry

ideas and images from their home-land/motherland/fatherland to the new host setting.”

What has received less attention perhaps is the use of diaspora as a spatial strategy by

globalizing nation-states, especially major powers of civilizational proportions and

predispositions, to reterritorialize its imagination, in the wake of mounting challenges to

their legitimacy, authority, and effectiveness.

The origin and evolution of India diaspora in south-east Asia:

Colonisation of India:

A long history of human mobility and migration notwithstanding, it is only recently that the

Indian diaspora has started receiving the serious and systematic attention of the

intellectuals and institutions of statecraft in India. In a sharp contrast to China's long-

standing policy framework for overseas Chinese, leveraging the expatriate community for

national ends, the Indian government has just begun mapping out the Indian settlements

and communities abroad. The first substantial Indian migrations abroad were dictated and

driven largely by indentured labour arrangements of the nineteenth century. It was against

the backdrop of economic compulsions generated by colonialism that people of Indian

origin began to migrate overseas in significant numbers during the nineteenth century;

initially to the countries of Africa, Southeast Asia, Fiji and the Caribbean. This wave was

triggered mainly due to the enormous demand for cheap labour that arose in the wake of

abolition of slavery by the British in 1833-34.

Migration:

A major chunk of the Indian diaspora found in various parts of the world is due to the cause

of migration. It is basically an economic drive which led the native people to migrate to

those places where they are found now. As it has already been mentioned above, most of

the native Indians left India because of the financial problem that India was going through

the time of British rule. In order to sustain their life they had to migrate to other places to

find a lovely hood and to survive. Indian diasporas found in South-East Asia, Canada,

America, Australia, in the gulf countries and in Saudi Arabian countries just for this reason

only.

Trade and business:

The other factor which created a large amount of Indian diaspora in the south-east Asian

region is the trade and business in that area by the Indian traders. It is a historical action as

most of the cases of trade and merchantry took place in the ancient Indian history when the

traders from the eastern coastal region of India such as Odisha, Bengal, and Andhra etc.

were engaged in such activity with the south-eastern countries like Java, Sumatra, Bali etc.

this is why it supposed to be a factor of creating a sizable amount of diaspora in that region.

Religion:

More or less the factor of religion cannot be ignored in the case of diaspora formation. It is

because, religion has pushed the people to find others in new land who can be persuaded to

embrace and spread that religion. That’s why most of the discovery of sea routes are the

driven by the religious curiosity which precedes the discovery brought about by the drive of

trade. The evidence of spread of Buddhism bears an ample testimony to that effect. It was

believed that in 300 B.C king Asoka had sent his emissary to the regions which now are

situated in the current areas of south-east Asia.

Globalisation:

In the recent period, globalisation has become the major factor of both the migration and

trade which has further accelerated the pace and thus has contributed a lot in forming a

diaspora outside India. It is also an important factor because it has enabled the diaspora to

connect its parent country and extend their loyalty to it.

Indian diaspora in the different countries of South-East Asia:

Brunei:

Most of the India community in Brunei migrated in the 20th century, particularly after the

discovery of oil in 1929 and more prominently from 1950s onward when Brunei’s economy

started expanding. When Brunei introduced new education in the 1950s, there was a large

need of teachers and at that time many of them went from India. Apart from that the major

portion of the construction workers went to Brunei in the last decade. There are around

2500-3000 Indian expatriates who include teachers, businessman, engineers and

construction workers. Social interaction between the Indians and the others including the

Bruneians and expatriates from third countries is limited. The community maintains a low

profile despite of its relatively significant size. Their main areas of settlement are the Kuala

Belait district and the capital Bandar Seri Begawan.

The community makes a conscious effort to preserve its cultural identity and carry on its

cultural traditions. There are also a few churches and some Hindu temples. Majority of the

members are Muslim and for them, Brunei provides a more natural environment. However,

the Hindus have no cultural or religious restrictions. Culturally, the largest segment of the

Indian community comprises of Tamils both Muslims and Hindus. Other sizable groups are

the Malayalees and people from U.P. There are two associations of the Indians in Brunei,

namely, the Indian association of Bandar Seri Begawan and the Indian association of Kuala

Belait. These associations organize functions on the national days, Diwali, Onam etc. there is

Indian chamber of commerce for economic purposes. There is also an evening radio

programme in Hindi.

Cambodia:

There is a small Indian community in Cambodia, numbering around 150. A majority of them

are expatriates working on assignments. There is an India association in Cambodia (IAC). The

present condition in Cambodia poses an opportunity for the Indian groups in Thailand to

explore the possibilities of entering into the Cambodian market. The companies from India

could also look at the Cambodian market more seriously. The tourism and the hospitality

sector are the major areas of interest.

Indonesia:

India involvement in Indonesia long preceded the arrival of the Dutch. However, the Indians

presently in the country are the descendants of those who arrived in the country in

response to the western mercantilism from t he end of 19th century through the late 30s.

Many skilled and semi-skilled workers from the Tamil region went to work in Sumatra with

the Dutch and the English. A major population of the Indian diaspora are concentrated in

the Sumatra region and the rest are found in the areas of Java and Madura. The majority of

the Indian community who arrived here in the 60s and the 70s concentrated more in the

textile business. Gradually the NRIs acquired citizenship after fulfilling the certain conditions

prescribed under the immigration laws. There are no discriminatory policies. Indonesian of

Indian origin, have got the right to franchise in Indonesia.

Most of the Indians are still maintaining their link with India, having properties and bank

accounts in India. The Indian community is culturally very active. They actively organise and

participate in India cultural functions. However, they keep a low profile in the domestic

politics. The economic association of Indonesia and India (ECAII) established by the Indian

business community to promote trade relations is very active. There is an India bazaar called

‘Pasar Bharu’. The Sindhi community has their own association called ‘Gandhi Seva Loka’.

There is an Indian school called “Gandhi memorial international school’. There is also an

Indian club in which all the Indian community members actively participate.

The Indian community has traded well and integrated itself with the local community

because of its long historical relationship with it. Places of religious worship like church,

temple and gurdwara exists in Madan, Jakarta and Surabaya. In addition the Indian film

industry has a wide range of popularity in Indonesia.

Laos:

The Indian community in Laos is very small numbering only 125 persons though the Indians

numbered around 1000 prior to the communist revolution in the previous century. Most of

them are from Tamil Nadu. There are a few Sindhis as well. There are about 18 persons of

Indian origin who have acquired the Lao citizenship. Around 70-80 percent of them are

Muslims. Main areas settlements are Vientiane and Sekong.

The community has integrated itself very well with the local populace. Some of the Indian

settlers in Laos have married to local ladies. There seem to be a very good understanding

between the Indian community and the people of Laos. Most of the members of Indian

community keep a low profile and mainly focus on their day-to-day activity of their business.

The India expatriates in Laos are mostly professionals and well-educated where as a large

number of settlers are not so well educated. Most of t he settlers try to send their children

to India for higher education. India experts in consultancy, particularly in the infrastructure

related projects, business in textile; jewellery and restaurants are active in that region.

India’s contact with Malaysia goes back to the pre-Christian era. However, despite the great

antiquity of the Indian overseas migration to Malay and the debt of Malay culture to ancient

India, there were seldom large numbers of Indians in Malay in the pre-British period. The

bulk of Indians came during the British time as plantation workers. Nearly all the 1.6 million

Indians at present in Malaysia are either themselves immigrants or the descendents of

recent immigrants.

Indian ethnic community consists of mostly the Tamils followed the Keralites, Andhrites,

Bengalis, Punjabis, Sindhis and the Gujuratis. Most of the Indian community is settled in the

Penang state in north Malaysia, in Perak in central Malaysia and the rest in Kuala Lumpur

and Selangar state. The contribution of Indian diaspora to the Malaysia’s total GDP is around

2 percent and it’s share in international trade is around 3 percent.

There are some groups and associations formed due to their educational linkages with India

such as Malaysian Association of Indian University Graduates (MAIUG), Global Organisation

of People of Indian Origin (GOPIO) and Society of Medical Graduates of India and Malaysia

(SOMGRIM). The university of Malaysia has a department of Indian studies which focuses

almost exclusively on the Indian languages and among them special is the Tamil. Indian

culture such as the classical music and dance are regularly promoted by the institutes such

as the temple of fine arts, sutra dance theatre, sektra dance group and tanji kamla dance

group. There are two Indian expatriates association and several associations of persons of

Indian origin.

The Indian community maintains its linkages with India by means of pilgrimage, tourism and

business trips apart from social commitments. The religious activities are permitted by the

local authority within certain guidelines. It is difficult to acquire Malaysian citizenship and

the persons of Indian origin and the non resident Indians with continuous residence of 10-

15 years and having a Malaysian spouse are considered selectively for Malaysian citizenship.

Myanmar:

The origin of the present day Indian community in Myanmar can be traced back to the

second half of the nineteenth century with the establishment of British rule. Britain rules

the country with the help of the Indian soldiers, policemen and civil servants. Indian labour

wad extensively used for developing infrastructure and for construction work. Indian

farmers were being taken to the cultivation of virgin lands by the English and this was later

followed by the Indian zamindaars. Consequently there grew a large Indian community in

Burma and particularly in the city of Yangon and Mandalay, the Indians were a dominant

community. All important spheres of life such as civil services, trade, education, agriculture

and construction were taken over by the Indian community. But the scenario began to

change when the Myanmar attained independence in 1948 and it attempted to nationalise

everything. Later the military takeover in 1962 was followed by a wholesale nationalisation

process which meant replacing English by the Burmese in all teaching establishments and in

the govt. administration. This caused a large exodus of this community into the Indian

territory. Due to lack of the availability of data, the exact size of the Indian community in

Myanmar is in dark. As the information provided by the embassy in Yangon, there are

around 25 lakhs of Indian origin in the country out of which only 2000 hold Indian passports.

The embassy has estimated that there are 13 lakhs Muslims, 8 lakhs Hindus and 4 lakhs

Christians and Sikhs.

The Indian community in Myanmar is not well off as most of them are engaged in petty

works such as domestic help, construction work, mechanics and farming.

The Philippines:

Recent studies suggest that there has been remarkable Indic influence on the language,

literature as well as the social customs of the Philippines. Some of the pre-Islamic influences

are more pronounced in the cultures of the Tausungs, the Maguindanaos and the Maranaos.

In the literature for instance, ‘Maharadia Lawana’ is based upon the story of Ramayana.

Similarly there are found certain names which has got the Sanskrit origin and have not been

completely islamised. The names such as Nagasura, Madale, Gadia, Mitra, Laxmana, Rajda

and Salipada etc bear the testimony. It gives an overview that India had a significant

influence on the region of Philippines at a particular time in history.

A majority of the Indians in the Philippines are settled in Manila whereas some are present

in other towns of the country as well. The Sindhi community in the Philippines is mainly

engaged in the trade and manufacturing whereas the Punjabis are dealing in money lending.

There are two Indian joint ventures in artificial yarn production. Indians have a dominant

position in manufacturing and export of garments there are many gurdwaras and Hindu

temples.

There is monthly English magazine known as ‘Samachar’ which is run by the sindhis

community. In addition, business and industry representatives from India are engaged in

joint ventures in the Philippines and multinational companies such as Birla, Kirloskars and

Dalmias have made Manila as their business base in south-east Asia.

Singapore:

The nucleus of the present Indian origin community in Singapore was formed by those who

were with sir Stamford Raffles, the East India company officer, who arrived in Singapore in

1829 to establish a base there to arrange protection and provision for the East India

Company. From 1830 onwards, large immigrant group, mainly the Tamilians were brought

in by the British as indentured labourers to work in the plantations, civil projects etc. it was

followed by the immigration of the Indian traders.

In cultural terms, the Indian community is the most diverse of Singapore’s ethnic

communities. About 64 percent are of the Tamil origin and Tamil is one of the four

languages together with Chinese, Malay and English. There is also a sizable Punjabi, mainly

the sikh community, most of whom arrived in Singapore as members of the British army and

police. The other distinct Indians are the Malayalis, Sindhs, and the Gujaratis. Indians are

also the most religiously diverse of Singapore’s ethnic categories. According to the

information of the Indian high commission, the Indian community in Singapore are content

with their life. The authorities in Singapore have provided them with facilities like housing ,

schooling and have recognised the cultural tradition as well. In matter of religion, it can be

said that all the major religions found in India are represented in Singapore. There are

temples, Gurdwara, Mosques and even there is the presence of a branch of the

Ramakrishna Mission. The govt. has allocated one radio and one TV channel exclusively for

the Indian community. The programmes in the channels are mainly in Tamil.

Thailand:

The presence of Indians who have settled in Thailand can be traced back to more than 100

years ago. Some Indians have been settled there 3-4 generations. The earliest group to have

been in sizable numbers to Thailand appear to have been the Tamils. Phukhet in southern

Thailand seems to have been the first area that experienced a spill over of tamils from

Penang and peninsular Malaysia. Most of them went there to participate in the cattle trade

and the mining of precious stones, with service groups like the Chettiyars following them. As

Bangkok became the commercial and business hub, the tamils also moved to it from Phuket,

Penang and Singapore. Almost all the Indians in Thailand are found in urban centres. About

75 percent of them live in Bangkok. The other urban centres, where the Indians are found in

large numbers, include Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, and Lampang all in the northern Thailand.

The largest component of the Indian community id the Sikhs numbering around thirty to

thirty five thousands followed by the Hindus numbering between fifteen to eighteen

thousands originally from west Punjab. They are followed by the persons from UP,

Maharashtra, Gujarat and south India. A majority of the community is well established

mainly in the textile industry, real estate, gem and the jewellery business. They have been

playing a very active role in the economy of Thailand.

Culturally the Indian diaspora of Thailand is very much interested in the Indian culture. A

large number of religious and cultural organisations have been formed by the PIOs. It is very

active and organises various Indian cultural programmes and events from time to time. It

has adopted and integrated itself with the local population and the environment also. It

does not take much interest in political activities, whether at the local level or at the

national level.

Most of the persons of Indian origin have attained the Thai citizenship and they have also

been issued long term visas by the Indian mission in the country to enable them to visit

India. They visit frequently and remain in touch with the motherland. There is found a trend

among them to send their children to India for higher study. Consequent upon the down

turn of the thai economy since 1997, the Indian community has shown interest in

investment in various projects in India. They are now playing a major role in the current

BIMST-EC.

Vietnam:

It is reported that prior to the reunification of Vietnam in 1975, there existed a wealthy

Indian community of over 25000 in south Vietnam with a large concentration in Ho Chi Minh

city, most of the members hailing from Tamil Nadu and Bombay. They were engaged in

petty trade such as textile, jewellery, general merchandise retailing and service profession.

A number of Chettiyars concentrated in the Ho Chi Minh city were prosperous

moneylenders. The Indians who migrated into Vietnam in the recent past are working as

professionals. They are well educated. Many of them are engineers and accountants. Most

of them are the Indian representatives of Indian companies in Vietnam. There are virtually

no unskilled works in the Indian community. The main areas of settlement are Ho Chi Minh

City and Hanoi. Due to the close political ties between India and Vietnam nurtured since the

era of Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and president Ho Chi Minh, there is a great warmth

among the Vietnamese for India. The Indians are, therefore, easily acceptable and are

identified as traditional partners by the Vietnamese. Moreover, progress made by India in

the recent few years in the fields of computer software and information technology and

achievements like Green Revolution and White Revolution have also helped boost India’s

image in this country. Apart from it , the Indian educational system and the cinema are quite

appreciated here. This community is quite active culturally. Major Indian festivals like Diwali

and Holi are celebrated in Hanoi and the Ho Chi Minh City. There are four Hindu temples

and a mosque, all located in the Ho Chi Minh City. There is also a Gurdwara located in Hanoi.

Under the cultural exchange programme, the ICCR sends cultural troupes to Vietnam every

year.

Problems and demands of these Indian diaspora in the south-east Asi:

Being a separate community and that too remaining apart from its mother country, the

Indian diaspora faces a lot of difficulties in the south-east Asia region. The problems are due

to various reasons such as the type of government in the country, the attitude of the local

people towards them and lastly the degree of sympathy received from the parent country.

In case of the Indian diaspora situated in the south-east Asian region, most of the problem

faced by them are due to the either the attitude of the local people with them and the stand

of the local government. For example, we see that most of the problems faced by the Indian

diaspora is due to the antipathy of the Burmese government and the nationalistic attitude

of the Burmese people.

In Brunei there are the demands of assistance from the govt. of India on consular matters

like faster and quicker verification of passport particulars. They clamour for the issue of a

larger passport booklet in place of the present one which consists of only 60 pages and the

issue of new passport at least one and a half year before the expiry of the current passport.

The other demands are the grant of dual citizenship, the right to vote in their respective

local constituencies in India and at last the demand of a regular flight of Air India from

Brunei to Chennai as most of them belong to Tamil Nadu. In Malaysia also there has been

the demand of setting a cultural centre in Malaysia and regular assistance by the govt. of

India. They seek to open educational branches of Indian universities in Malaysia a regular

flight between Kuala Lumpur and Cochin or Thiruvananthapuram.

The PIOs of the Philippines expect to have dual citizenship so that they can participate in the

Indian elections. They also look forward to India for educational opportunities of their

children. Some members of the Indian community have brought to the notice of the Indian

embassy problems faced by them in obtaining long-term visas and permanent residence

status for their Indian spouses. These are some of the demands and problems faced by the

community living in the South East Asian region. As being non resident Indians they are

significantly contributing to the economy of India and as being the persons of Indian origin

they are playing a great role in continuing the Indian culture and tradition there. So they are

significant for the Indian state economically, culturally, and strategically also as like as the

regular citizens of this country. It is the need of the hour that they are provided with every

kind help they need and steps be taken to integrate into the mainstream of Indian economy

and culture.

References:

Devare, Sudhir. 2006, India and South-east Asia: Towards security convergence,

Singapore, Institute for South East Asian Studies.

Jha, Ganganath, 2010, India and South-East Asia: Introspection for future

partnership, New Delhi, Anamika Publishers and Distributers Pvt. Ltd.

K. Kesavapany, A. Mani & Palanisamy Ramasamy. 2008, Rising India and Indian

communities in east Asia, Singapore, Institute for South East Asian Studies.

Sandhu, K. S & Mani, 1993, A. Indian communities in south-east Asia, Singapore,

Institute for South East Asian Studies.

Thompson, Virginia & Adloff, 1955, Ritchard. Minority problem in south-east Asia,

New York, Institute of Pacific Studies.

Indian community in south-east Asia, V. Suryanarayana, Dialogue Quarterly, Sept

2003, Pp – (105-08).

Kapoor, D. 2003. Indian diaspora as a strategic asset. Economic and Political Weekly,

February.