Development and Negative Constructions of Ethnic Identity: Responses to Asian Fisheries Investment in the Pacific

Abstract

This article explores ethnic identities in representations of tuna fishing and canning companies in Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea. One point raised by the analysis is that while national identities in these countries are often disrupted by subnational ethnic identities, strong nationalist discourses pervade representations of these companies. The nationalism apparent in responses to these companies is negative, reacting against perceived exploitation by foreigners through narratives of corporate wrongdoing. This article investigates the significance of this style of identification and questions whether the national identities entailed in negative representations of foreign investment constitute resistance against development or a disempowering victim identification that reifies a subordinate position in the world political economy.

Israeli Technicians and the Post‐Colonial Racial Triangle in Papua New Guinea

“…Where whitemen can be accommodated into Kamula socialities, Chinese are regarded as hard, greedy, and dishonest people who lack Christian ethics and who cannot be brought into the kinds of relationships that constitute 'real men', unlike Kamula or whitemen (Wood 1995:42). More broadly in Melanesia, Asians are widely seen as improperly using their mastery of modernity, particularly business skills, to intrude into and undermine the economic well-being of Melanesians, eliciting a 'reactive nationalism' (Barclay 2012). These sentiments erupted into large-scale anti-Asian riots during my fieldwork in 2009.…”

“…More broadly in Melanesia, Asians are widely seen as improperly using their mastery of modernity, particularly business skills, to intrude into and undermine the economic well‐being of Melanesians, eliciting a ‘reactive nationalism’ (Barclay ). These sentiments erupted into large‐scale anti‐Asian riots during my fieldwork in 2009.…”

Unequal Lives in the Western Pacific

“…While many Melanesians enter into advantageous arrangements with Asian migrants, and many people draw a distinction between 'old' and 'new' Asians (Crocombe, 2007), there remains a deep suspicion and resentment towards Asian residents who are accused of buying their way into the region and taking up the few economic opportunities open to poor islanders (Smith, 2013). These sentiments have elicited a kind of 'reactive nationalism' (Barclay, 2012) that has occasionally erupted into large-scale riots targeting Asian businesses in major urban centres. This rising anti-immigrant racism on the part of those who have missed out on the benefits of globalisation again links the dynamics of the Western Pacific to global metropolitan politics, where the victims of neoliberal policies that have gutted the welfare state seem to direct their anger at migrants rather than the leaders responsible for their misery.…”