Who gets to define what Asia means?
A new book on inter-Asian exchange shows how hard it is to pin down
WHEN RISHI SUNAK became Britain’s first non-white prime minister last October, Ronny Chieng, a Chinese-Malaysian comedian, was charged by “The Daily Show”, an American satirical current-affairs television programme, with commenting on the news. “I know everyone is really excited that this is the first Asian prime minister. But let’s be clear: Indians are not Asians,” he declared.
This article appeared in the Asia section of the print edition under the headline “One word to rule them all”
Asia January 21st 2023
- Japan’s armed forces are getting stronger, faster
- India’s sinking towns spark debates about development
- Why South Korea is talking about getting its own nukes
- Japanese youngsters want to look like Chinese starlets
- Jacinda Ardern resigns as New Zealand’s prime minister
- A murder in Afghanistan highlights the misery of women
- Who gets to define what Asia means?
From the January 21st 2023 edition
Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents
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The Caspian Sea is shrinking rapidly
This has big implications for Russia, which has come to rely on Central Asian ports
Racial tensions boil over in New Zealand
A controversial bill regarding Maori people punctures its relative harmony