Rapt attention: Participants listening to experts at the 12th International Conference of the International Society for the Studies of Chinese Overseas. — LOW LAY PHON/The Star
KUALA LUMPUR: From Manila to Sarawak and Bangkok, overseas Chinese communities are finding new ways to stay rooted in their heritage while fully engaging in the societies they call home.
This balance between cultural identity and national belonging was at the heart of a discussion moderated by Prof Min Zhou of the University of California at the Forum on Chinese Overseas in a Changing World: Global Networks, Local Realities, which was held yesterday.
Universiti Malaya’s Dr Ngu Ik Tien said that while the Chinese diaspora in the West is often defined by transnational ties, ethnic Chinese in South-East Asia are far more deeply embedded in their local societies.
“The South-East Asian Chinese experience is about negotiating cultural preservation and local integration while resisting false assimilation, yet pursuing a sense of national belonging,” she said.
Ngu noted that Chinese identity in Malaysia, for instance, is shaped less by global politics than by domestic realities.
“In the West, we’ve seen Confucius Institutes shut down due to political sensitivities. But in Malaysia, several new ones have opened in the past five years – including in my hometown in Sarawak,” she said.
She added that even everyday interactions, such as language use, reflect these local dynamics.
“In the West, someone saying ‘your English is very good’ might sound patronising. But in Malaysia, whether it’s about English, Malay or Mandarin, it’s often taken as a compliment,” Ngu explained.
From the Philippines, Assoc Prof Jely Galang of the University of the Philippines-Diliman described “Chineseness” among Chinese Filipinos, or Chinoys, as a fluid, evolving identity.
“The younger generation is redefining what it means to be Chinese Filipino. Language plays a central role. For example, the use of Hokkien reflects the Chineseness of the Chinoy community,” he said.
While maritime tensions between China and the Philippines sometimes spark questions about Chinese Filipinos’ loyalty, Galang stressed that such doubts rarely come from within the community itself.
“For most Chinoys, the Philippines is their homeland. They see themselves as Filipinos first, even as they maintain their Chinese traditions. What’s important is to recognise the Chinese Filipino community as a bridge that connects the Philippines and China, not as a community divided between them,” he said.
National University of Singapore’s Assistant Prof Chan Ying-kit argued that “Chineseness” should be seen not as a fixed essence, but as a dynamic and context-dependent identity that evolves with time and circumstance.
Drawing from his research in Thailand, Chan highlighted the transformation of a 150-year-old Mazu temple in Bangkok once devoted purely to religious worship, now a contested heritage site amid urban redevelopment pressures.
“Originally, the temple’s purpose was spiritual.
“Today, it represents broader struggles – between cultural preservation and commercial interests, between memory and modernity,” he said.
Chan added that overseas Chinese institutions, from temples to clan associations, often evolve far beyond their original roles.
“They once revolved around kinship and faith. Now, they’ve become spaces for civic activism and expressions of community identity in changing local realities,” he said.
