Ross Anthony - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Papers by Ross Anthony
Exceptionally Equal: Emergency States and the Production of Enemies in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region
In the past two decades, China"s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region has been the recipient of seve... more In the past two decades, China"s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region has been the recipient of several large-scale development projects which have occurred in conjunction with market-orientated mechanisms introduced to help foster growth. Because such measures have been introduced in conjunction with the large-scale migration of Han Chinese to this traditionally non-Han region, critics have argued that such measures merely assist a process of "internal colonialism" (Gladney 1998; c.f. Stavenhagen 1986). The territory, occupied primarily by Uyghurs, a Turkic Muslim ethnic group, has a considerable history of resistance to Beijing rule. Thus, the recent economic development of the region has been viewed by scholars, not to mention many Uyghurs, as Beijing"s attempt to consolidate the Chinese presence in the region. From the Chinese government point of view, this could not be further from the truth: state largess and the fostering of private enterprise have helped achieve one of China"s primary goals in the religion: ethnic harmony and unity. This paper offers an ethnographic description and analysis of a recent development project in one of the central Uyghur neighbourhoods in the regional capital of Urumqi. The research is premised upon 13 months of fieldwork in the region in 2007/8. The project, a massive Central Asian style-complex earmarked for development by the local government and constructed by a Han-Chinese joint venture, attempts to bring about stability in the region through two aims: the promotion of commerce in the region and the celebration of multi-cultural difference. As is the case of many minority groups in China, the Uyghur"s ethnicity itself has become one of its most important commodities; as Han Chinese become wealthier, they have increasingly ventured out to regions such as Xinjiang to experience "local minority characteristics". While such a transition has offered an economic lift to certain elements of the Uyghur community, it has also offered opportunities for Han Chinese to profit off such potential. Through the description of the project -but also how it relates to surrounding neighbourhood projects and the city more generally -I weight up the assertion of development"s relationship to neo-colonial domination. What emerges is not a straightforward picture. While a number of negative 2 features of the development are highlighted (the heavy use of state and private security; the economic marginalization of the Uyghur under-classes; the over-reliance of Han design and building expertise) these are complimented with more positive aspects (careful attention to development design; a degree of acceptance of Han-style modernity by Uyghurs). Based on these various, almost contradictory capacities which such a development project actualized, the paper ends with some suggestions as to how similar, future developments -which have increased dramatically in recent yearsmight build upon lessons learnt in Urumqi. Key suggestions include the renunciation of covert and coercive means in order to sustain narratives of exemplary ethnic unity and the more active involvement and encouragement of Uyghur participation in such projects. The author is a research fellow at the Centre for Chinese Studies, Stellenbosch University, working on security aspects in China-Africa relations.
Chinese Society in Flux: a Study of Ethnicity, Guanxi and Urbanization
China and Africa: the new water world
The Persistence of the Nation State at the Chinese-Kazkh Border
As Chinese engagement in Africa grows, questions surrounding its role in security have become mor... more As Chinese engagement in Africa grows, questions surrounding its role in security have become more prominent. The issue of security is a broad one ranging from China's role in regional security with international organisations to the role of securing assets and personnel. This forum piece addresses some of these concerns, with a particular focus on South Sudan. While the Chinese state has been relatively adept at establishing ties with Africa's newest country, due to China's previous close relationship with the Khartoum regime (an enemy of the South), friction has persisted. This is particularly evident at the level of everyday Chinese-South Suda-nese engagement, which is fraught with security risks. The piece describes some of these issues by drawing on fieldwork observations and interviews conducted in April 2013, eight months before the country lapsed back into civil war.
This paper investigates the notion that China's proposed development of ports and supporting hint... more This paper investigates the notion that China's proposed development of ports and supporting hinterland infrastructure on the East coast of Africa serves greater geostrategic interests within Africa and the Indian Ocean. It cautions against a trend which accuses Chinese commercial infrastructural and resource development of being symmetrical with an almost colonial-like political influence. Through a comparison with nineteenth-century German and British colonialism in the region, the paper argues that, while there are certain affinities, the Chinese presence today is significantly different. Central to the argument is that Chinese port and hinterland developments are supplemented by a host of other actors, including host states, multinational corporations and regional development funds. The broader market economic system in which China and Africa engage today entails that Chinese unfettered access to projects is complicated by the interests of multiple stakeholders. The Chinese presence has been exaggerated at the expense of other actors and thus, in any future conflict, it cannot be assumed that China will be able to mobilise this infrastructure in its interests. This has implications for the broader analysis of China's growing presence in the Indian Ocean.
Exceptionally Equal: Emergency States and the Production of Enemies in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region
In the past two decades, China"s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region has been the recipient of seve... more In the past two decades, China"s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region has been the recipient of several large-scale development projects which have occurred in conjunction with market-orientated mechanisms introduced to help foster growth. Because such measures have been introduced in conjunction with the large-scale migration of Han Chinese to this traditionally non-Han region, critics have argued that such measures merely assist a process of "internal colonialism" (Gladney 1998; c.f. Stavenhagen 1986). The territory, occupied primarily by Uyghurs, a Turkic Muslim ethnic group, has a considerable history of resistance to Beijing rule. Thus, the recent economic development of the region has been viewed by scholars, not to mention many Uyghurs, as Beijing"s attempt to consolidate the Chinese presence in the region. From the Chinese government point of view, this could not be further from the truth: state largess and the fostering of private enterprise have helped achieve one of China"s primary goals in the religion: ethnic harmony and unity. This paper offers an ethnographic description and analysis of a recent development project in one of the central Uyghur neighbourhoods in the regional capital of Urumqi. The research is premised upon 13 months of fieldwork in the region in 2007/8. The project, a massive Central Asian style-complex earmarked for development by the local government and constructed by a Han-Chinese joint venture, attempts to bring about stability in the region through two aims: the promotion of commerce in the region and the celebration of multi-cultural difference. As is the case of many minority groups in China, the Uyghur"s ethnicity itself has become one of its most important commodities; as Han Chinese become wealthier, they have increasingly ventured out to regions such as Xinjiang to experience "local minority characteristics". While such a transition has offered an economic lift to certain elements of the Uyghur community, it has also offered opportunities for Han Chinese to profit off such potential. Through the description of the project -but also how it relates to surrounding neighbourhood projects and the city more generally -I weight up the assertion of development"s relationship to neo-colonial domination. What emerges is not a straightforward picture. While a number of negative 2 features of the development are highlighted (the heavy use of state and private security; the economic marginalization of the Uyghur under-classes; the over-reliance of Han design and building expertise) these are complimented with more positive aspects (careful attention to development design; a degree of acceptance of Han-style modernity by Uyghurs). Based on these various, almost contradictory capacities which such a development project actualized, the paper ends with some suggestions as to how similar, future developments -which have increased dramatically in recent yearsmight build upon lessons learnt in Urumqi. Key suggestions include the renunciation of covert and coercive means in order to sustain narratives of exemplary ethnic unity and the more active involvement and encouragement of Uyghur participation in such projects. The author is a research fellow at the Centre for Chinese Studies, Stellenbosch University, working on security aspects in China-Africa relations.
Chinese Society in Flux: a Study of Ethnicity, Guanxi and Urbanization
China and Africa: the new water world
The Persistence of the Nation State at the Chinese-Kazkh Border
As Chinese engagement in Africa grows, questions surrounding its role in security have become mor... more As Chinese engagement in Africa grows, questions surrounding its role in security have become more prominent. The issue of security is a broad one ranging from China's role in regional security with international organisations to the role of securing assets and personnel. This forum piece addresses some of these concerns, with a particular focus on South Sudan. While the Chinese state has been relatively adept at establishing ties with Africa's newest country, due to China's previous close relationship with the Khartoum regime (an enemy of the South), friction has persisted. This is particularly evident at the level of everyday Chinese-South Suda-nese engagement, which is fraught with security risks. The piece describes some of these issues by drawing on fieldwork observations and interviews conducted in April 2013, eight months before the country lapsed back into civil war.
This paper investigates the notion that China's proposed development of ports and supporting hint... more This paper investigates the notion that China's proposed development of ports and supporting hinterland infrastructure on the East coast of Africa serves greater geostrategic interests within Africa and the Indian Ocean. It cautions against a trend which accuses Chinese commercial infrastructural and resource development of being symmetrical with an almost colonial-like political influence. Through a comparison with nineteenth-century German and British colonialism in the region, the paper argues that, while there are certain affinities, the Chinese presence today is significantly different. Central to the argument is that Chinese port and hinterland developments are supplemented by a host of other actors, including host states, multinational corporations and regional development funds. The broader market economic system in which China and Africa engage today entails that Chinese unfettered access to projects is complicated by the interests of multiple stakeholders. The Chinese presence has been exaggerated at the expense of other actors and thus, in any future conflict, it cannot be assumed that China will be able to mobilise this infrastructure in its interests. This has implications for the broader analysis of China's growing presence in the Indian Ocean.