Overview

Is the process of state building a unilateral, national venture, or is it something more collaborative, taking place in the interstices between adjoining countries? To answer this question, Asymmetrical Neighbors takes a comparative look at the state building process along China, Myanmar, and Thailand's common borderland area. It shows that the variations in state building among these neighboring countries are the result of an interactive process that occurs across national boundaries. Departing from existing approaches that look at such processes from the angle of singular, bounded territorial states, the book argues that a more fruitful method is to examine how state and nation building in one country can influence, and be influenced by, the same processes across borders. It argues that the success or failure of one country's state building is a process that extends beyond domestic factors such as war preparation, political institutions, and geographic and demographic variables. Rather, it shows that we should conceptualize state building as an interactive process heavily influenced by a ""neighborhood effect."" Furthermore, the book moves beyond the academic boundaries that divide arbitrarily China studies and Southeast Asian studies by providing an analysis that ties the state and nation building processes in China with those of Southeast Asia.

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9780190688332

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Reviews

"""Enze Han has delivered a rich and path-breaking account of the 'neighbourhood effects' of state and nation building in an important geographical and socio-cultural conjuncture between mainland Southeast Asia and China. His multi-lingual and historical comparative approach to this borderland highlights that state building, far from being an isolated process, is instead deeply interactive and influenced by power asymmetries and relations among neighbouring states. An essential backgrounder for all who are interested in contemporary ethnic politics and conflict in Myanmar and China's influence in Southeast Asia."" -Evelyn Goh, Shedden Professor of Strategic Policy Studies, The Australian National University ""This book delivers a brilliant account of the relational dynamics of state building, bringing into dialogue extensive multilingual perspectives on China, Myanmar, and Thailand. Enze Han's timely book navigates deftly across geographical contexts, historical settings, cultural dynamics, and political struggles in the borderlands, showing how concurrent global events shape both domestic policies and international relations. The book will be an important resource to scholars in area studies, borderland studies, ethnic studies, and comparative politics."" -Elaine Lynn-Ee Ho, National University of Singapore, author of Citizens in Motion: Emigration, Immigration, and Re-Migration Across China's Borders ""Enze Han's book is a must-read for anyone who is interested in the complexities and contradictions of border demarcation wherever the border may be. In this case, the focus is Myanmar's borders with China and Thailand, and Han combines scholarly research with personal notes, which will appeal to specialists as well as a more general audience of educated readers."" -Bertil Lintner, author of Great Game East: India, China, and the Struggle for Asia's Most Volatile Frontier"

Enze Han has delivered a rich and path-breaking account of the 'neighbourhood effects' of state and nation building in an important geographical and socio-cultural conjuncture between mainland Southeast Asia and China. His multi-lingual and historical comparative approach to this borderland highlights that state building, far from being an isolated process, is instead deeply interactive and influenced by power asymmetries and relations among neighbouring states. An essential backgrounder for all who are interested in contemporary ethnic politics and conflict in Myanmar and China's influence in Southeast Asia. -Evelyn Goh, Shedden Professor of Strategic Policy Studies, The Australian National University This book delivers a brilliant account of the relational dynamics of state building, bringing into dialogue extensive multilingual perspectives on China, Myanmar, and Thailand. Enze Han's timely book navigates deftly across geographical contexts, historical settings, cultural dynamics, and political struggles in the borderlands, showing how concurrent global events shape both domestic policies and international relations. The book will be an important resource to scholars in area studies, borderland studies, ethnic studies, and comparative politics. -Elaine Lynn-Ee Ho, National University of Singapore, author of Citizens in Motion: Emigration, Immigration, and Re-Migration Across China's Borders Enze Han's book is a must-read for anyone who is interested in the complexities and contradictions of border demarcation wherever the border may be. In this case, the focus is Myanmar's borders with China and Thailand, and Han combines scholarly research with personal notes, which will appeal to specialists as well as a more general audience of educated readers. -Bertil Lintner, author of Great Game East: India, China, and the Struggle for Asia's Most Volatile Frontier

Author Information

Enze Han is Associate Professor in the Department of Politics and Public Administration at the University of Hong Kong. His research interests include ethnic politics in China, China's relations with Southeast Asia, and the politics of state formation in the borderland area between China, Myanmar, and Thailand. He is the author of Contestation and Adaptation: The Politics of National Identity in China.

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