Chapter 1535: Three categories

There are eleven countries in Southeast Asia.

They are Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, the Philippines, Brunei and East Timor.

Apart from Malaysia and Indonesia, the remaining nine countries are

small countries with few inhabitants, such as Brunei and East Timor.

Timor-Leste became independent in 1975, but was occupied by Indonesian troops. Currently, Portugal and Indonesia are still negotiating over the country.

Brunei's GDP in 1986 was 2.4 billion US dollars, but its population was only 230,000. The economy is mainly based on the export of oil and natural gas, and its GDP per capita is very high, ranking 27th in the world, and second only to the UAE, the island countries and Qatar in Asia. However, due to its single economic structure and industrial system, it is only classified as a developing country.

In addition, the most important point is that the UK has a permanent military base in Brunei, which currently houses more than 2,000 British troops.

Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia are three countries with special circumstances. At this time, they are either at war or in civil unrest, and do not have the conditions for economic development, nor are they suitable for deployment.

Myanmar, a former British colony, is still a socialist country and one of the world's least economically developed countries. According to surveys, the current domestic situation in Myanmar is very turbulent, and it will not take more than a year or two before the country changes hands again.

Blackwater International has been involved in Myanmar for three years, and has already had a significant influence. The country's unique situation requires a unique approach.

There is no need to say anything about Star City. This country, with the largest proportion of Chinese people, is also a key economic location. Many countries have military bases here, which is destined to be suitable only for economic development. And the current economic environment does not require intervention.

The countries worth considering are the Philippines and Thailand.

The Philippines was previously a colony of the United States and currently has a population of over 56 million.

However, there are more than one million overseas Chinese, accounting for about 1.5% of the Philippine population.

The biggest reason why it took Jiuding Think Tank three years to investigate the population of overseas Chinese in the Philippines is because the Philippine government itself is not sure.

Because over the past few hundred years, mixed-race people have been very common in the Philippines, and it is estimated that people with Chinese ancestry account for 15% to 20% of the population.

Maria Corazon 'Corazon' Cojuangco Aquino, who defeated Ferdinand Marcos in 1986 and became the first female president of the Philippines and Asia, is the cousin of Xu Huange and has Chinese ancestry.

Not only that, but after Xia Yuti's advice last year, the Philippines sent someone to investigate in mainland China, and in July last year it was confirmed that the great-great-grandfather of the Philippine Founding Father Rizal, Conangco, was from Fujian Province.

In addition, not only do Chinese people have a legitimate status in the Philippines, they also play an important supporting role in the political, economic and social spheres. Chinese people are practically synonymous with wealth, and it is difficult to think of Chinese people not having a high status.

In the Philippines, flags are often flown at important events in the Chinese community. Before the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the Philippines in 1975, the blue sky, white sun and full land red flag was flown, and after the establishment of diplomatic relations, more and more people have become accustomed to flying the five-starred red flag.

In terms of language, although the Philippines has been heavily westernised, with English and Tagalog as the official languages, Chinese is currently not banned, and since Maria Corazon Aquino came to power last year, various aspects have been optimised considerably.

However, it is worth noting that the United States has a permanent military base in the Philippines, with a current garrison of about 3,500 troops!

Let's talk about Thailand.

Thailand has the second-largest Chinese population in the world, after Indonesia.

However, the proportion of Chinese in the Thai population is much higher than in Indonesia, and the Chinese are the third largest ethnic group after the Thais and Lao.

In terms of political status, the Chinese and Thais have equal political rights under the constitution, which can be said to be the highest among overseas Chinese.

The status of the Chinese in Thailand is deeply linked to the history of the country.

During the Ayutthaya period, King Uthong declared independence from the Khmer Empire in 1350 and established the Kingdom of Ayutthaya. Soon after, he annexed the Sukhothai Kingdom and was given the title of King of Siam by the Ming Dynasty. At that time, the word 'Siam' was still written by Zhu Yuanzhang's big brush, and he was also given the golden and silver seal of the Siamese king.

More than 400 years later, the Kingdom of Ayutthaya was destroyed by the Burmese army. It was Teo Sian Zheng Xin, who led a force of 500 men in a breakout, and then recruited more soldiers, and in just six months, he drove back the Burmese army and recovered the old capital. He established the Thonburi Dynasty, the third unified dynasty in Thai history. He then spent three years quelling rebellions in various regions, and was even recognised by the Qing Dynasty. Unfortunately, he was forced to abdicate after being abducted by his generals after ruling for 15 years.

However, because Chaiyapho ruled for 15 years and laid the foundation for the modern Thai state, he is regarded as the first of the five great Thai kings.

However, after Chao Phya Chumphon Kiri, Zheng Xin's brother-in-law, killed Zheng Xin, he established the Bangkok Dynasty. The founding emperor was Rama I, whose Chinese name was Zheng Hua, who claimed to be a descendant of Zheng Xin and took the initiative to send envoys to the Qing Dynasty to gain its recognition. As a result, the Bangkok Dynasty also became a vassal state of the Qing Dynasty, and every subsequent king took the surname 'Zheng' and adopted a Chinese name. The current king of Thailand is Zheng Gu.

Moreover, because Thailand is the only country in Southeast Asia that has not been colonised, the Thai king's position is very high. Not only is he the head of state, he is also the supreme commander of the army, written into the constitution, and the supreme authority in maintaining Buddhism.

The contributions of King Taksin the Great to Thailand and his historical status, the source of the legitimacy of the Thai royal family, the relationship with China for more than 600 years, and the strength of China today, are all important factors that have given Chinese people a legitimate status and strong influence in Thailand.

Therefore, Thailand is also the place where there is the least need to worry about, and where business tentacles can be extended indiscriminately.

Xia Yu's business territory has long since covered Thailand, and he has a strong presence there. All that is needed is reasonable integration and planning, and Thailand will definitely be one of his solid backers!

The first agenda item, a report on the research situation in eleven countries, started at 12:30 p.m.

After a one-hour break for lunch, the meeting continued at 2:30 p.m.

Compared to the content of the morning, the second agenda item, the report on the 'Results and Recommendations of the Great Research on the Rise of Southeast Asian Chinese', is the most important!

"We will now begin the second agenda item, with a report from the head of the research, Academician Liu Zhang.'

As soon as Wang Liming finished speaking, Academician Liu Zhang, who had just turned 60 and had a full head of silver hair but a rosy complexion, reported with full energy.

'Dear Chairman, based on your strategic plan for Southeast Asia and the goal of promoting the rise of Chinese people in Southeast Asia, and taking into account the actual situation of each country, I will report on it below.'

'The direction and content of action in each of the eleven Southeast Asian countries is different, but based on some commonalities, the implementation plan can be broadly divided into three parts.'

'The first part is Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, East Timor, Myanmar and other five countries.'

'The second part is Brunei, Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines.'

'The third part is Malaysia and Indonesia.'