Asia - people
Asia makes up a third of the Earth's land area, but
is inhabited by approximately 60 percent of the
population. Compared to other continents, there are
several different race types and peoples. The most
widespread breed is the Mongoloid, which is found mainly
in North, East, Central and Southeast Asia, and then the
Caucasian (Europide) breed, especially in West and South
Asia. Countless migrations over the millennia have
created many racial mixes, and the process of mixes
continues. Peoples with related languages can be of
different physical types, depending on the time of the
people mixing. Rather than talking about races, it makes
more sense to talk about ethnic groups, who speak
certain languages and have special cultural
characteristics. The extremely varied geographical
conditions in Asia have meant that people have adapted
very differently, and within the large area one
encounters all variations of business forms. Often the
ethnic groups are divided into several states, such as
the Kurds in West Asia, who live in more than five
states, and the Mongols in Central Asia, who are divided
into Russia, Mongolia and China according to
Countryaah.
North Asia. Here the indigenous people live mainly
from hunting and fishing and/or reindeer husbandry.
Among the approximately 25 peoples are Yakuts and even
the most populous. The indigenous peoples were formerly
animists and had shamans, but with the great immigration
of Russian colonists in the 20th century, Christianity
has become widespread. The Soviet government pursued a
strong integration policy towards the local population.
Central Asia. On the rain-poor steppes, people
traditionally live as nomads with sheep, goats, cows,
camels and horses. To the east, the peoples speak Tibeto-Burmese
and Mongolian languages, and they are Buddhists
(Mahayana), while the rest of Central Asia is Islamic
with a population that predominantly speaks Turkish.
East Asia. In China, the Chinese-speaking male
population makes up 95 percent of the population, but in
addition, 50 ethnic minorities are expected, many of
whom have million-strong populations. Japan's population
of Japanese has come in several waves of immigration
over Korea and eastern China. Of ethnic minorities, the
Ainu are found in Hokkaido, the few descendants of
Japan's indigenous people, as well as a large element of
immigrant Koreans.
Southeast Asia. On the mainland, the great
state-forming peoples, Burmese, Laotians, Thais, and
Vietnamese, form the backbone of individual nations.
They are Buddhists (hinayana) and live as rice farmers
on irrigation farms. In the mountain areas live many
different smaller tribes, such as Karen, Kachin, Miao
and Shan. Their territories often extend beyond the
borders of several countries, and in several places they
still live by sweating. The mountain people are
linguistically and culturally very different from each
other and from the large communities in the lowland
areas.
The Indonesian and Philippine upper worlds are
inhabited by Malaysian peoples who are closely related
both linguistically and culturally. Countless currents
have rippled through the upper world, but the general
picture is, as on the mainland, core areas with
intensive agriculture as a basis for state formation or
kingdoms, such as Java and Bali, and more marginal
mountain areas and islands, such as Borneo and Sulawesi,
where several ethnic minorities live by hunting and
sweating. Islam is the all-dominant religion with
certain exceptions such as Hindu Bali and the Roman
Catholic Philippines.
South Asia. In India, more major languages are
spoken than in the whole of Europe, but roughly
speaking, one can speak of the Indo-Aryan peoples of
North India and the Dravidian peoples of South India as
representatives of various waves of immigration. The
Caucasian racial character is the dominant one, but with
innumerable physical variations, and people's language
and caste affiliations have greater weight than actual
ethnicity. The Hindu caste system gives South Asia a
certain uniform feel. The vast majority of the
population lives in villages and lives as farmers. Many
tribal people live outside the Hindu caste world both in
the mountain and forest areas of southern India and in
the northeastern mountain provinces and Himalayas.
West Asia. The cultural diversity that the area holds
is the result of millennia of merging peoples of
different origins, languages, professions and religions.
They are not clearly described as separate peoples, but
rather as peasants and townspeople or nomads and oasis
peoples. They are fairly evenly distributed between
Semitic, Iranian, and Turkish-speaking peoples, but
despite all the variations, there are a number of
cultural commonalities that are rooted in Islam.
However, Iran and the Caucasus region are regions where
the ethnic groups more clearly define themselves in
relation to each other. Hong Kong
Tuesday, July 1, 1997 at 1 p.m. 0.00 China regained
control of Xianggang after 155 years of British rule.
Businessman Tung Chi Hua was appointed to head the new
government to be backed by a legislative council.
According to the agreements, over the next 50 years,
Xianggang retains its rights and freedoms, its legal
autonomy, its position as an international financial and
trade center and its way of life. The area issues its
own currency and can even issue laws regarding.
emigration and customs issues. Beijing is in charge of
defense and foreign policy.
The reunion began the era of "a country, two systems"
combining Xianggang's free-trade economy with the rigid
political control of the rest of China. It is an
unprecedented experiment in the world.
The reunion took place under the impression of
spectacular growth in the Chinese economy, showing no
signs of slowing down. At the same time, Xianggang is
considered the third most important international
financial center in the world after New York and London.
In late 1997, rumors of financial difficulties
circulated in a number of banks. However, they were
demented by the local financial authorities.
In the May 1998 elections, the Hong Kong Democratic
Party got the majority of votes, but due to the
specially appointed members of parliament, the
pro-Chinese sectors can still muster a majority. Taken
together, the so-called "Democratic" (pro-Western)
parties got 60% of the vote, but they got only 20 out of
Parliament's 60 seats. Tung Chi Hua therefore retains
the post of head of government until the end of 2000.
In 2001-02, the economy was hit by a sharp downturn
as a result of the global recession, and unemployment
rose to 6.2% - the highest figure in 20 years.
In July 2003, Head of Government Tung Chee Hwa
postponed the vote on an anti-terror law. This happened
after public protests against the law, which opened up
life imprisonment for subversive business, rebellion or
betrayal of China. At the same time, it gave the police
greater powers of power. Acc. the Chinese government's
sole purpose was to prevent foreign forces from using
Xianggang to subdue China.
That same month, about ½ million demonstrated against
§23 of the Basic Security Act. It provides police are
allowed to conduct house searches and arrest without
evidence before the court. All opposition leaflets can
be considered illegal, whether electronically or in
writing, and all persons in the residence can be
considered accomplices in possession. The law deals with
both residents and non-residents of the island.
Following the extensive protests, two senior members of
the Hong Kong government were forced to resign and the
law was withdrawn indefinitely.
In April 2004, the Chinese legislature decided that
they would have the final say in the election of a new
leader and new parliament in Hong Kong. The
parliamentary commission decided that Hong Kong may
change its election law from 2005, but that it must
first have permission from Beijing. This interpretation
of the area's constitution means that Beijing will have
the right to veto any political reform in the former
British Crown Colony. Pro-democracy leaders in Hong Kong
emphasized that the interpretation might stifle the
autonomy of the area.
At the beginning of July 2004, 250,000 people went on
the streets of Hong Kong demanding more democracy and
with sharp criticism from the central government for the
devastation the SARS virus caused - in March - June
2003, the epidemic cost 299 people - the rising
unemployment and especially the total disagreement with
Beijing on the choice of area political leaders. The
slogan "the power of the people" was perceived by some
authorities in Beijing as a call for independence for
Hong Kong. The organizers of the demonstration denied
that this interpretation was relevant.
Beijing urged the people of Hong Kong to use the day
to celebrate the anniversary of reunification with
China. In his party speech, Tung Chi Hua called for
gathering and peace in Hong Kong without mentioning the
demonstrations. During the year, Beijing contributed to
strengthening Hong Kong's economy and to lowering
unemployment in response to one of the protesters'
demands.
Also in July, Tung Chi Hua announced that Health
Minister Yeoh Eng-kiong resigned as a result of his
problematic handling of the SARS epidemic. Yeoh
Eng-kiong was criticized for acting very slowly after
the virus appeared in an area in southern China. Some
observers felt that the minister was fired for shielding
Tung Chi Hua's otherwise unpopular government. |
