| This thesis is about Hani/Akha people in China, Laos and Myanmar border. According to Rubber plantation research, the fieldwork focused on everyday life of Hani/Akha people, and to analyze how they put economic development into practice under nation’s lead and how to face economic, cultural, and political problems during developing by using nation’s policies and features of themselves, in order to understand the relationship through border, ethnic group and nation-state.The development of Rubber plantation of Hani/Akha people in common border of three countries is result from the force of national power, market economy and ethnic identity. The mobility of rubber trees has three stages:firstly, Chinese government introduced rubber tree as strategic material; secondly, Chinese government encouraged minorities to plant rubber trees to develop private economy; thirdly, because of the Opium/poppy Control Alternative Development, Rubber plantation extended from southwestern China to north of Laos and northeast of Burma. The goal of Chinese government promote cross-border Rubber plantation or Rubber plantation in border is vitalizing border areas and enrich the people living there, promoting regional economy development; constructing better international relationship, and maintaining border profit and safe. But Laos and Burma accepted Rubber plantation for prohibition of drug, economic development and maintain national image and profit.The mobility of rubber trees go along with the mobility of rubber tree planters, and ’rubber immigrant’ became a phenomenon in this region. The profit resulted from development of rubber tree plant production not only kept local villagers but also increased external population, which made local villages getting rid of ’empty’. The people of Laos who live in the mountain moved to valley region for Opium/poppy Control Alternative Development. The fourth special zone in Shan state of Myanmar attracted some Chinese immigrants to plant rubber trees for its abounding land resources. The benefit game between nation and local region of Myanmar influenced the ’national identity’ choice and ’ethnic identity’ choice Chinese rubber immigrants, and also ’double nationalities’ issues. Additionally, rubber tree planters gathered in border, which afford enough labor force for rubber tree plantation. It is actually that immigrant keep border better, and good for border booming. Moreover, the fact that Chinese immigrants became Akha people will help the fourth special zone to apply autonomous region. In China side, it is difficult to control border, but the development of rubber tree plantation strengthen economic; cultural and some other relationship in China border, which strengthen Chinese beneficial border; cultural border policy.The development of rubber plantations which is leaded by nation gradually ending the traditional shift agriculture. Clarifying and fixing property right of rubber tree land and the lead of nation result in change of public land ownership system. Rubber plantation become Hani/Akha’s dominant livelihood and income. And economic benefit is more than before, the single productive structure will result in high risk of villages who depend on rubber market.Rubber plantation result in several ecological problems, such as area of woods falling sharply; creatures decreasing, water recourse decreasing, fertility of soil decreasing and so on. These problems not only influenced economy development and cultural diversity but also effect international relationship in border. Nation and local government cannot have good strategy to solve ecological problems, and Hani/Akha cannot use their local knowledge of nature and interpersonal relationship to solve problems. However, Hani/Akha should solve these problems based on positive rubber tree plantation development. But the new ecological problem which is result from rubber economy of nation should be solved by nation power and national cooperation.The influence of nation power and traditional livelihood changing changed traditional society of Hani/Akha. The power of nation permeated local villages through establishing new grass roots organizations and new livelihood replaced traditional livelihood, which weaken the foundation of traditional society, traditional organizations become weaker and weaker. These new organizations effected traditional social structure, but only economic way of nation can effect it. The development of market economy make Hani/Akha people expand social range and establish new economic relationship or social relationship.Close economic relationship increase ethic identity of Hani/Akha, at the same time, clarifying land property right and economic profit make the border line more obvious, the national identity is increased.Rubber plantation as a new way of production leads to the large changes in the traditional culture and part of the traditional culture disappeared. At the same time, under the influence of national policies and social economic development, Hani/Akha people’s lifestyles and values are changing. Changes in national distribution and social structure of the region due to rubber immigrants also made a variety of new contradiction. Conflict between new production methods and some traditional cultural practices has also occurred.It becomes a very important requirement to practice cultural adaptation in this region.Many problems that Hani/Akha people encounter in the economic, social, cultural and political development are inevitable problems for their self-development,and they are also the problems that the nation state has to face with and solve in the process of nationalization. Faced with these problems, Hani/Akha people in different countries have adopted different coping strategies according to their own country’s policies and their own characteristics.This is their local practice to assimilate themselves to the multinational country.Hani/Akha people in three different countries select different ways in their strenuously practice:looking for diversified economic development path, reconstructing the village social integration and social structure, practicing cultural adaptation to improve their political status.Overall, the ultimate goal of the three countries ’Hani/Akha people is to assimilate themselves to the multinational countries, to improve their political status, and to seek larger platform and better development chance for ethnic groups.Rubber plantation made Hani/Akha people in border areas of the three countries to change their social relationships which were relatively closed.In this process, the common culture has become the basis of new economic cooperation relations because it breakthroughs the restriction of kinship and the the village social structure.State’s role as guarantor of order maintaining and villagers’interests are becoming increasingly apparent.Both of these factors eventually expand Hani/Akha people’s imagination and understanding of the ethnic community and national community.From the perspective of ethnic community, Hani/Akha people’s imagination and understanding of ethnic communities are hierarchical:Firstly, Hani/Akha people in different countries have a lot in common to become as a "Hani/Akha" culture community, Secondly, Hani/Akha people’s culture from different countries is one of multiculturalism in their respective countries, Hani/Akha people is a member of the numerous ethnic groups in their respective countries. Namely, the Hani people of China is a member of the Chinese nation, Akha people is a member of the family of of Laos nations, and Akha people is also a member of Myanmar’s ethnic communities.From the perspective of the national community, in the specific practice of rubber plantation and the economic development, the country has provided policies, guidance and help for Hani/Akha people, therefore the country is no longer abstract and difficult to understand, and Hani/Akha people also can develop their imagination to the national community.In addition, because of the involvement of cross-border cooperation in rubber plantation and border trade or other activities, Hani/Akha people’s imagination and understanding of the community of neighboring countries also become gradually clear.There is no doubt that most border areas which appeared during the formation of the modern nation-state and where most minorities gathered have become effective border or frontier in the nationalization advancement. However, this should only be a geographical sense, but not the social significance of the edge.Border areas should be an integral part of the national territory, as important as the other so-called central regions.The social development with national promotion in border areas has led ethnic minorities to get more concrete cognition of nation state and strengthen the national identity.Promoting the development of border areas of minority communities is not only an effective way to maintain national unity and stability in border areas, but also an important means of promoting the country’s development.Only in the social, economic, and cultural development process, each ethnic group’s contribution of responsibilities and obligations for the national prosperity and development becomes possible to achieve. |
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