| Pointing out the limitations of culturalist approaches, my dissertation deals with factors that contribute to the legal definition of citizenship in China and South Korea. Specifically, I argue that the understanding of political and economic interests, rather than cultural aspects, is important in explaining the changes of the definition of citizenship, in these two cases and presumably elsewhere as well. My dissertation shows that concerns about sovereignty, diplomatic considerations, economic development programs, and civil movements often change nationality law and citizenship policy in ways that run counter to traditional national identity in China and Korea.; China developed and institutionalized a state-centered, inclusionist national identity, while Korea constructed an ethnic-centered, exclusionist national identity as they became integrated into the international order as nation-states. However, both China and Korea adopted jus sanguinis despite great difference in the ethnic structure of their nations and national identity. This shows that various political and economic factors rather than cultural factors such as national identity strongly influence the legal definition of citizenship in China and Korea.; First, when the modern citizenship was established in China and Korea in the late 19th century, international legal practices, the household system, and the Japanese experience of adopting modern citizenship deeply affected their systems. Second, sovereignty, national security, and economic interests rather than national identities directly influenced the governments' decision over dual citizenship both in China and Korea. Finally, both the PRC and ROK made important changes in their legal definitions of citizenship regardless of their distinct national identities in the past decade.; Considering their national interests in the global era, both the PRC and ROK adopted new citizenship policies and defined new legal definitions of citizenship, which are often inconsistent with their existing national identities. Brubaker argued that citizenship is not a politics of interests, but a politics of identity in France and Germany. China and Korea are often viewed as strongly oriented toward their distinctive cultural values. Yet here we find the politics of interests is key to understanding citizenship in these two countries. Thus, my study strongly discredits culturalist explanations of the East Asian developments. |
