Place, memory and identity: Imagining 'New Asia'

Abstract

The rapid transformation of Asian societies and landscapes, especially since the mid‐1990s, has engendered much conjecture of the ‘Asian renaissance’ and the rise of a ‘New Asia’. This Special Edition of Asia Pacific Viewpoint explores the intersecting themes of ‘urban place’, ‘social memory’ and ‘cultural identity’ in the articulation of and contestation towards New Asia. Specifically, the six articles here offer various interpretations of New Asia – as tourism marketing tool, political vision and social identity – and the politics involved in urban, tourism and cultural development. From colonial hotels in key South‐East Asian cities to the historic waterfront of Singapore; from festivals and rituals in Hong Kong, Hoi An (Vietnam) and Penang (Malaysia) to the clash of cultural values in Manggarai (Indonesia), ‘selective remembering’ and ‘ideological forgetting’ are central to the construction of New Asian identities. Ultimately, this Special Edition hopes to provoke continuing discussions on the rhetoric of New Asia and its imaginative and contested geographies, sociologies and histories.

Urban Ethnic Festivals, Neighborhoods, and the Multiple Realities of Marketing Place

“…In multiethnic cities the heritage of cultural groups and migrant communities increasingly jostles to be recognized (Chang, 2005) and urban redevelopment in multicultural cities is often a contested process (Tunbridge, 1984). Since, ''culture is now undeniably part of the bigger picture in place promotion and urban regeneration'' (Pugh & Wood, 2004, p.63), its promotion in relation to festivals, neighborhoods, and the city deserves explicit attention.…”

“…In other words, collective or group memory shared by visitors at the festivals who may have never experienced authentic Italian culture share a ''myth'' of culture instead (Bell, 2003). Such imaginative geographies are evident in the form of restored heritage sites, grand hotels (Chang, 2005), and ethnic heritage neighborhoods. In terms of marketing and promotion, the subjective nature of authenticity-especially in ethnic neighborhoods that depend on memories of a specific cultural heritage-create management and marketing challenges.…”

Politics and tourism promotion: Hong Kong’s myth making

“…du Cros (2004) suggests that national identity, expressed in symbols and discourse, is built on the cultural identity of a nation-state such that the scope of the myths they express become national. National myths therefore build continuity and social cohesion but also shift with the political environment (Chang, 2005 andHall, 1999). Thompson (2004) suggests that the process for many post-Soviet-era states involved both dissociating from Russia and ''re-Nationalification,'' often with a heavy emphasis on local ethnicity (Saarinen & Kask, 2008).…”

Contested image and identity: Historical antecedents of functions, behaviour and action in spa accommodation

“…They are emblematic of place-based heritage and identity (Chang and Teo 2009) as well as embodiments of emergent urbanism (Fregonese 2012). Today, hotels are sites of contestation in terms of environmental management (Dief and Font 2012), heritage preservation versus urban development (Jenkins and King 2003), as well as 'Hollywood gaze' (Mboti 2010) and imagined identity (Chang 2005).…”