From Canada to Peru, how the Chinese diaspora has made its mark on more remote corners of the globe
- Around the world, Chinese immigrants have influenced culture, cuisine, commerce and many aspects of daily life
- In northern England’s Manchester, the Chinese community has organised to help other ethnic-minority communities
Few parts of the globe remain untouched by the Chinese diaspora, which has spread not only to the world’s capital cities but also to more remote locales, bringing a distinct influence to bear on culture, cuisine, commerce and many other aspects of daily life.
Here are five voices from among the estimated 50 million people of Chinese descent living outside the People’s Republic. Each is a pillar of a Chinese community that is not based in one of the world’s most recognised Chinatowns.
Peter Chin: Dunedin, New Zealand
More or less at the very bottom of South Island, Dunedin is remote even by New Zealand standards, yet links to the Chinese diaspora course through its DNA. The city is twinned with Shanghai; a 2,500-square-metre Chinese garden, Lan Yuan, remains one of Dunedin’s most popular attractions (despite some coronavirus visiting restrictions); and Peter Chin Wing-ho – a direct descendant of one of the region’s original Chinese immigrants, who arrived in 1866 – is a 79-year-old poster boy for diaspora high-achievement.
Twice city mayor, a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit and founding chair of the Chinese Poll Tax Heritage Trust, Chin qualified as a lawyer in 1968 and turned his attention to local politics in 1995.
“I’ve always been interested in helping the community,” says Chin, who played a small role in Illustrious Energy (1988), a historical film about Chinese gold miners in Central Otago. “I think my involvement – as well as being the only Chinese with those sort of political ambitions – helped get me elected as mayor.”
One of Chin’s most significant achievements was his support for the creation of Lan Yuan, which initially faced stiff opposition from some Dunedin ratepayers. More than 50 artisans (and two cooks) were brought in from China, along with 1,000 tonnes of rock from Lake Tai, in the Yangtze Delta, to ensure the garden was authentic. Lan Yuan opened in 2008, at a cost of NZ$7 million (then about HK$43 million).
