An Asian-Argentine is defined as an Argentine of Asian ancestry, either born within Argentina, or born elsewhere and later to become a citizen or resident of Argentina. Asian-Argentines settled in Argentina in large numbers during several waves of immigration in the twentieth century. Primarily living in their own neighbourhoods in Buenos Aires, many currently own their own businesses of varying sizes - largely textiles, grocery retailing, and buffet-style restaurants. The small Asian-Argentine population has generally kept a low profile, and is accepted by greater Argentine society.

[edit] History

Asian-Argentines primarily migrated in three waves. The first wave was composed of Japanese immigrants (largely from Okinawa Prefecture), that arrived in small numbers during the early twentieth century. The second wave were primarily Korean entrepreneurs, settling in Buenos Aires during the 1960s, and the third wave were mostly Chinese entrepreneurs, who settled in Buenos Aires during the 1990s.

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By the mid-1990s, Asian-Argentines were already active in politics, having opened a special Unidad Básica (Peronist) party office under the name Unión de Residentes Taiwaneses Justicialistas ("Union of Justicialist Taiwanese Residents) at the heart of Buenos Aires's Chinatown Arribeños & Mendoza. This branch later closed, presumably as assimilation continued, while a regular Unidad Básica opened across the street.

[edit] Society

Chinese New Year celebration in Buenos Aires' Chinatown.

A small neighborhood grocery store in Buenos Aires owned by Asian-Argentines.

Today, there are an estimated of 150,000 Asian-Argentines, with 70,000 of Chinese-born (Chinese descent are several thousands more).^[1], 32,000 of Japanese descent, 22,000 of Korean descent ^[2], and 2,000 of Lao descent.

Koreans live primarily in the Balvanera and Flores (where the Koreatown is located) districts of Buenos Aires, and are mainly involved in the manufacturing and selling of textiles.

Meanwhile, the Chinese live in Chinatown with a Buddhist temple in Belgrano. Many of them are involved with grocery retailing, which has caused Chinese-owned stores to become a common feature of Buenos Aires.

Younger generations of Chinese-Argentines (dubbed ArgenChinos) have readily adopted local ways, with some becoming celebrities, including athletes, a film director and an anchorwoman.

The Japanese-Argentine community, located mostly in Pablo Nougués city where a large temple was built, is also becoming succesful in Entertainment and has now integrated into Argentine society today, sources believe that 78% of the 4rd generation Japanese-Argentine community is of mixed European ancestry, while the 3rd generation is 66% mixed , and a majority of them have non-Japanese ancestors and relatives. The Japanese-Argentine community is less visible due to the intermixing with the European immigrants that have also settled in Argentina like the Italians, Spaniards, German, French, Irish, Polish and Swiss. Today they are one of the most distinguishable communities in Argentina because of their mixed race. Many of their Asian features are almost not visible due to their ancestry. In Buenos Aires, the "Jardín Japonés" (Japanese Garden and Teahouse) has become a traditional landmark of the city since its opening 30 years ago.

Other Asian-Argentines include smaller clusters of ethnic Laotians, Thai and Vientamese people. They run restaurants, small groceries and candy parlors (called "kioscos" in Argentine parlance).

[edit] Discrimination

Due to their unfamiliarity with Asia, Argentines, most of whom are descendants of Europeans, tended to view Asian-Argentines as exotic, which may have a negative connotation.

Presently, the reputation of the community has been jeopardized due to allegations of corrupt business practices. Investigations within Korean-Argentine textile factories and stores have shown that illegal workers from Bolivia were employed in these places.^[3][4] Because of this, many Korean-Argentines feel that their community has been unfairly targeted due to their economic success.

Another incident occurred in June 2006, when the union of truck drivers began a boycott of Chinese-owned stores. This was due to an alleged gun-related incident between a driver and a store owner, which involved illegal firearms ^[5]. Shortages in stores were reported due to a lack of deliveries until the boycott was officially lifted the following month ^[6].

[edit] See also

• Overseas Chinese
• Japanese diaspora
• Korean diaspora

[edit] Notes

[edit] References

• Masterson, Daniel M. and Sayaka Funada-Classen. (2004), The Japanese in Latin America: The Asian American Experience. Urbana, Illinois: University of Illinois Press. 10-ISBN 0-252-07144-1/13-ISBN 978-0-252-07144-7; OCLC 253466232

[edit] External links

• Centenary of the Japanese immigration to Argentina Clarín (Spanish)
• Migration Historical Overview - Argentina