title: Intra-Ethnic Conflict and the Hmong in Australia and Thailand
Creators: name: Downman, Scott Andrew
Publisher: name: Griffith University
Year: 2005
Subjects: subject: Hmong
subject: intra-ethnic conflict (Thailand)
subject: Hmong in Australia

description: Ethnic issues continue to attract increasing global attention. With more than 30 ethnic-related conflicts currently raging across the world the dual issues of ethnicity and conflict are perhaps more important than ever before. Many aspects of this highly complex field of study are yet to be thoroughly researched. The reasons for this are varied but two of the most important reasons relate to the complexity of ethnic studies and also the fact that ethnicity is a relatively recent addition to not only the global lexicon but also to academic programs around the world. This thesis examines one of the relatively unexplored areas within the field of ethnic studies. This thesis investigates the issue of intra-ethnic conflict or an ethnic community in conflict with itself. It explores this issue by using the Hmong as a case study in two different contexts - Australia and Thailand. It looks at the causes and impacts of intra-ethnic conflict within these different contexts and discusses the impacts of social and religious change in Hmong communities by looking at a range of issues related to inter-ethnic relations, modernization and globalization. The paper will argue four main hypotheses: 1. Inter-ethnic conflict, modernization and globalization are the sources of intra-ethnic conflict in Hmong communities in Australia and Thailand. 2. Intra-ethnic conflict occurs when elements of Hmong ethnicity are replaced, changed or destroyed as a result of inter-ethnic relations with a dominant ethnic group or community. 3. Intra-ethnic conflict leads to further marginalization within Hmong communities effecting rituals, religion and the social structure. 4. Ethnicity is not a birthright for the Hmong and is often revoked as a consequence of ethnic change - namely changes to religion and change that brings about challenges to traditional leadership and social structures. In order to argue these hypotheses the thesis is divided into two parts. The first seeks to define key terms relevant to this type of research. These include terms such as ethnicity, modernization and globalization. Other terms such as dominance and conflict will also be examined in the context of this research. In addition, Part 1 of the thesis will also seek to define the highly contentious issue of Hmongness. To do this, the Hmong will be contextualized in terms of their place in diaspora communities such as Australia and in more traditional settings such as Thailand. This attempt to define Hmongness seeks to highlight the different perceptions of Hmong ethnicity by conflicting parties within Hmong communities. It will compare traditional notions of Hmongness with contemporary notions of Hmongness in diaspora and modernizing Hmong communities. The terms inter-ethnic and intra-ethnic conflict will be defined with regard to the Hmong. Part 2 of the thesis seeks to further contextualize the Hmong in terms of their arrival and current lifestyle in Thailand and Australia. Part 2 not only provides historical background but also individual case studies which demonstrate how the processes of inter-ethnic conflict, modernization and globalization work together to create an environment of intra-ethnic conflict. Part 2 also investigates the fruits of conflict in both an Australian and Thai context. Two main issues will be examined to demonstrate the existence of intra-ethnic conflict. They are: 1. The role and impact of Christian conversion and its influence in sparking intra-ethnic conflict. 2. The impacts of ethnic change on maintaining traditional languages, leadership and social structure. The thesis argues that conversion to Christianity provides a fertile environment for intra-ethnic conflict. It also argues that social and ethnic change brought about by globalization, modernization and inter-ethnic conflict contribute to this internal conflict. The research in this thesis has been collected following extensive research within Hmong communities in Australia and Thailand between April 2001 and April 2004. In Australia this research has centred on Australia's largest Hmong community in North Queensland which is home to some 1,000 Hmong. In Thailand this research includes more than 12 months of research in Hmong villages in four provinces including Tak, Chiang Mai, Nan and Phetchabun. In both Australia and Thailand the Hmong communities were selected on the basis that they contained members who were upholding traditional beliefs alongside those who had adopted change, for example, converting to Christianity. The research in this thesis has been conducted using several different research methodologies including interviews, itinerant ethnography, participant observation, the use of qualitative data and extensive research of scholarly work produced by ethnic Hmong.