Brides on Sale

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

This book has been years in the making. I am indebted to many people who gave their time, support, assistance, and encouragement to me. Those who receive the greatest thanks are the many individuals who must remain anonymous. I am deeply indebted to them for sharing their experiences and stories with me, often meeting me in their homes and private, inner places.

I wish to thank acquisitions editor Mary Savigar at Peter Lang, who responded positively and enthusiastically to the initial book idea, and then helped facilitate the text through all stages of review. I also thank Tom Nakayama, series editor at Peter Lang, for providing helpful comments and feedback that strengthened the arguments and impact of this book.

For financial assistance I am grateful to the Fulbright Foundation for supporting me and my family in Taiwan for a year of research. The Executive Director, Dr. Wu Jing-jyi, created a warm and supportive environment for all of us Fulbrighters. Thanks especially go to fellow Fulbrighters Chris Reed and Charlie Chern for your companionship, insights, and the contacts that you provided. Jean Rose, a Fulbright teacher, also facilitated contacts with a community in northeastern Taiwan. I also thank National Chiao Tung University (NCTU) for hosting me in Taiwan, and the Chair of the Center for General Education, Tsai Hsiung-Shan, for his friendly support; NCTU also provided a grant that was used to hire student assistants who assisted with the project. ← vii | viii →Finally, financial support came from the University of Macau during the latter stages, allowing me to conduct research in Singkawang, Indonesia, and visit a Hakka community in Taiwan.

In Taiwan, where most of the work for this project was done, I want to first of all thank Professor Chung-Hui Liang. She has been a constant and reliable source of support and friend for many years. I also thank the following students at National Chiao Tung University who worked with me from 2007–2008: Chang Ya-ching 張雅晴, Su Jyun-wei 蘇俊瑋, Liu Shu-yu 劉書瑜, Lin Chi-wen 林紀汶, Hou Patricia Hsiao-ying 侯曉穎, Kuo Liang-ting 郭亮廷, Alice Chen 陳柔諭, Diane Hsiung 熊得恩, and David Chang 張之偉. They helped with the sometimes tedious task of transcribing interviews, and provided insights and reflections that helped me better understand the data. I also want to thank Kuo Chung-Ru 郭忠儒, whom I was fortunate to meet in 2013, and provided access to another community in Taiwan. I also want to thank Peter Dodd for the help you provided in communities you know well.

Professor Hsieh Chih-ling 謝智玲 of Da-Yeh University 大葉大學, was another great help to me. She not only introduced me to many teachers and administrators, but also gave me car rides, and stimulating conversation. Other educators in Taiwan I wish to thank include Principal Liu Mei-hui 劉美惠, Principal Wang Sheng-tai 王昇泰, and Principal Kuo Hsiou-yu 郭秀玉. They care deeply about their students and the many “waipei” mothers who have made Taiwan their home.

Many family members and extended kin, to whom I have been blessed to know through marriage, gave meaningful assistance. Some I can only anonymously thank here. Those I can name include each of my three sisters-in-law, Hsu Chin-yu 許錦玉, Hsu Chin-li 許錦麗, and Hsu Li-chiau 許麗嬌, who gave invaluable assistance in finding participants, and provided many memorable meals and enjoyable times together; thanks also goes to my brother-in-law, Hsu His-chin 許錫欽, who helped me better understand the experiences of some Taiwanese men.

In Indonesia, a place that was unfamiliar to me until the latter stages of research, I was helped by a number of people. Aimee Dawis of the University of Jakarta, and Sunny Lie of St. Cloud State University, Minnesota, provided my initial contacts and entreé. They also read the chapter about Indonesia and gave helpful suggestions. I also wish to thank Pak Hartono, Janto Tjahjadin, and other members of Permasis Singkawang, Chinese Indonesians who met with me, and who are deeply concerned for the needs of the people of Singkawang. Thanks also must be given to Hasan Karman, ← viii | ix → former mayor of Singkawang for discussing the project with me and facilitating contacts. Iwan Ong Santosa, journalist for Kompas, and author of many books on Indonesia, was a wonderful guide in Jakarta, and a fantastic source of information. In Singkawang I wish to first thank Ulung Wijaya and Fredy Lie, for working with me as assistants. Their contacts, language skills, knowledge of the local community, and good-heartedness made the research there possible. I also wish to thank Elisawati and A-Thong for providing important contacts, and Christian Valentinus for leading me on a trip into remote parts of Singkawang that I will never forget.

At the University of Macau I was assisted by a team of students with a range of linguistic abilities and diverse cultural knowledge: Anastasia Lijadi, Fiona Wu, Hazel Wan, Julie Zhong, Florence Fok, Melissa Chen, Siau Thung, Jenny Zhi, and Agy Yan. I thank each for their meaningful and important assistance.

Last I wish to thank my immediate family. My mother, Rebecca, and my father Robert, not only encouraged me and repeatedly asked, “When will you finish your book?” they also read early drafts of the book. My oldest daughter, Sarah, read and critiqued early chapters, and is a wonderful daughter and Dajie in the family. Robbie and Pearl, shared in the experience of living in Taiwan with me, and gave me times to recreate and rest. Finally, none of this would have been possible without Donna, who not only pushes me to be a better father, scholar, and man, but is the love of my life.

During one field trip participants explained to me that they see me as a “bridge” between them in their community, and others in a world outside. They said this in the context of sharing with me their hurts and needs; that hoped that the publication of this book would let others know their stories, and serve as a lesson to others. Thus, I have written this book as a bridge between individuals, families, cultures, and worlds. May this book be a bridge that can inform, warn, and help those in need.

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A NOTE ON TRANSLATIONS

Mandarin Chinese, Taiwanese (Hokkien), and Hakka are tonal languages with regional variants. These are represented using both Chinese characters and Romanization systems. Following standard practice, I have chosen to represent spoken Mandarin with Pinyin, absent tonal marks, and in most cases provide Chinese characters. Likewise, Taiwanese utterances are presented using the “Church Romanization” system, minus tonal marks that was developed in the nineteenth century by foreign missionaries and is currently used in publications by Taiwan’s Presbyterian Church. Hakka utterances, however, were transcribed using Chinese characters, that I have translated into English. Similarly, Indonesian dialogue has been translated into English, with assistance from Anastasia Lijadi who knows both languages well. Those interested in seeing dialogue in the original languages may contact me.

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INTRODUCTION

“I bought a bride!” exclaimed a middle-aged man when I met him the summer of 2004. Like many other men in rural Taiwan without a high paying job, advanced degree, or home in one of Taiwan’s cities, this man was approaching 40 years of age without a wife or child, requisite symbols of success and maturity in this Confucian-influenced society. With few opportunities for marriage in sight, he decided to pursue a path toward marriage taken by thousands of other men in Taiwan: He contacted a professional marriage broker, who for a fee arranged to have him fly to Vietnam where he could meet women interested in marriage. He and five other Taiwanese men, who previously did not know each other, boarded a plane for Vietnam, and there met women who had left their homes in Cambodia, waiting to be “chosen” by their future husband. My friend expressed interest in one woman he found attractive and intelligent, who had graduated from high school and attended university. She assented to his request, and they were married in a brief ceremony, as were the other four couples. Then after a short “honeymoon” with their brides, the Taiwanese men flew home, while the women remained in Cambodia for several more months until the marriage company arranged their spousal visas, which allowed them to fly to Taiwan and begin married life. ← 1 | 2 →