For subscribers
What makes a South-east Asian?
It could be instinctively sharing a set of values and sense of a common personal destiny
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
To be a South-east Asian is to claim ownership of who we are, and where we are, says the writer.
ST PHOTO: GIN TAY
Follow topic:
In February, my friend Joel returned to the Philippines after nearly 40 years away from home.
He had studied in New York City and become a finance lawyer in Manhattan. He later went into international development work for the UN, based first in Geneva, then Jerusalem, before moving back to the US to work on consultancy projects. Except for a short stint in Manila, when he worked for the Philippine government, he had not lived back home since when he was in high school.
