<div>Please excuse me, Waruno, if I cherry-pick a couple of bits from your very interesting post:</div> <div> </div> <div>"I agree too, that that "Sumatra" list is indeed Chinese as Ross Clark<BR>inferred. Xiamen (formerly known as Amoy) is also referred to as<BR>South Fujian (old spelling: S. Fukien or Fookien), and is a major<BR>source of Chinese loanwords in Jakarta Malay (Betawi). There had<BR>already been a large Chinese community in Jakarta before English and<BR>Dutch "factories" or later the fort Batavia was set up there".</div> <div> </div> <div>What is it that makes (in particular) the Fukien, Fookien, Amoy, Xiamen people such wonderful traders?</div> <div> </div> <div>Here, in the Philippines, we have 'taipans'</div> <div>Lucio Tan - see: <A href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucio_Tan">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lucio_Tan</A><BR>and: <A
href="http://www.converge.org.nz/watchdog/98/11.htm">http://www.converge.org.nz/watchdog/98/11.htm</A></div> <div> </div> <div>Eduardo Cojuangco:<BR>see: <A href="http://www.coconutstudio.com/coconut%20bank%20scam.htm">http://www.coconutstudio.com/coconut%20bank%20scam.htm</A> <BR><A href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eduardo_Cojuangco_Jr">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eduardo_Cojuangco_Jr</A>.<BR>and dear sweet Corazon Aquino who benefited from the 'Peoples </div> <div>Revolution' - Eduardo's cousin</div> <div> </div> <div>They're Chinese (specifically Fukien) traders and they run everything everywhere. I even have to buy a new saucepan from Fookien Trading in Surigao.</div> <div>I've come across them all over - in Madagascar Fukien Chinese run </div> <div>trading stores in the deep forest, and the only restaurants with edible </div> <div>food anywhere. In Yemen, they were the ones who made the N-S road that </div> <div>crosses something like the Grand
Canyon on the way.</div> <div> </div> <div>So it isn't so difficult to build up a resentment towards them; as </div> <div>Suharto did <BR>"The ethnic Chinese were also targeted, primarily for economic and </div> <div>racial reasons. The embassy of the PRC was overrun by demonstrators and </div> <div>looted"<BR><A href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sukarno">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sukarno</A></div> <div><BR>Moderator - if I'm crossing the line, and bringing 'politics' into the </div> <div>discussion, then please slam me down</div> <div> </div> <div> </div> <div>"Today I at last got an opportunity to drop by at the rare-editions<BR>section of the State Library".<BR>Envy: My nearest 'paper' library is a 5-day sea voyage away.</div> <div><BR>regards</div> <div>Richard<BR></div>