Global Economic Crises, Migration, and Remittances: China and Southeast Asia during the Great Depression of the 1930s

Abstract

As the 2008 Global Financial Crisis shows, economic crises impact not only international migrants but also their countries of source and destination. However there is an earlier episode – the Great Depression of the 1930s - in the context of Chinese migrants to Southeast Asia where important lessons can be drawn. This paper shows that the major issues raised then are as germane today even though they occurred under vastly different circumstances.