馬凱碩 生活在亞洲世紀：非外交回憶錄

《生活在亞洲世紀：非外交回憶錄》作者：馬凱碩

https://asianreviewofbooks.com/living-the-asian-century-an-undiplomatic-memoir-by-kishore-mahbubani/

馬凱碩
二十年來，新加坡外交官兼作家馬凱碩一直是越來越多知識分子和專家的領軍人物，他們宣傳“亞洲二十一世紀”，這是一個勝利的弧線，亞洲大國——尤其是正在崛起的中國——已經擺脫了西方殖民主義的束縛，在全球國家和文明的等級製度中占據了“應有的”地位。馬凱碩的作品以一係列暢銷書為主，這些暢銷書講述了西方衰落和亞洲崛起的故事，贏得了從美國國際主義者到中國民族主義者等眾多觀眾的認可。

因此，讀過他之前作品的讀者將會對馬凱碩最新著作的基調有所準備，甚至可能會感到驚訝，這是一本非常個人化和私密的回憶錄。《生活在亞洲世紀》一書擺脫了馬凱碩早期作品中那種激烈的爭論（但不一定擺脫了自負的負擔），提供了對知識和政治世界的洞察，正是這些世界產生了他最著名的思想。

“都怪該死的英國人。”

“都怪該死的英國人。”第一章的第一行就引用了一個熟悉的比喻，即西方殖民者要為後殖民亞洲的所有缺點負責。幸運的是，這個開場白並沒有讓殖民者的“失誤”掩蓋戰後新加坡一個貧窮的信德移民家庭複雜的生活世界。盡管麵臨家庭生活的挑戰、父親入獄和父母離異，馬布巴尼仍然沉浸在多語種社會的文化豐富性中，這個社會相對沒有社區暴力和政治，這為他帶來了成功。通過一係列偶然的國家幹預——包括提供營養、公共教育、通過藏書豐富的公共圖書館提供知識寶庫，以及最終獲得新加坡大學的總統獎學金——年輕的基肖爾晉升，為在公務員隊伍中取得豐碩的職業生涯做好了準備。正如他所推測的那樣，他是一個幸運的青年，母親對他關愛有加，國家也實行“善治”，盡管他的姐妹們沒有享有接受教育、獲得機會和晉升的特權。

新加坡大學的智力刺激培養了馬布巴尼的“自由和獨立精神”，使他擺脫了年輕時的貧困，投身於公共服務事業——他先是成為一名外交官，在金邊、吉隆坡、華盛頓特區和紐約任職。這些旅程追溯了馬凱碩成長為“新加坡模式”治理和外交的推廣者這一更為人熟知的角色的過程；這位年輕的理想主義者、和平主義者基肖爾很快就被吳慶瑞、拉惹勒南和李光耀等導師的強硬現實主義所同化。然而，正如馬凱碩所描述的那樣，他的“自由和激進精神”遠非妥協，而是與新加坡三位開國領袖（吳慶瑞、拉惹勒南和李光耀）誌趣相投，而這三位領袖本身也是反抗強大殖民勢力的“反叛者”。在職業生涯的亮點之間，回憶錄中穿插著家庭和個人生活的節奏。經曆了兩次婚姻，經曆了嬰兒的悲慘死亡和痛苦的離婚等令人衰弱的個人悲劇，馬凱碩變得更加堅強，並準備在他的職業生涯中取得更大的成功。

生活在“亞洲世紀”意味著什麽？

成熟的基肖爾在本書的後幾章中占據主導地位，他以外交部常任秘書的身份發聲。通過兩次擔任新加坡駐聯合國大使，包括短暫擔任聯合國安理會主席的一年，讀者了解到他與高級外交官的多次互動、職業奮鬥以及在外交、學術和公共生活中的無數成就。回憶錄並沒有放棄任何開創性的啟示，而是對他輝煌的公共記錄進行了修飾，最終以記錄他在“偉大的亞洲複興”中的先鋒作用、實現亞洲夢和為實現亞洲世紀做出貢獻而結束。

什麽是亞洲夢？生活在“亞洲世紀”意味著什麽？如果像他之前所定義的那樣，這涉及戰勝西方並擺脫殖民主義的枷鎖，那麽亞洲大國日益增長的政治影響力和新加坡等亞洲城市的物質成功無疑證實了這種必勝的勢頭。事實上，馬凱碩宣稱自己是在亞洲進行區域建設項目，通過新加坡向印度和中國的廣大讀者群推銷他的個人和職業軌跡（這本回憶錄和他的許多前作一樣，都有中文翻譯版）

《生活在亞洲世紀》非外交回憶錄
作者：基肖爾·馬布巴尼 ? 發布日期：2024 年 8 月 13 日

近距離觀察新加坡獨立以來的驚人崛起。

這位長期擔任新加坡外交官的坦率職業評估，其任期與李光耀領導國家進入國際舞台的數十年時間相吻合。

馬布巴尼（生於 1948 年）是印度信德人的後裔，在印巴分治期間離開了後來成為巴基斯坦的地方。他出生於新加坡，父親是一名勞工。他的父親經常酗酒，深陷賭債，無法穩定養家糊口，作者、母親和姐妹們努力維持生計。與此同時，他們與馬來人、華人和穆斯林鄰居和睦相處，因為新加坡是一個創業中心，為脫離英國和馬來西亞聯邦而戰。當鐵腕的李光耀帶領這個小國走向現代化和繁榮時，馬凱碩“開始相信，我進步的唯一途徑是逐漸擺脫原始的亞洲偏見，用西方文明的先進思想取而代之”。他寫道，1967 年，“我一生中最大的奇跡之一發生了。”他獲得了總統獎學金，進入新加坡大學學習。盡管馬凱碩希望成為一名哲學教授（“普魯塔克是對的——教育不是填滿一桶水，而是點燃火焰”），但他加入外交部主要是為了支持他的母親，他一幹就是三十多年。作者寫到他對李光耀的欽佩，他與羅納德·裏根關係密切，也談到了新加坡 2001 年當選聯合國安理會成員的重要性。馬凱碩稱讚李光耀能夠像大衛對抗巨人歌利亞一樣對抗美國，這位作者後來擔任了李光耀公共政策學院院長。他是一位直率、多產、有影響力的東南亞評論家。

"Living the Asian Century: An Undiplomatic Memoir" by Kishore Mahbubani

https://asianreviewofbooks.com/living-the-asian-century-an-undiplomatic-memoir-by-kishore-mahbubani/

 Kishore Mahbubani

For two decades, Singaporean diplomat and author Kishore Mahbubani has been a leading voice among a growing group of intellectuals and pundits publicizing the “Asian Twenty-First Century”, a triumphalist arc where Asian powers—especially a rising China—have cast off the shackles of Western colonialism to assume their “rightful” place atop in the global hierarchy of nations and civilizations. Mahbubani’s oeuvre, dominated by his series of bestsellers popularizing a tale of Western decline and Asia’s rise, has won recognition from a host of audiences ranging from American internationalists and Chinese nationalists.

Readers of his prior work will thus be primed for, and perhaps surprised by the tenor of Mahbubani’s most recent book, a deeply personal and intimate memoir. A welcome departure from the polemics—but not necessarily the weight of self-importance—which have characterized his earlier writings, Living the Asian Century provides insights into the intellectual and political worlds that produced the ideas for which he is best known.

“Blame it all on the damn British.”

“Blame it all on the damn British.” This first line of the first chapter sets the stage by invoking a familiar trope of Western colonial culpability for all of postcolonial Asia’s shortcomings. Fortunately, this opening does not allow the colonial “screw up” to overshadow the complex life worlds of a poor Sindhi immigrant family in postwar Singapore. Despite the challenges of domestic life, his father’s imprisonment, and his parents’ separation, Mahbubani dwells on the cultural richness of a polyglot society relatively free from communal violence and politics which positioned him for success. Through a series of fortuitous state interventions—including the provision of nutrition, public education, repositories of knowledge through well-stocked public libraries, and eventually a President’s Scholarship to the University of Singapore—a young Kishore rises up the ranks, primed for a productive career in the civil service. As he surmises, his was a lucky youth marked by affection from his mother and “good governance” by the state, although his privileged access to education and opportunities and advancement were not shared by his sisters.

It was the intellectual stimulation at Singapore University, that nurtured Mahbubani’s “free and independent spirit”, positioning him to leave behind the poverty of his youth for a lifelong career in public service—first as a diplomat, with postings in Phnom Penh, Kuala Lumpur, Washington DC, and New York. These journeys trace Mahbubani’s growth into his better-known role as a popularizer for a “Singapore model” of governance and diplomacy; the young idealist, pacifist Kishore is soon assimilated into the hard-nosed realism of his mentors such as Goh Keng Swee, S Rajaratnam, and Lee Kuan Yew. And yet, far from compromise, as Mahbubani describes, his “free and radical spirit” found kindred spirits with the trio of Singapore’s founding leaders (Goh, Rajaratnam, and Lee) who in their own right, were also “rebels” against much more powerful colonial powers. In between the highlights of his career, the memoir is interspersed with the rhythms of family and personal life. Through two marriages, and experiencing debilitating personal tragedies including the tragic death of an infant and a painful divorce, Mahbubani emerges stronger and poised for greater success in his professional life.

What does it mean to live the “Asian Century”?

It is the mature Kishore who dominates in the latter chapters of the book when he finds his voice as Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Through two stints as Singapore’s Ambassador to the UN, including a brief year as head of the UN Security Council, readers are introduced to his multiple interactions with top diplomats, professional struggles, and myriad achievements in diplomacy, academia, and public life. Embellishments to his illustrious public record, rather than dropping any groundbreaking revelations, the memoir ultimately concludes by recording his pioneering role in the “great Asian renaissance”, living out the Asian dream and contributing to the realization of the Asian century.

What is this Asian dream, and what does it mean to live the “Asian Century”? If, as he has previously defined, this involves overcoming the West and throwing off the shackles of colonialism, the growing political clout of Asian powers and the material successes of Asian cities like Singapore certainly affirms this triumphalist arc. Indeed, Mahbubani’s claims are to a region-making project in Asia, pitching his personal and professional trajectory—via Singapore—to a large base of readers in India and China (this memoir, as with many of his prior works, is available in Chinese translation). There is much to commend about the autobiographical approach, which personalizes the inner workings of high politics and diplomacy. However, I set down the book still curious about other aspects of his recent political career which gained considerable public scrutiny in Singapore. Given the wide-ranging publicity over Mahbubani’s recent role as a sympathetic commentator on Chinese politics, there is surprisingly little reflection on his interest in contemporary China. Likewise, his retirement from the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy in 2017 and the context of his recent dissent and divergence from other members of Singapore’s foreign policy establishment are also passed over lightly. Despite his attempts to be “undiplomatic”, casting himself as an activist and contrarian thinker who supports the writing of an “uninhibited history of Singapore”, one might wonder if Mahbubani is being facetious about this activist persona or whether it is partially his attempt to strike a chord with a younger generation of Asian readers outside of the “establishment” with which he was previously associated. Given his public stature in Singapore and eminent role as a diplomat and academic who has in recent times earned the public censure of the city-state’s elite, a more introspective reflection on navigating the role of a public intellectual in contemporary Singapore, would have been an important contribution to ongoing debates on the stakes of democratic participation and civil society activism in Asia today.

Living the Asian Century will undoubtedly be of wide-ranging interest to those interested in contemporary Singapore. As a reader who has been at times frustrated by the generalizations and combative tone that characterizes Mahbubani’s polemics in his other works, I must confess that I found this memoir eminently readable, even enjoyable at times. In simple prose, it is readily accessible and succeeds at least as one account of as one account of progress in post-independence Singapore. Even readers who cannot follow Mahbubani along with his visions of the Asian dream and Asian renaissance, will gain some insights into the social and political worlds which shaped the man and his ideas.

LIVING THE ASIAN CENTURY AN UNDIPLOMATIC MEMOIR
BY KISHORE MAHBUBANI ? RELEASE DATE: AUG. 13, 2024

An intimate view of Singapore’s stunning rise since independence.

Afrank career assessment by the longtime Singaporean diplomat whose tenure paralleled the decades of Lee Kuan Yew’s stewardship of the country into the international arena.

A descendant of Hindu Sindhi people who left what became Pakistan during Partition, Mahbubani (b. 1948), author of The Great Convergence, was born in Singapore, where his father worked as a laborer. Often drunk and mired in gambling debts, his father was not a stable provider, and the author, his mother, and his sisters struggled to make ends meet. At the same time, they lived amicably among Malay, Chinese, and Muslim neighbors, as Singapore was an entrepreneurial hub fighting for independence from Great Britain and then from the Federation of Malaysia. As the strong-armed Lee Kuan Yew steered the tiny state toward modernization and greater prosperity, Mahbubani “became convinced that the only way for me to progress was to steadily shed my primitive Asian prejudices and replace them with the advanced thought of Western civilization.” In 1967, he writes, “one of the greatest miracles of my life happened.” He was granted a President’s Scholarship to attend the University of Singapore. Although Mahbubani hoped to become a philosophy professor (“Plutarch was right—education isn’t about filling a bucket; it’s about lighting fires”), he joined the Foreign Ministry largely to support his mother, and he served for more than three decades. The author writes about his admiration of Lee, who was close to Ronald Reagan, as well as the importance of Singapore’s election to the UN Security Council in 2001. Mahbubani credits Lee with being able to stand up to the U.S., like David to Goliath, and the author went on to serve as dean of the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy. He is a straightforward, prolific, influential commenter on Southeast Asia.