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2014 Asia and Africa today

ON THE 85th ANNIVERSARY OF ACADEMICIAN A.B.DAVIDSON by A.S.Balezin, Dr.Sc. (History)

The community of experts in African studies are celebrating the 85th anniversary of Apollon Davidson, Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Director of the Center for African Studies of the Institute of World History - the acknowledged head of the national African Studies. In addition, he is a very unusual man.
It is next to impossible to list all the major works of A.Davidson and books published under his editorship. Suffice it to say that a partial list of his publications is a brochure which has more than 60 pages.
But there is a book which is worth to be specially mentioned – his autobiography published under the title “I love you. Pages of Life». This is a delicate, touching story about the time in which A.Davidson lived and in which is living, about the people he met during his life.

POLITICAL GEOGRAPHY OF THE MODERN EGYPT: EXPERIENCE OF QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS by L.M.Issaev, A.V.Korotayev, Dr.Sc. (History)
Keywords: Egypt, Muslim Brotherhood, Muhammed Moursi, Abd El Fattah El Sisi, Army, referendum, constitution
The article investigates the electoral preferences and electoral activity in the provinces of Egypt. The results of the referendums on the Egyptian constitution in 2012 and 2014 and presidential elections in 2012 are also analyzed. The «Index of positions power of the Muslim Brotherhood» developed by the authors is presented.
The real level of support of the «Brothers» and the military in the provinces of Egypt is revealed. On this basis it has become possible to identify those regions which are sympathetic to the Islamists (the northern part of Middle Egypt), the regions which give preference to the Army (Delta, Port Said and South Sinai) and those which are characterized by a high level of political passivity (Upper Egypt).

CHINA IN OCEANIA: POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC EXPANSION by S.E.Pale, PhD (History)
Keywords: China, Taiwan, Oceania, expansion, economic dependence
While world powers were wondering how to avoid worsening of the global financial recession that began in 2008, China captured the exempt financial niches around the world, from Africa to Latin America, not excluding the space between continents - Oceania. Establishing their dominance on the tiny Pacific islands, sometimes with more than a modest resource base, China, nevertheless, was able to benefit even where seemingly it could not do it.

ENERGY: THE PRESENT AND THE FUTURE

NEW JAPANESE “MIRACLE”… SOLAR! by V.V.Akimova, I.S.Tikhotskaya, PhD (Economics)
Keywords: solar energy, photovoltaic’s in Japan, “solar boom”
The article deals with the analysis of Japan’s solar energy, one of the most promising and rapidly growing sectors of the world economy. The authors analyze problems connected with its development, factors increasing its attractiveness and explaining the origin of “solar boom” in Japan as well as its probable consequences.
Considering dynamics and specifics of solar energy development in Japan, new energy strategy and mega solar plants construction, the authors emphasize an important role that the government is playing and demonstrate the effects of built-in tariffs for renewable energy resources on photovoltaic’s spreading.

SOCIAL PROBLEMS OF RE-EMIGRANTS IN CHINA by A.V.Afonasyeva, PhD (Economics)
Keywords: China, returnees, social problems
Rapid economic development in China during the reform has created favorable conditions for doing business in the country. As a consequence, many Chinese professionals who live overseas, students and graduates of foreign universities have became more interested in returning to their homeland.
Chinese authorities pay great attention to creating favorable conditions both for their activities in the professional field, and in the everyday terms. Nevertheless, many returnees are faced with very serious social problems that hinder their adaptation to new conditions.

YASUKUNI SHRINE PROBLEM: TO BE CONTINUED by E.V.Molodyakova, Dr.Sc. (History)
Keywords: Yasukuni Jinja, Shinto, revival of Japanese militarism, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe
For more than a decade, seemingly private problem connected with the Yasukuni Shrine (Yasukuni Jinja) - national Shinto religion where souls killed in a combat are honored – has been periodically appearing in the spotlight, both in Japan and the neighboring countries.
This fact causes not only the polarization of opinions within the Japanese society, but also serious conflicts with neighboring countries, mainly China and the Republic of Korea.
Currently, due to the triumphant return to power of the Liberal Democratic Party and the subsequent strengthening of its position in the country and the intensification of foreign policy activities, this issue gained the major political and diplomatic nature. It is linked to fears in Japan and abroad related to the possible increase of the Japanese nationalist sentiments. Such fears are fueled by a certain nationalist rhetoric of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and some of his actions, in particular visits to the Yasukuni Shrine, which is regarded as a hotbed of the revival of Japanese militarism.

“DAUGHTER OF DEMOCRACY”: TRIUMPHS AND FALLS OF HASINA WAZED by A.A.Suvorova, Dr.Sc. (Philology)
Keywords: Bangladesh, women - political leaders, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, 1975 military coup, dictatorship, women empowerment, political dynasties in South Asia
The article is a political portrait of Bangladeshi PM Sheikh Hasina Wazed. Born in 1947 to Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who led Bangladesh to independence from Pakistan, Sheikh Hasina took an active role in politics as early as the 1960s. In 1975, her father, mother and brothers were assassinated in a coup, but she and her sister survived because they stayed in Germany at the time. She returned to Bangladesh in 1981 and ran against the military government of General Hossain Mohammad Ershad.
However, she spent much of the 1980s under house arrest or in prison. In 1991, her political rival, Khaleda Zia, of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) won the Bangladesh’s first elections after the resignation of General Ershad. However in 1996, Sheikh Hasina was elected Prime Minister when her party, The Awami League, won the elections. In 2001, she was forced into the opposition again as her party fell out of political favor, due to corruption charges and because it was seen as being too close to the government of India. Since
2001, corruption and murder charges have been leveled against Sheikh Hasina, resulting in temporary forced exile. However, in 2008, she returned to Bangladesh to lead her party in the general elections. The Awami League received a landslide victory, and Sheikh Hasina became Prime Minister for the second time. In 2014 she was re-elected for the third term.

TAMING OF A SHREW: GOLDEN JUBILEE OF CONTROLLING OF THE NILE by V.V.Belyakov, Dr.Sc. (History)
Keywords: Egypt, Aswan hydro-electric power station
The story is devoted to 50th anniversary of controlling of the Nile in May 1964. It analyses the importance of this event for the Egyptian civilization. It also covers celebrations of the jubilee in Egypt.

«RUN OF PEACE» IN EURASIA by Y.I.Moskalev
Keywords: international relay «Running the World», Sri Chinmoy, sports and spirituality, philosophy of peace
May 9, 2014 Sochi hosted International Relay «Running the World». Participants of the relay are carrying the Torch of Peace through 19,500 km of the Russian territory, then - through Mongolia, China, South Korea, Japan, Indonesia, Australia - New Zealand.
The relay «Run of Peace 2014» was attended by runners from more than one hundred countries. Initiator of the «Run the World» is a neoinduistsky preacher, born in India, Sri Chinmoy (1931-2007). The article gives a brief biography of Sri Chinmoy and aphorisms that reflect his spiritual philosophy and worldview.

IMAGES OF CHINESE ECONOMY IN CONSIOUSNESS OF POPULATION OF THE RUSSIAN-CHINESSE BORDER-ZONE by A.V.Zhukov, Dr.Sc. (Philosophy), A.A.Zhukova, PhD (Philosophy)
Keywords: reception of images of China, the image of the economy, «alarm image», «pragmatic way», the popular perception, information influence
The authors have studied the images of China’s economy in the Eastern regions of Russia. Goal and novelty of the work is defined by the fact that it is the first attempt to analyze the transformation of economic image of China in the consciousness of Russians. The result is the development of algorithm of image transformation of the Chinese economy, which includes the stage of primary perception as a country with unlimited potential, the resources available, and the formation stage of the versatile and specialized views, forming on the basis of informational influence of various, including Chinese, sources. The authors introduce and reveal the essence of the concepts: «sounds the alarm image of China» and «pragmatic way of China».
Along with the desire to prevent the expansion of Chinese in Russia, Russians demonstrate the expression of readiness for economic cooperation with China.

WAYS OF AFRICAN ECONOMIES’ MODERNIZATION: SCIENTIFIC CONFERENCE (Institute for African Studies RAS, Moscow, 19 March, 2014) by E.V.Morozenskaya, PhD (Economics)
Keywords: Africa, economy, modernization, traditionalism, models, FDI, technologies
At the conference, about 20 reports presented by leading Russian africanists, were focused on four major problems. Firstly, they were concentrated on concept features and realization possibilities of the modernization models; secondly, shifts in traditional vs. modern attitude in African societies; thirdly, different aspects of the FDI (foreign direct investments) influence on African economies; finally, transfer and use of the advanced technologies in Africa.
Diverse modernization experiences and their unequal results coupled with cyclic changes of the world economy make further changes necessary – in both social and technological spheres.

TRANSFORMATION OF CHINA’S MINORITIES CULTURES by N.A.Solovyeva, Baikal State University (Chita)
Keywords: national minorities in China, culture of national minorities, national policy of China, the modernization of culture, the commercialization of culture
The article examines the processes that have a significant impact on the transformation of the culture of national minorities. Such processes include: the impact of national policies on Chinese culture of indigenous peoples, the commercialization of culture, modernization and natural changes in the culture of national minorities. The author concludes that all these processes contribute to the formation of a new ethnic and cultural reality in China.

ZIMBABWE - EU: PROBLEMS AND PROS- PECTS OF COOPERATION (1980-2014) by E.R.Salakhetdinov
Keywords: Africa, Zimbabwe, EU, sanctions, international relations, land reform, Mugabe
All the last years the Republic of Zimbabwe is demonstrating strong economic growth. However, sanctions imposed by Western countries against Zimbabwean officials still inhibit this. Due to the fact that European Union is one of the three most important economic partners of Zimbabwe, its position to a large degree determines the country’s development. The article traces the history of the relationship, analyzes the impact of EU sanctions on the formation of the crisis and assesses the prospects for future cooperation.

NOVELIST ELIF SHAFAK AND POST- MODERNIST STYLISTICS by M.M.Repenkova, Dr.Sc. (Philology)
Keywords: Turkish literary post-modernism, “second wave”, narrative modification, Elif Shifak, discourse, novel “Iskander”
The author studies post-modernist stylistics of Elif Shafak, one of the leading Turkish writers at the boundary of XX-XXI centuries who represents the post-modernism narrative modification. On the example of her most famous novels “Pinhan” (1997), “Purgatory” (2004), “Farther and Monster” (2006), “Love” (2009), “Iskander” (2011), it is observed the way of time and space, character’s and the author’s parameters changes in the post-modernist art paradigm.
Close attention was given to the study of plot- compositional component of the novel “Iskander”. This study has been carried out in the process of dispute along with Russian specialists in Turkic philology.

INDIA. DIFFICCULT OVERCOMING OF WOMEN’S INEQUALITY by L.A.Chereshneva, Dr.Sc. (History)
The book by a well-known indologist and expert on gender problems Eugenea Yurlova “Women of India: Traditions and Modernity” (M., 2014) deals with problems and achievements of India women in the historical context - from ancient times until present day.
During 65 years of independent development women of the country achieved noticeable results in its social, political and cultural life. But majority of Indian women is still in the grip of old conservative traditions. Women’s empowerment and attempts to secure equal rights with men or have a ‘love marriage” often result in confrontation with nested customs of subjugating and ensuing violence and even ‘honor killings’ in the name of dignity of the family and caste. Nevertheless the whole picture isn’t so gloomy: the more Indian society is becoming democratic, the more women are achieving dignity and important status.

AFRICA AS IT IS SEEN BY AFRICAN HISTORIANS by N.I.Petrov
Compilers and authors of this book at the very beginning clearly articulated goal of that rich - almost
450 pages - work («Africa. History and historians.» (Publishing House of the Higher School of Economics. M., 2014): “…to pursue an aim to figure out how peoples and countries in sub-Saharan and South Africa (once said - Sub-Saharan Africa) see their past, see the place of their past in the history of mankind.
Published work is an attempt to explain the phenomenon of the birth of the African historical thought and its national branches in their conflict and interaction with the Western historical tradition. Analysis of African forms of historical thought is held in a wide cultural and historical, socio-political and inter- civilizational contexts.

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