Peru: A stronghold for Chinese diaspora in South America

About Peru

     Recently, I read a travel autobiography titled 'Camouflage, Walking Peru'. Peru is known as the heart of South America, an ancient country with a long history and culture. Reading it in one sitting, I felt a sense of exhilaration. Unlike our five-thousand-year culture, the Peruvian people under the Inca Empire might have retained more of their primitive colors, their darker skin tones reflecting a passionate nature. And in Peru, Out of a total population of over 30 million, more than 3 million have Chinese ancestry, truly living up to its reputation as the Chinese diaspora's stronghold in South America!

Travelogue Excerpts

1. Pedestrian street between Plaza San Martín and Plaza de Armas Jrde Union, with mobile phone shops, cinemas, fast food, dollar stores, and shoe shops, everything you could ask for. Judging by the styles, the clothing should be from Jiangsu and Zhejiang.
2. Among the cars on the street, domestic brands are common, with Chery being quite prevalent. The biggest advantage of domestic cars is their affordability. Walking past Bolívar Square, The 'Tianxia Weigong' (All Under Heaven Is for All) Chinatown is bustling, with its pedestrian street paved with oriental red bricks, engraved with the twelve zodiac signs. The certificates of conformity on the walls of 'Zhonghua Lou', 'Shanhai Lou', and 'Taixing Shangmao' are all written in Chinese. Suzhou silk, Jingdezhen ceramics, Wanglaoji, Lee Kum Kee, and Laoganma are displayed on the shelves.
3. Chinese restaurants are ubiquitous in the streets and alleys of Peru, 'Chifa' originated from the phonetic transliteration of 'chī fàn' (to eat a meal) and has been used ever since. Currently, there are over 10,000 'Chifa' Chinese restaurants of all sizes in Peru, with more than 7,000 in the capital, Lima, alone! Peruvians exclaim: 'We weren't conquered by Coca-Cola, but we were conquered by Chifa!'
4. Only after coming to Peru did I discover that Peruvians are very accustomed to and welcoming of Chinese people. If someone looks Asian, they will praise them by saying 'Chino'.
5. The trade volume between China and Peru is enormous. In supermarkets, not counting OEM toys and small electrical machinery, Zhujiang Bridge soy sauce, Lee Kum Kee sauces, and Longkou vermicelli are ubiquitous. The strengthening trade ties between China and Peru stem from the government's affirmation and optimism regarding the trade prospects between the two countries.

     The book mentions that after more than two centuries of development and adaptation, our ancestors deeply rooted Chinese ancestry in Peru. Chinese people, from laborers to now business owners, have overcome numerous obstacles in terms of capital, labor relations, and policies, making Peruvians deeply fall in love with rice, stir-fries, and Chinese restaurants Chifa!

     Since the Peru-China Free Trade Agreement was signed in 2010, bilateral trade between Peru and China has quadrupled. Many people are still concerned about the gloomy economic outlook in Latin America, but Peru's economy is already bright and sunny. At that time, their abundant mineral resources could not offset their import of products such as electromechanical products, textile products, furniture, toys, and food and beverages. As locals would say, they were 'begging with a golden bowl.' Not long ago, the Shandong Provincial Department of Commerce issued a notice regarding participation in the 2017 Peru International Food Expo, which also stated that to encourage enterprises to explore the South American market, participating enterprises would be granted certain exhibition subsidies!