Transnational trajectories and cultural identity : lessons from the Chilean-Australian experience

This paper raises questions about the development of cultural identity as it transforms and impacts upon processes of regional integration in the Asia Pacific Rim, through a consideration of the postnational tendencies created by transnational migrant populations. It focuses on an investigation into the responses of some Chilean-Australians to issues of national identity and the current discourses on immigration, refugees and border protection, I have sought to move debates around immigrant identity in Australia beyond the national. In employing theoretical frameworks from migration theory, namely diaspora and transnational studies, I critically engage with the ways in which Australian identity is discussed in relation to, and by, migrants. These dialogues are then considered in the context of the creation of state-led transnational institutions in order to understand the relationships of power that might impact on transnational projects.