Research & Article

The commercialization of the folk crafts of small and remote ethnic groups in developing countries has been frequently explored in scholarly literature. However, these academic works tend to focus on the immediate factors affecting the transformation of folk crafts as they are oriented towards an “external” public. In doing so, the importance of “indirect tourism,” or the sponsored production of local crafts for a wider tourist market through the intermediacy of various external agents, is often overlooked. Therefore, this article aims to convey an understanding of the impact international political factors have had on the commercialization and transformation of the Hmong (Meo) people’s crafts, specifically focusing on the impact of the Second Indochina War. In addition to a brief outline of the situation of the Hmong and their crafts prior to the war, three time periods are discussed. The first is that of insurgency, war and removal of the Hmong from their villages in Thailand and Laos. The second period discusses the resettlement of the Hmong from Laos to refugee camps in Thailand, while the third deals with their migration to third countries, particularly the United States. The impacts of the Second Indochina War on Hmong crafts reflect a close relationship between political events and folk crafts, suggesting that similar developments in other parts of the world should be explored.