Wives, Mistresses and Matriarchs - Louise Williams

This is the story of the women of Asia. It is not a tale of the submissive oriental beauties of western fiction, but one of power and poverty in a region which is facing the most profound social changes the world has ever seen. It is about the private and public power of the women of the elite, and the pragmatism of the women of the slums.;How can a region produce the first female prime minister in the world and yet tolerate the child prostitution of Bangkok and Manila? How can women in countries where their role is perceived by Westerners to be that of second class citizens rise to the top of industrial conglomerates? Right across Asia women occupy positions of extraordinary power - and excruciating powerlessness. The author has met and talked with high and low, from Benazir Bhutto, Corazon Aquino and Aung San Suu Kyi to one time Vietcong commando, lover in the Hong Kong "mistress village" and Jakarta factory girl. These and many other women from the countries of Asia have enabled her to provide a view of patterns in this fast-changing society.