“Colonialism” is one of those words that has a sharp divergence of meaning. In the West, it mostly refers to some vague exactions Western countries might have committed in the past (but at the same time lifting other countries out of barbarism and handing them SCIENCE!); said exactions having no bearing on anything but dusty corners of history that no one else is much interested in. In short, a page that has been turned—and that everyone does their best to forget ever happened.
Outside of the West, the word, of course, takes on another meaning. It is a painful legacy that has destroyed and shaped entire countries; that has ignited painful and divisive wars of independence; and that still holds sway today. For those of us with connections to the world outside the West, we know that colonialism is not dead; that the expatriates coming to Asia or other developing countries and living like kings are just new iterations of the colonists; that the worldwide dominance of English as spoken in the US or in the UK, the vast reach of Hollywood movies and US/UK books like Twilight, Harry Potter or Fifty Shades of Grey, is another instance of cultural imperialism, recalling times when children were sent to English, American or French schools and made to feel ashamed of their own ancestors’ achievements.
When we read science fiction stories where colonists leave their home and hearth, and make first contact with funny-looking aliens, we are uncomfortably reminded of the days where English or French or Dutch colonists came to foreign shores, marvelled at odd and weird customs, and gradually took over everything under the pretence of “civilizing” barbarians. Colonialism is, to an extent, embedded in modern science fiction; and it is no coincidence that most SF is produced by Western Anglophones and fails to concern itself with the point of view of people outside of the dominant sphere—or, if it does, it speaks in their name without regard for what they really think. Depictions of developing countries tend to be produced by Western Anglophones, and to focus on abject poverty, corruption, or any other negative sides that apparently make living in a developing country unbearable. This is not the voice of a country’s inhabitants; of those who have pride in where and how they live.
The stories in this anthology are not this kind of science fiction. They are the voices of the invaded; of the colonized; of the erased and the oppressed; of those whom others would make into aliens and blithely ignore or conquer or enlighten. I hope you enjoy reading them, and that they will make a different world and a different viewpoint take centre-stage for you.