The (Non)Citizens of Komtar: Transnational Migrants Forging Their Own Communities in Malaysia
Kompleks Tun Abdul Razak (KOMTAR), in Penang, Malaysia, is a run-down shopping complex revived and appropriated by migrants. Although frequented by foreigners, it is not your typical tourist spot, offering a glimpse to a grimier side of the global. Accommodating a neatly compartmentalized tapestry of different worlds, converging in a shared, borrowed space, Komtar – like Lucky Plaza in Singapore or Victoria Park in Hong Kong – reflects everyday...