In fact, outside the charmed circle of leading business families are large numbers of ethnic Chinese whose forebears came as laborers, and who still live at a low economic level with limited educational opportunities, just like the rest of the population. For many young women from this background, marriage is a means of escape from a life of poverty.
在華商的光環底下，還有許多華人是華工後裔，他們在經濟條件低落、教育機會受限、出生人口不減的情形下，其實正如當地人一般，過著簡單而辛苦的日子，不少女孩便將出嫁當作脫離貧困的途徑。