Asian Studies Commons^™

Islamic Political Parties And Election Campaigns In Indonesia, Colm A. Fox, Jeremy Menchik

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Islamist political parties are a structural feature of politics across the Muslim world, raising persisting questions for scholars of democracy. Under what conditions will Islamists moderate to support democracy and pluralism? Under what conditions will they adopt more exclusive behavior? Taking a fresh approach, we focus on electoral competition and the conditions under which Islamic party candidates campaign using either inclusive nationalist appeals or exclusively Islamic appeals. Using a unique data source, we coded the appeals contained on the campaign posters of 572 Islamic party candidates in Indonesia. We found that demographics, urban–rural differences, and the level of government office …

Explaining Suharto's Rise And Fall: International And Domestic Variables, Julia Batanghari

Undergraduate Honors Theses

For three decades (1968-1998), Indonesia was led by President Suharto, whose authoritarian military regime is remembered for its corruption and brutality. This paper offers an analysis of Suharto’s rule through the lens of two events: his 1965 purge of local ‘communists’ and the riots of May 1998. Drawing comparisons between the two, I delve into systemic causes by considering the influence of domestic and international variables. Exploring links between intergroup accommodation and democracy reveals that Suharto’s lack of ethnic, socioeconomic, and religious inclusivity paved the way not only for the anti-Chinese sentiment which pervaded Indonesian society during his presidency, but …

Solidarity For Myanmar: #Milkteaalliance Indonesia’S Transnational Activism In Pressuring The Government Of Indonesia And Asean, Muhammad Anugrah Utama

Global: Jurnal Politik Internasional

The military coup in Myanmar on February 1, 2021, carried out by the Tatmadaw against top officials from the newly elected-government–in which National League for Democracy (NLD) Party made the majority–brought strong backlashes from civil society, one of which was the Milk Tea Alliance. This paper discusses the activism of Milk Tea Alliance Indonesia in pressuring the Indonesian government and ASEAN, especially during the ASEAN Special Summit. This paper is based on qualitative method using literature review on the case study of Milk Tea Alliance activism in Indonesia. By referring to the ‘Boomerang pattern’ framework on transnational advocacy network, this …

Visualizing Politics In Indonesia: The Design And Distribution Of Election Posters, Colm A. Fox

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Where studies have shown that visuals are the primary means of political communication, research continues to focus largely on text-based information. To add to our understanding of visual-political communications, this article analyses Indonesian election posters since the 1950s. Drawing on historical materials and on a content analysis of 4,000 election posters, it asks why election posters have been designed and distributed in particular ways. Findings indicate that in the past, posters used singular, though powerful, social symbols to mobilize demographic groups behind political parties. However, contemporary posters are more visually complex and more candidate-centered, making arguments as to what the …

The United States And Its Coercive Democratization Attempts In Japan And Iraq, Noah Shepardson

College Honors Program

The United States engaged in coercive democratization (bringing democracy to a country via coercive measures such as occupation) endeavors in both Japan and Iraq, achieving drastically different results. The democratization of Japan is typically regarded as the gold standard of coercive democratization due to Japan’s rapid social and economic development following the United States’ occupation of the country in the years after World War II. The United States’ democratization effort in Iraq, on the other hand, has failed to create such prosperous conditions and has arguably made Iraq more unstable. This thesis seeks to identify why coercive democratization worked in …

Bersih And Democracy In Malaysia, Ying Hooi Khoo

Perspectives@SMU

The social movement’s eight demands might not all be met but its role goes beyond the articulated list

Indonesia: Twenty Years Of Democracy By Jamie S. Davidson [Book Review], Colm A. Fox

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

In Indonesia: Twenty years of democracy, Jamie S. Davidson looks back over the two decades since Soeharto’s fall, focusing on the ‘tensions, inconsistencies, and contradictory puzzles of Indonesia’s democracy’ (p. 4). Refreshingly, the book moves beyond the common approach of studying the similarities and differences between the contemporary democratic period and the Soeharto era. Davidson identifies, labels and skilfully guides the reader through three separate eras in Indonesia’s recent democratic history: the innovation period (1998–2004), the stagnation period (2004–14) and the period of polarisation (2014–18). Each era is analysed in parallel fashion, with subsections on politics, political economy and identity-based …

The Erosion Of Press Freedom: An Examination Of Hong Kong’S Book Publishing And Journalism Industries Post-Handover, Salonee Goel

CMC Senior Theses

Hong Kong was once touted for the openness of its press and its vibrant independent publishing scene. Now, seemingly reputable news organizations, such as the South China Morning Post, are undergoing editorial shifts and engaging in self-censorship while independent book publishers are being replaced by Chinese state-owned companies. These changes are a result of years of direct and indirect pressure on these industries by the Chinese government, which began even before the 1997 handover. In the past decade, these tactics have become more overt and their effects on the city’s news organizations and book publishers are increasingly visible. Through interviews …

Thailand’S 2019 Vote: The General’S Election, Jacob Ricks

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Thailand's March 2019 ballot was the first for the country since 2011, and for many it signaled the potential end of the military junta's five-year rule. But was it truly a return to democracy? This essay argues that the election was far from a democratization event. Instead, it was a highly orchestrated exercise to ensure authoritarian longevity. The junta employed techniques of institutional engineering as well as managing the election's outcomes in an effort to extend the premiership of Prayuth Chan-ocha despite increasing pressure for a return to civilian rule. The results of the election suggest that Thai society continues …

Local Democracy And Education Policy In Newly Federal Nepal, Jack Shangraw

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In 2017, Nepal held its first local elections in twenty years. These were the first elections held under Nepal’s new constitution, ratified in 2015, which transitioned the country from a unitary state to a Federal Democratic Republic. This case study analyzes the effect of the transition to federalism on decision-making and community representation in local governance in Annapurna Rural Municipality in West-Central Nepal. This study focuses specifically on education policy, one of the more public and contentious policy responsibilities devolved from the federal level to the local units under the new constitution. This research is based on interviews with government …

Candidate-Centric Systems And The Politicization Of Ethnicity: Evidence From Indonesia, Colm A. Fox

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

When and why do electoral candidates politicize ethnicity? From the literature, we might expect this behaviour to occur during democratic transitions or under proportional rules. However, empirical support for these arguments is mixed. This article presents a new approach, arguing that candidate-centric rules offer candidates incentives to politicize ethnicity. The argument is tested in Indonesia with empirical evidence drawn from coding newspaper reports on campaign events, endorsements and group appeals. Indonesia used party-centric rules from 1997 to 2004, and even though the country democratized during this period, the politicization of ethnicity actually declined. I show how party-centric rules, coupled with …

The Impact Of Arab Revolutions On Asia: A Study Of Diffusion Theory, Mohammad El-Sayed Selim, Gamal M. Selim

Political Science

يجيب هذا البحث عن أربعة أسئلة، هي: هل تنتشر الظواهر السياسية بالفعل من إقليم إلى آخر، وما العوامل التي تحدد المدى المكاني والزماني للانتشار، وما آثار هذا الانتشار، ولماذا تنتشر الظواهر الثورية في النظم الديمقراطية، ويجيب البحث عن الأسئلة من زاوية نظرية الانتشار مع اشتقاق فروض من تلك النظرية لاختبارها في حالة انتشار ظاهرة "الثورات العربية" إلى آسيا. ومن ثم يعرض البحث لأصول نظرية الانتشار وتطبيقاتها وأدبياتها، مع عرض الإطار النظري لمفهوم الانتشار. ومن هذا الإطار اشتق ثمانية فروض تدور حول محددات انتشار الظواهر، واختبرت تلك الفروض في حالة انتشار ظاهرة "الثورات العربية" في الدول الآسيوية منذ سنة 2011. وقد …

What Do Chinese Really Think About Democracy And India?, Devin K. Joshi, Yizhe Xu

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

There has been much speculation about whether China will democratize and avoid conflict with India in the twenty-first century. Yet, few studies have investigated how contemporary Chinese view India and its democracy. Addressing this gap in the literature, the authors examined Chinese media coverage of India’s two-month long April–May 2014 parliamentary election, the largest election in world history, through systematic analysis of over 500 articles from ten major mass media outlets and over 27,000 messages transmitted on Sina Weibo social media. As might be expected, Chinese mass media generally portrayed India and its elections in a condescending fashion while avoiding …

In The Shadow Of The Great Firewall: Censorship And Surveillance During Hong Kong's Umbrella Movement, Christine Andrelczyk

Theses and Dissertations

Through a case-study analysis, this project investigates why the People's Republic of China eschewed overtly repressive tactics and instead relied on subtle methods of coercion, such as surveillance and censorship, to mitigate activism during Hong Kong's pro-democracy Umbrella Movement. Drawing on historical evidence, reports, and quantitative data, this research explores the significance of subtle repression and coercion as it relates to the process of authoritarian consolidation in China and Hong Kong.

Somsavat Lengsavad [Laos, Deputy Prime Minister], Somsavat Lengsavad

Digital Narratives of Asia

Somsavat Lengsavad is Deputy Prime Minister of Laos. He joined the People's Revolutionary Movement as a combatant in 1961 and his efforts to liberate and unite Laos found him in government decades later. He speaks to DNA about his time in combat, as well as the lessons he learnt from his role model, former President Kaysone Phomvihane.

Fidel Valdez Ramos [Philippines, President], Fidel Valdez Ramos

Digital Narratives of Asia

Fidel V Ramos was the 12th President of the Philippines. As Director-General of the Integrated National Police and Acting Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, he rose up against the dictatorship of President Ferdinand Marcos, to lead the military in the People Power Revolution of 1986. He tells DNA why he decided to stand up to his second cousin, what led him to run for the presidency and the thinking behind one of the key achievements of his term - the peace agreement with the MNLF.

Ramon Navaratnam [Malaysia, President Of Transparency International Malaysia], Ramon Navaratnam

Digital Narratives of Asia

Former Secretary-General of Malaysia's Transport Ministry and Former President of Transparency International Malaysia, Ramon Navaratnam speaks his mind. An outspoken critic of Malaysian politics and society, Mr Navaratnam feels that it is his duty to speak up and tell the truth. He shares his thoughts with DNA over the merger and separation of Malaysia and Singapore, as well as his frank assessment of the two countries' pioneer Prime Ministers, Tunku Abdul Rahman and Lee Kuan Yew.

Ko Ko Gyi [Myanmar, Activist], Ko Ko Gyi

Digital Narratives of Asia

Myanmar democracy activist Ko Ko Gyi spent a total of 17 years in prison for his political beliefs. First detained for his involvement in student protests in 1989, he was eventually released in 2012, along with 600 others, when the military-led government began implementing reforms. Mr Ko Ko Gyi now champions democracy and human rights issues as General Secretary of the 88 Generation Peace and Open Society. He was also a member of the government's Rakhine Investigation Commission to investigate the sectarian violence in Rakhine state. He speaks to DNA about the darkest days of his time in the infamous …

Goenawan Mohamad [Indonesia, Editor Of Tempo], Goenawan Mohamad

Digital Narratives of Asia

Goenawan Mohamad is the founder of Indonesia's Tempo magazine and a leading voice of democracy in the country. As founding editor, Mr Goenawan had to make the tough call of whether to continue Tempo's critical reporting of the government and face a ban, or toe the line to ensure survival. DNA talks to him about how he came to his decision and stuck to his principles, as well as his take on the many Indonesian leaders he has observed.

Review Of "Consolidating Taiwan’S Democracy", Su-Mei Ooi

Su-Mei Ooi

The article reviews the book Consolidating Taiwan's Democracy by John F. Copper.

Corruption, Democracy And Asia-Pacific Countries, Neil Campbell, Shrabani Saha

Neil Campbell

This paper argues that the relationship between democracy and corruption is nonmonotonic. When a country shifts from autocratic rule to highly imperfect democracy (an ‘electoral democracy’) it is frequently perceived that the level of corruption increases. Conversely, when the democracy level is already relatively high (approaching ‘mature democracy’) an increase in the level of democracy is typically expected to decrease the level of corruption. To assist with our discussion of these issues, before going on to the empirical part of the paper, we look specifically at the case of South Korea to illustrate how corruption responded to an increasing level …

The Politics Of Human Development In India And China: It Pays To Invest In Women And Children, Devin K. Joshi

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

This article explores the attainments of China and India on measures of basic human development as ingredients of a long-term economic development strategy. It proposes that major differences in ideology and state capacity explain in part why India has fallen behind China. The analysis suggests that these relatively hidden political factors play an important role in transforming and advancing human development not only within India and China but also in other developing and emerging economies. The findings also support the notion that public investments in the capabilities of women and children have significant social and economic payoffs in both the …

From Undemocratic To Democratic Civil Society: Japan's Volunteer Fire Departments, Mary Alice Haddad

Mary Alice Haddad

How do undemocratic civic organizations become compatible with democratic civil society? How do local organizations merge older patriarchal, hierarchical values and practices with newer more egalitarian, democratic ones? This article tells the story of how volunteer fire departments have done this in Japan. Their transformation from centralized war instrument of an authoritarian regime to local community safety organization of a full-fledged democracy did not happen overnight. A slow process of demographic and value changes helped the organization adjust to more democratic social values and practices. The way in which this organization made the transition offers important lessons for emerging democracies …

The Islamists Are Not Coming, Charles Kurzman, Ijlal Naqvi

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Do Muslims automatically vote Islamic? That's the concern conjured up by strongmen from Tunis to Tashkent, and plenty of Western experts agree. They point to the political victories of Islamc parties in Egypt, Palestine, and Turkey in recent years and warn that more elections across the Islamic world could turn power over to anti-democratic fundamentalists.

Do We Have A Winner? What The China-India Paradox May Reveal About Regime Type And Human Security, Devin K. Joshi

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

As the concept of human security spreads in the pose-Cold War period it is often presumed chat non-democracies have worse human security than democracies. But the national human security (NHS) siruation in weak or failed democracies can be even worse than in some non-democracies. So how exactly do the NHS records of stares with different regime types like non-democratic China and democratic India compare? To address this question the paper assesses and compares NH S in terms of "freedom from want" (anti-poverty security) and "freedom from fear" (anti-violence securiry). Ir develops a theory of how different regime types might impact …

Unintended Consequences Of Repression: Alliance Formation In South Korea's Democracy Movement (1970-1979), Paul Y. Chang

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Research regarding the impact of repression on social movements has yielded conflicting findings; some argue that repression decreases the total quantity of protest events while others argue that it motivates protest. To move beyond this impasse, various scholars have suggested exploring how repression influences the quality of social movements. This study assesses the impact repression had on the information of alliances between different social groups participating in South Korea's democracy movement. Results from negative binomial regression analyses show that repression facilitated the formation of alliances between movement actors at a time when the overall number of protest events decreased. This …

The Middle Class And Political Change In China: Chinese Middle Class's Attitudinal And Behavioral Orientations Toward Democracy, Chunlong Lu

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

Does the middle class in China think and act democratically and hence serve as the harbinger of democratic development in that country? Little empirical work has been done to systematically address this crucial question. The primary goals of this dissertation are to explore the level of attitudinal support for democracy among Chinese middle class individuals, examine their behavioral orientations toward politics, and provide a comprehensive assessment of the role of the Chinese middle class in the evolution of the Chinese political system. This dissertation argues that the middle class in China consists of the following four occupational groups: self-employed laborers, …

Prospects For Democracy, Nick Stokes

Human Rights & Human Welfare

Upon the disintegration of the Soviet Union in 1991, the countries of Eastern Europe and Central Asia that had hitherto lived behind the Iron Curtain inherited new independence and uncertain political futures. Since then, the world has watched a political entity that once covered 8.6 million square miles shatter into 15 new nation-states, each with the potential to throw off the shackles of the past and forge new democracies. Fifteen years after the fall, we see elections at state and local levels, multi-party systems, and constitutions touting freedoms of press and religion. While these elements are vital to the survival …

Review Of "Consolidating Taiwan’S Democracy", Su-Mei Ooi

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

The article reviews the book Consolidating Taiwan's Democracy by John F. Copper.

Opening The Dichotomy Of Universalism And Relativism, Chih-Yu Shih

Human Rights & Human Welfare

A review of:

Negotiating Culture and Human Rights edited by Linda S. Bell, Andrew J. Nathan and Ilan Peleg. New York: Columbia University Press, 2001. 428 pp.

and

East Meets West: Human Rights and Democracy in East Asia by Daniel A. Bell. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2000. 369 pp.