Political Change in Southeast Asia takes up the debate between those who resist the pressure for democracy and point to unchanging 'Asian' values, and those who believe that the appeal of democracy is universal. The author examines the case for both sides and concludes that the strong state will be a fixture of Southeast Asian politics for some considerable time to come. Increasingly close links between the ten states of Southeast Asia are likely to reinforce perceptions of a common culture and in the end put up more effective defences against external cultural influence
Southeast Asia was one of the poorest regions in the world; it is now one of the most desirable areas for foreign investment. An economic miracle? Perhaps. Development in Southeast Asia, however, is not fuelling political change quite as quickly as might be predicted from the experience of industrialisation in the West. Progress towards participatory democracy has been slow. Is Southeast Asia simply not suited to democratic values?
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references (pages [212]-225) and index
