Democracy And Authoritarianism In Indonesia And Malaysia

The fact that the Malaysian state has managed to maintain a relatively democratic regime, while an authoritarian regime came to power in Indonesia has never been the focus of historical and comparative analyses despite certain cultural, social, and historical affinities between these two countries. This book takes a look at contrasting class structures and alliances, elite cohesion, state strength, as well as differences in political challenges to the state in order to understand two different paths to post-colonial state formation.

The fact that the Malaysian state has managed to maintain a relatively democratic regime, while an authoritarian regime came to power in Indonesia has never been the focus of historical and comparative analysis despite certain cultural, social, and historical affinities between these two countries. This study looks at how the interplay of three factors, that is, elite cohesion, internal state strength and armed resistance, led to two different outcomes: authoritarian and democratic post-colonial states in Indonesia and Malaysia respectively. The historical background is presented to assess the impact of colonialism on pre-capitalist society in these two colonies. This provides the context in which to understand the development of the Indonesian and Malaysian states in terms of differences in the degree of elite cohesion, state strength, and the nature of urban and rural resistance against the state. In this way two different paths to state forms can be mapped.

Challenging Authoritarianism in Southeast Asia is one of the first substantial comparative studies of contemporary Indonesia and Malaysia, homes to the world's largest Muslim population. Following the collapse of New Order rule in Indonesia in 1998, this book provides an in-depth examination of anti-authoritarian forces in contemporary Indonesia and Malaysia, assessing their problems and prospects. The authors discuss the roles played by women, public intellectuals, arts workers, industrial workers as well as environmental and Islamic activists. They explore how different forms of authoritarianism in the two countries affect the prospects of democratization, and examine the impact and legacy of the diverse social and political protests in Indonesia and Malaysia in the late 1990s.

Thomas B. Pepinsky examines how coalitions and capital mobility in Indonesia and Malaysia shape the links between financial crises and regime change.

"The Malaysian state boasts of economic buoyancy and political stability as one of the later, albeit smaller dragons to emerge in Southeast Asia, yet one which at first glance is not the authoritarian regime of Pinochet, for example. Understanding the nature of the state is the focus of this book: first, from a theoretical point of view to suggest that authoritarian populism is the most appropriate analytical concept with which to address this question, but also from a human rights perspective of class-based communal policies and the prolonged use of detention without trial. The serious consequences for the health democracy and the participatory rights of the people are spelled out at many different levels." "Failing Western economies often talk of imitating the Eastern approach to development. However, it is clear from this account that the outcome for the health of democracy and the rights of the people is not necessarily positive."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved

This book studies the historical legacies, cultural orientations, and structural constraints affecting the political outcomes of the five most developed countries, the so-called "ASEAN 4" - Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and the Philippines - and Singapore.

Socio-economic and political issues are dealt with selectively within a chronological historical framework, covering the dramatic colonial impact of 1940-60 until the present day. The state is examined from the point of view of social class as well as communalism, to explain the dominance of the ruling coalition over the 37 years since independence. The author argues that authoritarian-populism is the concept that best fits the apparent paradox of an enduring regime via the ballot box, and the extensive restrictions on the scope of democracy, particularly through the repressive apparatus of detention without trial. The underlying theme is a critique and explanation of Malaysia's human rights record.