The Political Economy Of Singapore S Industrialization

A study which challenges the dominant understanding of Singapore as a case where "correct" policies have made rapid industrialization possible and which raises questions about the possibility and appropriateness of its emulation.

Focuses on the state's efforts to industrialize Myanmar, first through direct intervention and planning under a socialist economic framework as interpreted by the state leaders (1948-88) and lately (1989 onwards) through state-managed outward orientation.

"Singapore's rapid economic growth has attracted much admiration. But can this success be sufficiently explained by canny exploitation of a niche in the global free market? This book shows that there is a complex relationship between economic strategy, social control and political conflict in Singapore. It does this by looking at the regulatory functions of major state institutions." "Public housing increases state control and forces people into wage labour even while supplying a high standard of accommodation. Singaporeans are sorted, stratified and fragmented by the education system. Racism and patriarchal relations, seen in language, population planning and eugenics policies, are integral to education. Elections and parliament in Singapore are mechanisms for forcing submission, converting submission into consent and confining politics to parliamentary politics. The legal system functions to criminalise politics and politicise crime. The findings of all the chapters are drawn together to show how the system of social control has developed in phases in response to the changing nature of political resistance."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved

The newly industrializing countries (NICs) of East Asia have undergone rapid economic expansion over the past twenty vears. Unlike NICs elsewhere in the Third World, those in the Pacific basin-South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, and Hong Kong-have managed to achieve almost full employment, a relatively egalitarian distribution of income, and the virtual elimination or poverty. In this collection of essays, nine development specialists explore the Asian NICs' exceptional ability to capitalize on the favorable economic environment of the 1960s and then to adapt flexibly to worsening conditions in the 1970s and 1980s.

This well-researched book examines the dramatic transformation of Southeast Asian countries from agricultural and mining economies to industrial nations. In doing so, it explores the effects of development policy on a number of interdisciplinary issues, and the emergence of new social and political pressures created by industrialization. These include their heightened vulnerability to complex economic crises, their use of sophisticated instruments in the labour process and increased awareness of environmental issues. The distinguished authors present a regional and cross-border focus on transnational actors and institutions, and the policy issues and problems which have a wider impact on spatial configurations in the region. This insightful study will appeal to researchers, academics and policymakers working on the economics and development of Southeast Asia.

Conference report containing economic policy studies on economic and social development issues faced by newly industrializing countries - discusses economic conditions of the NICs, role of cultural factors, economic theory of dependence, industrial development strategies, etc.; presents case studies of Brazil, India and Korea R; examines policy responses in the old industrial countries, notably Western Europe, Canada and the USA, and Japan. List of participants. References. Conference held in Brighton 1980 Jan 6 to 8.

This thesis critically examines the constitutional, structural and radical approaches to the study of Singapore, and emphasizes the need to adopt a more inclusive approach which takes into account the history, political economy, ethnic composition and immigrant ethic, political institutions, and highly flexible domestic and international policies which Singapore adopted for her economic and social development. One of the most neglected aspects in scholarly writings on Singapore is how her immigrant population, and its cultural values, were blended in the drive towards the modernization of Singapore's economy and society. In the sense the impetus from 'below' became most critical to her development. Such a contribution is examined in detail in this thesis. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)