From Development to Democracy

The Transformations of Modern Asia

Dan Slater, Joseph Wong

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English

Princeton University Pres
03 January 2023

Development studies; History; Asian history; Politics & government; Political structures: democracy

Why some of Asia's authoritarian regimes have democratised as they have grown richer

and why others haven't.

Over the past century, Asia has been transformed by rapid economic growth, industrialisation, and urbanisation

a spectacular record of development that has turned one of the world's poorest regions into one of its richest. Yet Asia's record of democratisation has been much more uneven, despite the global correlation between development and democracy. Why have some Asian countries become more democratic as they have grown richer, while others

most notably China

haven't? In From Development to Democracy, Dan Slater and Joseph Wong offer a sweeping and original answer to this crucial question.

Slater and Wong demonstrate that Asia defies the conventional expectation that authoritarian regimes concede democratisation only as a last resort, during times of weakness. Instead, Asian dictators have pursued democratic reforms as a proactive strategy to revitalise their power from a position of strength. Of central importance is whether authoritarians are confident of victory and stability. In Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan these factors fostered democracy through strength, while democratic experiments in Indonesia, Thailand, and Myanmar were less successful and more reversible. At the same time, resistance to democratic reforms has proven intractable in Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, China, Vietnam, and Cambodia. Reconsidering China's 1989 crackdown, Slater and Wong argue that it was the action of a regime too weak to concede, not too strong to fail, and they explain why China can allow democracy without inviting instability.

The result is a comprehensive regional history that offers important new insights about when and how democratic transitions happen

and what the future of Asia might be.

By: Dan Slater, Joseph Wong
Imprint: Princeton University Pres
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 235mm, Width: 155mm,
ISBN: 9780691167602
ISBN 10: 0691167605
Pages: 368
Publication Date: 03 January 2023
Audience: College/higher education , Professional and scholarly , Primary , Undergraduate
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active

Dan Slater is the Weiser Professor of Emerging Democracies in the Department of Political Science and director of the Weiser Center for Emerging Democracies at the University of Michigan. His books include Ordering Power: Contentious Politics and Authoritarian Leviathans in Southeast Asia. Joseph Wong is the Roz and Ralph Halbert Professor of Innovation at the Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy and professor of political science at the University of Toronto. His books include Healthy Democracies: Welfare Politics in Taiwan and South Korea.

Reviews for From Development to Democracy: The Transformations of Modern Asia

"""The authors argue persuasively that some regimes are capable of moving from authoritarian forms of government to democracy.""---Warren I. Cohen, Washington Post ""From Development to Democracy offers an engaging and novel theoretical argument that the authors present in a lucid and highly readable manner. . . . The book makes an important contribution to democratization studies, but it might also interest area specialists and historians of Asia. I recommend it thoroughly.""---Etienne Hanelt, Democratization"