[...]... Asia- Pacific Model? Conclusion 172 176 180 184 188 194 References Index 197 217 List of Figures Map of the Asia- Pacific region 3.1 6.1 7.1 8.1 8.2 Diversity and development in the Asia- Pacific Party numbers and social diversity in the Asia- Pacific Power-sharing and political stability in the Asia- Pacific A causal model of political engineering in the Asia- Pacific Proportionality and party systems in. .. Basic indicators for Asia- Pacific countries Diversity and development in Asia and the Pacific Democracy and ethnic structure in Asia and the Pacific Consociational, centripetal, and communal institutions Electoral systems changes in Asia since 1990 Mixed-member electoral systems in Asia Electoral disproportionality in pre- and post-reform elections Cabinet stability and executive type in Asia and the Pacific... Power-Sharing Institutions: Executive Formation and Federalism Political Engineering and Political Stability Oversized Cabinets Grand Coalitions Minimal Winning Cabinets Measuring Power-Sharing Federalism, Devolution, and Autonomy Conclusion 146 150 156 157 160 162 166 169 8 Conclusion Trends in Asia- Pacific Reforms Political Engineering and Political Outcomes Consociationalism Versus Centripetalism An Asia- Pacific... of pre- and post-reform governments, in months Executive formation in the Asia- Pacific An index of power-sharing for the Asia- Pacific 37 57 63 95 109 110 114 153 154 162 164 1 Introduction The closing decades of the twentieth century were years of unprecedented political reform across Asia and the Pacific Democratizing Asian states such as Indonesia, the Philippines, Korea, Taiwan, and Thailand... of democracy in the face of enormous social, political, and territorial diversity 2 Introduction This book is an analysis of the causes and consequences of these attempts to bolster democratic prospects in the Asia- Pacific region via the design or redesign of political institutions It looks at the recent experience of democratization across the Pacific rim of Northeast Asia, Southeast Asia, and the. .. transitions from autocratic single-party governments in Korea and Taiwan in 1987, before moving on to the resumption of civilian government in Thailand in 1992, the United Nations intervention in Cambodia in 1993, the fall of Indonesia’s Suharto regime in 1998, and the international rehabilitation of East Timor which culminated in 2001 As a result of these transitions, more Asia- Pacific governments are today... a joint Anglo-French condominium Ethnic Politics Many Asian and Pacific states have long experience with the problems caused by the interrelationship between democratic government and ethnic diversity At the end of the Second World War, independent and nominally democratic regimes were installed in post-colonial Burma, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Singapore as well as in Japan With the. .. applicable in both established and emerging democracies, advocacy of political engineering in recent years has been most prominent in transitional or post-conflict states, often as part of broader attempts to construct sustainable political systems in deeply divided societies Tinkering with the institutional ‘rules of the game’ to in uence outcomes is not a new idea: indeed, the possibilities of in uencing political. .. East Asia s seven largest countries.14 This marks a truly historic shift in world affairs Despite this, there are significant intra-regional variations in the extent and timing of democratization across the region In Northeast Asia, for instance, Korea and Taiwan are amongst the most successful new democracies in the Asia- Pacific region, and it is unlikely today that democracy could be overturned in either... of these attempts to ‘engineer’ political outcomes by institutional reform are discussed in more detail later in this book But can democratic politics be engineered in the first place? Political Engineering A central theme of this book concerns the potential of political engineering : that is, the conscious design of political institutions to achieve certain specified objectives A core premise of political . of the Asia- Pacific region 2 3.1. Diversity and development in the Asia- Pacific 58 6.1. Party numbers and social diversity in the Asia- Pacific 127 7.1. Power-sharing and political stability in the. Pondicherry, India Printed in Great Britain on acid-free paper by Biddles Ltd., King’s Lynn, Norfolk ISBN 0-1 9-9 2868 7-6 97 8-0 -1 9-9 2868 7-4 13579108642 Foreword Is there an Asia- Pacific model of democracy? . of political engineering. Harking back to the success of the East Asian ‘Tigers’ and their unorthodox but successful interventions in the economic arena, democratizing Northeast Asian, Southeast