Comparative politics Books

Book SynopsisBehind the conflicts and the crises, the agreements and the severing of ties, the oil sector is above all a global business, number one in terms of the scale of trading. The sector is not only essential to the world economy, but it is generally thought to be of strategic importance. The history of oil gives scholars the chance to track and analyse changes in the world in the twentieth century, especially through the transition from unequal trading towards more balanced solutions, in which oil-producing countries can really profit from their resources. Numerous solutions have been proposed to ensure that oil revenue is not lost, but also to ensure that profits are made and supplies are secure. In order to examine the diversity and complexity of the recent history of the oil industry, this book considers the twentieth century across different continents, using original examples and new research on regions such as Latin America and Africa. Different views are analysed and changes in the industry are put into context. Today's realities are brought into focus by putting the spotlight on long-term changes. The volume concludes that the oil sector has not yet fully established itself as a sector of strategic importance.

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Book SynopsisOne of the main priorities of Stephen Harper's government since it came to power in 2006 has been to preserve what it defines as A Safe and Secure Canada. Thus, it has remained in line with the radical security measures adopted by his predecessor following the September 11 attacks, turning them into a central and sustained feature of the country's policy but also breaking up with the traditional representations of Canada as being less belligerent than its southern neighbour. This volume, which has emerged from discussions held during the September 25, 2009 conference on Canada's Security, Identity(ies) and Territory(ies) (Université Stendhal Grenoble 3), presents the thoughts of eight researchers from a wide variety of backgrounds and disciplines, who have reflected upon the consequences of Canada's security policy. Ten years after September 11, it attests to the issues that are still directly or indirectly linked to the attacks, but also to Canada's new areas of concern in terms of security. Depuis son arrivée au pouvoir en 2006, l'une des priorités du gouvernement de Stephen Harper a été de préserver ce qu'il définit comme A Safe and Secure Canada, poursuivant un virage sécuritaire amorcé par son prédécesseur suite aux attentats du 11 septembre 2001 et instaurant ainsi dans la durée une politique qui semble rompre avec les représentations traditionnelles d'un Canada moins belliqueux que son voisin américain. À partir d'une discussion amorcée lors de la journée d'études Sécurité, Identité(s) et Territoire(s) du 25 septembre 2009 (Université Stendhal Grenoble 3), cet ouvrage présente les réflexions de huit chercheurs de disciplines et d'horizons très différents qui se sont interrogés sur les conséquences de cette politique. Dix ans après le 11 septembre, il fait état des enjeux qui sont encore directement ou indirectement liés à cet événement, mais aussi des nouvelles préoccupations du Canada en matière de sécurité.

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Book SynopsisThis volume looks at the changing goals and instruments of European Union diplomacy and examines the reforms of the Lisbon Treaty and their effects on the unity and coherence of EU external action. The authors analyse institutional questions, particularly about the European External Action Service (EEAS) and the role of other EU actors in European foreign policy, and explore recent examples of EU multilateral, bilateral and unilateral diplomacy as well as the external perspective of third actors. The study concludes by investigating the current and future training of the Union's diplomats, which aims to prepare them for an effective EEAS. Will the implementation of the Lisbon Treaty reforms make the EU fit for the future? Can a common European foreign policy ensure that European interests are taken into consideration and that European values shape international relations? Will the European Union be an actor or an object on the international stage in the coming decades?

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Book SynopsisAnalysis of the formation and development of the consensus on European integration provides an interesting interpretative perspective for studying the history of the construction of a united Europe. The authors of this volume examine the main reasons ideological, political, cultural and economic that have been advanced to encourage citizens to support the European project. The contributors also consider the initiatives proposed by the political and institutional actors involved for promoting this supranational project. L'analyse de la formation et du développement d'un consensus pour l'intégration européenne représente une piste interprétative intéressante pour étudier l'histoire de la construction de l'Europe unie. Dans ce volume, les auteurs examinent les principales raisons avancées idéales, politiques, culturelles, économiques pour obtenir le soutien des citoyens au projet européen. En outre, ils analysent les initiatives élaborées par les acteurs politiques et institutionnels impliqués dans le processus d'unification dans le but de promouvoir le projet supranational.

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Book SynopsisThe legal and political significance of human rights has increased enormously all over the world. The Italian Yearbook of Human Rights 2011 provides a dynamic picture of laws, institutions, policies and case law that have implemented international human rights norms in Italy over the past few years, particularly in 2010. The volume has four main sections, which concern respectively: Italy's adaptation to international human rights law; the human rights infrastructure both at national and sub-national levels; Italy in dialogue with the international machinery; and national, European and international case law. The Yearbook is the first volume in a series edited by the Centre for Human Rights and the Rights of Peoples of the University of Padua, in cooperation with the UNESCO Chair in Human Rights, Democracy and Peace at the same University. The Centre, founded in 1982 with the support of the Region of Veneto, carries out research and training programmes according to an interdisciplinary approach. It hosts the Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence on intercultural dialogue and human rights and edits the quarterly journal Pace diritti umani/Peace human rights. The Centre also works in cooperation with the European Commission, the Council of Europe, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and UNESCO, as well as with civic organizations, schools and local authorities. The editors of the Italian Yearbook of Human Rights 2011 include Andrea Cofelice, Pietro De Perini, Paola Degani, Paolo De Stefani, Marco Mascia, Antonio Papisca (coordinator) and Claudia Pividori.

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Book SynopsisCet ouvrage est consacré aux transformations de la politique étrangère et de la diplomatie britanniques dans le temps long du déclin impérial, de l'intégration européenne et des relations transatlantiques. De la Royal Navy de l'amiral sir John Fisher à la politique nucléaire contemporaine, les auteurs analysent la capacité d'adaptation des pratiques internationales de la Grande-Bretagne, ses moteurs, ses limites et sa signification, à travers des cas d'étude centrés sur des archives nouvellement ouvertes ou des aires parfois marginalisées. Ils démontrent l'influence des individus, le poids des réseaux, l'évolution des processus de consultation et de prise de décision, en contexte de crise comme dans la gestion quotidienne. Considérant tour à tour les échelles locales et globales, bilatérales et multilatérales, l'ouvrage offre une perspective critique sur les pratiques culturelles et les courants intellectuels qui sous-tendent la politique étrangère et la diplomatie britanniques au 20e siècle, de Bruxelles à Washington, du Canada au Pacifique, des Malouines à l'Afrique, des Nations Unies au Commonwealth des Nations. This study addresses transformations in British diplomacy and foreign policy through the long-term perspectives of imperial decline, European integration and transatlantic relations. From the Royal Navy of Admiral Sir John Fisher to contemporary nuclear policy, the authors analyse Britain's capacity to adapt its international practices, and the driving forces and constraints behind them. Using case studies based on newly available archives and including regions that tend to be marginalised, they show the influence of individuals, the importance of networks and the evolution of the consultation and decision-making processes, in contexts of both crisis and daily management. On a local, global, bilateral and multilateral scale, the book offers a critical perspective of the cultural practices and intellectual trends underlying British diplomacy and foreign policy in the 20th century, from Brussels to Washington, from the Falkland Islands to Africa, from the United Nations to the Commonwealth of Nations.

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Book SynopsisFrom the end of the twentieth century onwards space has become a ‘hot topic’ in literary studies. This thesis contributes to the spatial turn by focusing on space in archaic Greek lyric (7th–5th c bc). A theoretical framework inspired by narratology, phenomenology and metaphor theory is applied to archaic lyric poems in which city, countryside and sea are of importance. Heirman argues that space is predominantly symbolic: the city is a political or an erotic metaphor, the countryside an erotic symbol, and the sea a symbol of danger. He also attempts to connect the symbolism of space with the context of the symposium, in which the lyric poems were performed: city metaphors are linked with sympotic plays of ‘guessing’, the erotic activities in the countryside reveal a projection of erotic fantasies of the symposiasts, and the danger at sea serves to reinforce the cohesion of the sympotic group.Table of ContentsSpace in archaic Greek Lyric: City, Countryside and sea - 2 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS - 8 TEXTS, TRANSLATIONS, ABBREVIATIONS - 12 TEXTS AND TRANSLATIONS - 12 ABBREVIATIONS - 13 INTRODUCING SPACE IN LYRIC - 14 1. A THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK OF SPACE - 18 2. THE CITY - 40 3. THE COUNTRYSIDE - 76 4. THE SEA - 116 5. CONCLUSION - 176 EPILOGUE: THE SYMBOLISM OF SPACE AND THE SYMPOSIUM - 178 BIBLIOGRAPHY - 184 INDEX OF PASSAGES - 218 SUMMARY - 220 SAMENVATTING - 224

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Book SynopsisThis volume brings together a group of scholars from a wide range of disciplines to address crucial questions of migration flows and integration in Europe, Southeast Asia, and Australia. Comparative analysis of the three regions and their differing approaches and outcomes yields important insights for each region, as well as provokes new questions and suggests future avenues of study.Trade Review"This collection of essays offers a clear overvies on the migration debate, from a historical perspective to the new challenges we are facing" - Volkskunde Tijdschrift (review originally in Dutch)Table of ContentsContents 5 List of Tables and figures 7 Acknowledgements 9 1 Introduction 11 The comparative study of migration flows Juliet Pietsch 2 Shifting migration flows and integration policies in Europe 25 An overview Pawe› Kaczmarczyk, Magdalena Lesiñska & Marek Okólski 3 Public opinion towards new migration flows in Europe and the increasing role of the EU 45 Juliet Pietsch 4 Shifting dilemmas 57 Multiculturalism and integration policies in Europe James Jupp 5 Malaysia 75 Labour migration, irregular movements and regional policies Amarjit Kaur 6 Labour migration flows and regional integration in Southeast Asia 99 Marshall Clark 7 Transiting asylum seekers in Indonesia 115 Between human rights protection and criminalisation Antje Missbach 8 Abrogating human rights responsibilities 137 Australia’s asylum-seeker policy at home and abroad Linda Briskman & Victoria Mason PROEF 2 9 Courting disaster? 161 Regional agreements for ‘protection elsewhere’ and the courts Penelope Mathew 10 Maritime pathways 187 Temporary migration flows from Indonesia to Australia Marshall Clark & Dedi Supriadi Adhuri Bibliography 203 Contributors 227

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Book SynopsisThe crisis of liberal democracy in the neoliberal world marked by massive labour flows, migrations, and informal conditions of work has led to the emergence of new forms of claim-making and a new sense of rights even as governments try to garner popular support and legitimacy through strategies termed as populist gestures. Today, populism is integral to the daily discourse of politics and discussions of democracy, governance, and people. Imprints of the Populist Time investigates populism as a historical phenomenon, examining its dynamic nature and role as a set of specific political practices. Lending a postcolonial perspective to the global study of populism, Ranabir Samaddar examines the trajectory that West Bengal politics took following the end of Left Front rule in 2011. Through a fragmented narrative structure that builds on commentaries on contemporary events ,which highlight the recent history of populism in West Bengal, the volume explores how populism works around the crisis of representation in democracy by centring the subaltern and constructing a people ; the problematic figure of the citizen ; popular engagements with the Constitution; the city as a crucial site of contemporary populism; the role of gender in populist governance; and the counter-intuitive economic logic of the populists. The volume studies various modes of populism elections, the language of populist politics, and the rampant illegalism in populist conduct, and asks key questions: Has there ever been any democracy without populism, or any nationalism without its populist articulation? Can we think of the popular and the people without the populist? Is populism a form of subaltern resistance to neoliberal depredations? Scholars and students of Indian politics, political historians, journalists, policy makers, and informed readers will find this volume riveting.

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Book SynopsisKingdomost is a sequel to Singha Durbar, focusing on the Rana regime and Nepali history from 1951 to 2008. It offers a balanced view through the author's connections and interviews with political and military leaders, depicting the turbulent political landscape of Nepal.

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Book SynopsisThe project of European integration has undergone a succession of shocks, beginning with the Eurozone crisis, followed by reactions to the sudden growth of irregular migration, and, most recently, the coronavirus pandemic. These shocks have politicised questions related to the governance of borders and markets that for decades had been beyond the realm of contestation. For some time, these questions have been spilling over into domestic and European electoral politics, with the rise of “populist” and Eurosceptic parties. Increasingly, however, the crises have begun to reshape the liberal narratives that have been central to the European project. This book charts the rise of contestation over the meaning of “Europe”, particularly in light of the coronavirus crisis and Brexit. Drawing together cutting edge, interdisciplinary scholarship from across the continent, it questions not merely the traditional conflict between European and nationalist politics, but the impact of contestation on the assumed “cosmopolitan” values of Europe.Table of ContentsIntroduction: (James Foley and Umut Korkut) Chapter 1: ‘The Never-Ending Crisis’ – Europeanisation of crisis management and the contestation of solidarity (Martin Bak Jørgensen) Chapter 2: ‘A Meta-View Psychology of Legal Categories: Rights, Identity, and Inclusiveness in Europe’ (Magdalena Smieszek) Chapter 3: ‘Towards a Political Theory of Brexit: Sovereignty, Cosmopolitanism and Member State Theory’ (George Hoare) Chapter 4: ‘Responsibility to Protect European Identity: How do Orbán and Erdo.an expand Europe’s boundaries of international protection?’ (Tarik Basbugoglu and Umut Korkut) Chapter 5: ‘Revising Humanitarianism and Solidarity: Migration management and Peripheral Europeanism in the UK, Poland, and Hungary’ (James Foley, Daniel Gyollai, and Justyna Szalanska) Chapter 6: ‘Leave a Light on for Scotland’; Examining Cosmopolitan Nationalism in Scotland (Marcus Nicolson - Soc Movements Chapter) Chapter 7: ‘Flexible redefinitions of “Us” and the “Others”: Refugee politics in the convergences of multiple “crises” in the EU and Greece’ (Eva (Evangelia) Papatzani, Electra Petracou) Chapter 8: ‘The cognitions underpinning online discrimination, derogatory sarcasm and anti-cosmopolitanism towards Syrians at Europe’s periphery’ (Bogdan Ianosev and Özge Özdüzen) Chapter 9: ‘Two sides of the same coin: post-“refugee crisis” debates on migration and European integration in Austrian party politics’ (Ivan Josipovic and Ursula Reeger) Conclusion: (James Foley and Umut Korkut)

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Book SynopsisOffering a single, coherent framework of the political, economic, and social phenomena that characterize post-communist regimes, this is the most comprehensive work on the subject to date. Focusing on Central Europe, the post-Soviet countries and China, the study provides a systematic mapping of possible post-communist trajectories. At exploring the structural foundations of post-communist regime development, the work discusses the types of state, with an emphasis on informality and patronalism; the variety of actors in the political, economic, and communal spheres; the ways autocrats neutralize media, elections, etc. The analysis embraces the color revolutions of civil resistance (as in Georgia and in Ukraine) and the defensive mechanisms of democracy and autocracy; the evolution of corruption and the workings of “relational economy”; an analysis of China as “market-exploiting dictatorship”; the sociology of “clientage society”; and the instrumental use of ideology, with an emphasis on populism. Beyond a cataloguing of phenomena—actors, institutions, and dynamics of post-communist democracies, autocracies, and dictatorships—Magyar and Madlovics also conceptualize everything as building blocks to a larger, coherent structure: a new language for post-communist regimes. While being the most definitive book on the topic, the book is nevertheless written in an accessible style suitable for both beginners who wish to understand the logic of post-communism and scholars who are interested in original contributions to comparative regime theory. The book is equipped with QR codes that link to www.postcommunistregimes.com, which contains interactive, 3D supplementary material for teaching.Trade Review"Magyar’s new book, co-authored with Bálint Madlovics, is The Anatomy of Post-Communist Regimes: A Conceptual Framework. It contains, among other insights, a critique of how we usually talk about and measure corruption. Magyar and Madlovics write that the problem with measurements used by, say, Transparency International, which produces an annual index of perceived corruption, is that the index assumes that corruption represents a departure from a norm: 'They understand the state by its formal identity: as dominantly an institution of the public good, with some subordinates who deviate from that purpose and abuse their position by requesting or accepting bribes and appointing cronies without a legitimate basis.' This view of corruption fails when confronted with a government to which corruption is central, or in which corruption is not voluntary but coercive—where the corrupt relationship is forced by one partner upon the other." * New Yorker *"This book, over 800 pages, is one of few serious attempts to offer a systematic and massive ‘anatomy’, as Magyar and Madlovics rightly call it, of all the possible variations between the oversimplistic dualist opposition of communist dictatorship and liberal democracy. A key feature of this book is that it is structured in a way that can be easily integrated into teaching. The book comes with its own dedicated website offering extensive online resources including a draft seminar that can be adopted for a course on post-communist regimes, and a 3D interactive model of post-communist regime trajectories that can be studied using desktop software and a mobile app. A large number of topologies, analytical models, quotes of important ideas clarifying tables and figures facilitate a variety of teaching methods in classroom settings." https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09668136.2021.1951024 -- Chi ZhangReview symposium on The Anatomy of Post-communist Regimes: "Magyar and Madlovics’s book aims to contribute to our understanding of the role of stubborn structures and to highlight the decisive role of informal politics in post-communist political and economic developments. The book elaborates a comprehensive framework for predicting future regime change, authoritarian breakdowns and revolutionary breakthroughs in the post-communist world; and it provides very important insights into the nature of post-communist political, economic and social systems. It is a terrific achievement." "The publication of Magyar and Madlovics’s book means that post-communist studies have reached a qualitatively new level. A new paradigm for this research field has emerged. From now scholars working in this branch of knowledge will have to engage with the conclusions of this book, do their research based on them or refine them." "The book defines post-communist countries as relational economies, which are conceptualized as different ‘beasts’ from both market and planned economies. These relational economies are characterized by interdependency between economic and political power. The book’s analysis of mechanisms through which political and economic power interact in these places makes it read like an entertaining political–economic crime novel." "We are offered a refined interpretation of one of Magyar’s most important descriptive concepts, the ‘mafia state’. Clearly detached from day-to-day criminality, the mafia state is ruled by an adopted political family, patrimonializing political power in a democratic environment and using it in predatory ways, routinely stepping over formal laws and operating the state as a criminal organization. In other words, it is a combination of a clan state, a neopatrimonial-neosultanistic state, a predatory state, and a criminal state." -- Oleksandr Fisun, Andrey Ryabov, Sonja Avlijas, Julia Kiraly * Socio-Economic Review *Table of ContentsList of Tables and Figures Acknowledgments Reader’s Manual for QR Codes and Online Supplementary Material Preface by Alena Ledeneva Introduction Trapped in the Language of Democratization The Inadequacy of Existing Models for the Post-Communist Region The Multi-Dimensional Analytical Framework: Spanning Conceptual Spaces How It is Made: The Construction of a Conceptual Toolkit How to Look at It: The Framework as a Structural Construction How to Read It: A Textbook with Original Contributions How It Unfolds: Outline of the Content 1. Stubborn Structures 1.1. Guide to the Chapter 1.2. Thesis A: Regime Type Depends on the Separation of Spheres of Social Action 1.3. Thesis B: The Separation of Spheres Followed Civilizational Boundaries 1.3.1. Civilizations and the Three Historical Regions 1.3.2. The Basic Structure of Unseparated Spheres in a Feudal Framework 1.4. Thesis C: Communist Dictatorships Arrested and Reversed the Separation of Spheres 1.4.1. The Basic Structure of Merged Spheres in Communist Dictatorships 1.4.2. The Effect of Communism on the Separation of Spheres in Different Regions 1.5. Thesis D: Democratization Did Not Change the Separation of Spheres 1.5.1. The Basic Structure of Unseparated Spheres in a Democratic Framework 1.5.2. Single-Pyramid and Multi-Pyramid Systems: The Determinants of Democratization in the Three Historical Regions 1.6. Beyond Hybridology: A Triangular Conceptual Space of Regimes 2. State 2.1. Guide to the Chapter 2.2. General Definitions: The Basic Concepts of the Framework 2.2.1. Regime, State, Violence, and Coercion 2.2.2. Elite, Ruling Elite, Patronalism, and Informality 2.3. The Dominant Principle of State Functioning 2.3.1. Societal Interest, Elite Interest, and Ideology Implementation 2.3.2. States in Democracies and Dictatorships: from Constitutional State to Party State and from Night-Watchman State through Welfare State to Developmental State 2.4. Conceptualization of States Running on Elite Interest 2.4.1. Interpretative Layers: What is the Nature of the Ruling Elite? 2.4.2. Interpretative Layers: What is the Action Targeting State Institutions? 2.4.3. Interpretative Layers: What is the Action Targeting Property? 2.4.4. Interpretative Layers: What is the Legal Status of Elite-Interested Action? 2.4.5. Combining Layers of Different Dimensions: Defining the Mafia State 2.4.6. Constitutional State vs. Mafia State: Normativity and Discretionality 2.5. Challenges to the Monopoly of Violence 2.5.1. State Failure, Violent Entrepreneurs, and Oligarchic Anarchy 2.5.2. The Legitimate Use of Violence: A Typology 2.5.3. Sub-Sovereign Mafia States 2.6. The Invisible Hand and the Grabbing Hand: A Comparative Framework for State Types 3. Actors 3.1. Guide to the Chapter 3.2. The Three Spheres of Social Action 3.3. Political Actors in the Three Polar Type Regimes 3.3.1. President/Prime Minister—Chief Patron—General Party Secretary 3.3.2. Cabinet—Patron’s Court—Politburo 3.3.3. Politician—Poligarch / Political Front Man—High Level Party Cadre 3.3.4. Trustee – Patron’s Hand (Smotryashchiy)—Middle/Low Level Party Cadre 3.3.5. Civil Servant—Patronal Servant—Administrative Cadre (Apparatchik) 3.3.6. State’s Secret Service—Patron’s Secret Service—Party’s Secret Service 3.3.7. Democratic Party (Politicians’ Party)—Patron’s Party (Vassals’ Party)— Centralized Party (Cadres’ Party) 3.3.8. Governing Party—Transmission-Belt Party – State Party 3.3.9. Opposition Party—Marginalized / Domesticated / Absorbed / Liquidated / Fake party 3.4. Economic Actors in the Three Polar Type Regimes 3.4.1. Entrepreneur—Oligarch—State Enterprise Leader 3.4.2. Lobbyist—Corruption Broker—Tolkach 3.4.3. Economic Front Man (Shell Company) 3.5. Communal Actors in the Three Polar Type Regimes 3.5.1. Citizen—Servant (Client)—Subject 3.5.2. NGO—GONGO—TRANSBO 3.5.3. Independent Church – Client Church – Repressed Church 3.6. A Ruling Elite of Colluding Spheres: The Adopted Political Family 3.6.1. What the Adopted Political Family Is and Is Not 3.6.2. The Anthropological Character of the Adopted Political Family 3.6.3. Disposing over Status and Wealth as Chief Patron 3.7. The Structure of Elites in the Six Ideal Type Regimes 3.7.1. Elites in the Three Polar Type Regimes 3.7.2. Elites in the Three Intermediate Regime Types 4. Politics 4.1. Guide to the Chapter 4.2. Civil Legitimacy and the Interpretation of the Common Good 4.2.1. Civil Legitimacy as the Basis of Modern States 4.2.2. Civil Legitimacy in Liberal Democracy: Constitutionalism 4.2.3. Civil Legitimacy in Patronal Autocracy: Populism 4.2.4. Civil Legitimacy in Communist Dictatorship: Marxism-Leninism 4.2.5. Weberian Legitimacy Patterns: Populism as a Call for Substantive-Rational Legitimacy 4.3. The Institutions of Public Deliberation in the Three Polar Type Regimes 4.3.1. Discussing: Media and the Spheres of Communication 4.3.2. Associating: Protests, Interest Groups, and Party Systems 4.3.3. Electing: Campaigns, Elections, and Referenda 4.3.4. Lawmaking: Policies, Laws, and Legislatures 4.3.5. Enforcing: Courts, Prosecution, and the Institutions of State Coercion 4.4. Defensive Mechanisms: Stability, Erosion, and the Strategies of Consolidating Democracies and Autocracies 4.4.1. Liberal Democracy: Separation of Branches of Power and Civil Society 4.4.2. Patronal Democracy: Separation of Networks of Power and Color Revolutions 4.4.3. Patronal Autocracy: Separation of Resources of Power and the Problem of Succession 4.4.4. Reversing Autocratic Change: The Regime-Critique Paradigm and Democratic Consolidation 5. Economy 5.1. Guide to the Chapter 5.2. Relational Economics as a Challenger of the Neoclassical Synthesis 5.3. Relation 5.3.1. General Definitions: Relation, Cooperation, Collusion 5.3.2. Collusion and Corruption: A Typology 5.3.3. Corruption Types in Comparison: General Dimensions and a Case Study for the Transformation of Corruption 5.3.4. Corruption Measurement, Criminal Ecosystem, and the Role of Corrupt Monies in Regime Survival 5.3.5. Relation in Communist Dictatorships 5.3.6. The Culture of Relation in the Post-Communist Region: From Family Obligations to Blat and Guanxi 5.4. State Intervention 5.4.1. The General Framework 5.4.2. Regulatory Intervention: The Forms of Rent Creation 5.4.3. Budgetary Intervention: The Forms of Taxation and Spending 5.5. Ownership 5.5.1. Political Reorganization of Ownership Structure in the Post-Communist Region 5.5.2. Making a Privatization Profile: Technocratic and Non-Technocratic Motives 5.5.3. Making a Patronalization Profile: Predation and Property Rights 5.5.4. Predation and Economic Dynamics: Stalking Value, Hunting Value, and Booty Value 5.6. Comparative Economic Systems 5.6.1. Administrative Market, Competitive Market, and Relational Market 5.6.2. Mixed Market Economies: the Dynamic Balance of the Three Economic Mechanisms in Market-Exploiting Dictatorships 5.6.3. From Crony to Mafia: Types of Political Capitalism 6. Society 6.1. Guide to the Chapter 6.2. The Level of Social Structures: Networks and Societal Patronalization 6.2.1. Open and Limited-Access Orders: Eliminating the Strength of Weak Ties 6.2.2. Clientage Society: Inequality and Social Mobility in Patronal Autocracy 6.3. The Stability of Power and Mass Political Persuasion 6.4. The Level of Discourses: Ideology and the Political Market 6.4.1. The Supply Side: Ideology-Applying Actors and Regimes 6.4.2. The Demand Side: From Identity Politics to Conspiracy Theories 6.4.3. Populism Summarized: An Ideological Instrument for the Political Program of Morally Unconstrained Collective Egoism 6.5. Modalities of Informal Governance: A Summary 7. Regimes 7.1. Guide to the Chapter 7.2. The Triangular Framework: Defining the Six Ideal Type Regimes 7.2.1. Doubling of the Kornaian Ideal Types of Democracy, Autocracy, and Dictatorship 7.2.2. Eleven Dimensions in the Triangular Framework 7.3. Regime Dynamics: A Typology with Modelled Trajectories of Twelve Post- Communist Countries 7.3.1. General Definitions: Sequence, Trajectory, and Pattern Change 7.3.2. Primary Trajectories after Communism (Estonia, Romania, Kazakhstan, and China) 7.3.3. Secondary Trajectories after the Regime Change (Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Russia) 7.3.4. Regime Cycles and the Duality of Personal and Impersonal Institutional Change (Ukraine, Macedonia, Moldova, and Georgia) 7.4. Beyond Regime Specificities: Country and Policy-Specific Features 7.4.1. Ethnic Cleavages as a Source of Pluralism and Disorder 7.4.2. Deep State and the Survival of Communist Secret Services 7.4.3. Country Size and the Global Ambitions of Former Empires 7.4.4. Geopolitical Orientation and the Coexistence of Liberal and Patronal Regimes in the European Union 7.4.5. Dependence of Capitalism and the Global Connections of Local Patronal Networks 7.4.6. Natural Resources and Other Sources of Distributable Rent 7.4.7. Policy-Specific Features: Regime-Based Analysis and the Room for Maneuver Conclusion The Significance of Language and the Basic Axioms to Analyze Post-Communist Regimes Towards a Global Perspective: Dissolving our Implicit Axioms for the Post- Communist Region Technology and Climate Change: Era-Specific Features and the Prospects for the Future Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisWhy has communism’s humanist quest for freedom and social justice without exception resulted in the reign of terror and lies? The authors of this collective volume address this urgent question covering the one hundred years since Lenin’s coup brought the first communist regime to power in St. Petersburg, Russia in November 1917. The first part of the volume is dedicated to the varieties of communist fantasies of salvation, and the remaining three consider how communist experiments over many different times and regions attempted to manage economics, politics, as well as society and culture. Although each communist project was adapted to the situation of the country where it operated, the studies in this volume find that because of its ideological nature, communism had a consistent penchant for totalitarianism in all of its manifestations. This book is also concerned with the future. As the world witnesses a new wave of ideological authoritarianism and collectivistic projects, the authors of the nineteen essays suggest lessons from their analyses of communism’s past to help better resist totalitarian projects in the future.Table of ContentsIntroduction: Why a 20th Century Exercise in the 21st Century Vladimir Tismaneanu and Jordan Luber Part One: Fantasies of Salvation German Communism, the Jews and Israel: From the Antifascism of World War II to the Undeclared Wars of the Cold War Jeffrey Herf Euphoria to Decay: Post-Marxist Revision’s Mortal Threat to Communism Vladimir Tismaneanu Getting off the Red Tram of Socialism Mykola Riabchuk The Rise, Demise, and Pernicious Long-Term Impact of Soviet Communist Ideology in Russia Mark Kramer Part Two: Economics The Comparative Assessment of Communist and Post-Communist System Performance and Human Wellbeing: Challenges and Insights from In-depth Case Study Approaches Paul Dragos Aligica and Vlad Tarko Communist Economy: The Verdict of History Steven Rosefielde Looking Back at the Soviet Economic Experience Peter Rutland Incentives, Coercion, and Redistribution: Why Industrial Central Plan Economies Performed Worse Than Western Market Economies and Better Than Less Developed Economies Michael S. Bernstam The Rise and Fall of the Planned Economy and Its Long-Lasting Effects on Transition Serguey Braguinsky Part Three: Politics Romancing a Millenarian State: From Petrograd to Raqqa Leon Aron Stalin, Tito, Djilas, and the Dialectical Quarrels of Post-war Europe Marius Stan China’s Enduring Leninist Toolkit: Perspectives on CCP Organization and Ideology Margaret M. Pearson Reductio ad Reganum: Reflections on Communism’s Enduring Ideological Invulnerability Venelin I. Ganev Ideology and Violence in Communist Venezuela Jordan Luber Part Four: Society and Culture Communist Rhetoric as Official Practices of Discourse: Making Epideictic Arguments on Authority and National Identity Noemi Marin Selective Repression and Democratic Opposition in Post-Totalitarian Hungary András Bozóki Lost in Protochronia: Ideological Dada in Ceaușescu’s Romania Mircea Mihăieș The Road to Liberation Theology: Experiments at the Intersection of Confessional & Secular Religion Piotr H. Kosicki Philosophical Lessons from the Bolshevik Experiment Marci Shore List of Contributors Index

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Book SynopsisThis book explores the transformation of India’s relations with Central and Eastern Europe from being a subset of Indo-Soviet relations during the Cold War to the rediscovery and rebuilding of relations with the region almost from scratch in the post-Cold War era. It examines how the combination of Brexit, the rise of China and India’s expanding geo-economic interests in Europe has led the Narendra Modi government to contemplate relations with Central Europe through a more strategic lens and treat the region as an autonomous element within India’s foreign policy rather than a footnote of its relations with other great powers. Fulfilling a long-felt gap in existing literature, this volume examines India’s political, economic, investment, defence and cultural relations with the Visegrad Four (the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia). It analyzes Indian perceptions of Central Europe and explores prospects of New Delhi’s political and economic engagement with the region. The painstakingly compiled appendices on the exchange of bilateral visits and agreements between India and the Visegrad Four would be of immense use as a handy reference to scholars, policy-makers, and other interested persons and institutions.Trade Review“The book India and Central Europe: Perceptions, Perspectives and Prospects edited by Rajendra Jain is a welcome addition to the literature on India’s engagement with Central European countries. It is a timely Contribution … . the book provides a comprehensive analysis of India’s engagement with these countries, which is important for Indian foreign policy makers as they attempt to carve a roadmap for their relations in the future.” (Priya Vijaykumar Poojary, CEU Review of Books, ceureviewofbooks.com, September, 2023)Table of ContentsChapter 1. India and Central Europe: Perceptions and Prospects (Pramit Pal Chaudhuri).- 2. Indian Perceptions of Central Europe (Rajendra K. Jain).- Chapter 3. India and the Czech Republic (Rajendra K. Jain).- Chapter 4. India and Hungary ( Rajendra K. Jain).- Chapter 5. India and Poland (Rajendra K. Jain).- Chapter 6. India and Slovakia ( Rajendra K. Jain).- Chapter 7. India’s Economic and Trade Relations with Central Europe (Anna Wróbel).- Chapter 8. Indian Foreign Direct Investment in Central Europe (Karina Jędrzejowska and Anna Wróbel).- Chapter 9. Indian Diaspora in Central Europe (Patryk Kugiel and Konrad Pędziwiatr).- Chapter 10. The Visegrad Four and India: A Road More Travelled? (Patryk Kugiel)

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Book SynopsisThis book provides an insightful sociological study of the shrinking Japanese population through a regional variation perspective as it varies significantly by municipality, even within the same prefecture. Using demographic data on municipal levels, the book identifies the power unique to each municipality, which can mobilize a shrinking but sustainable Japan. The study identifies the principal explanatory factors based on the small area data of e-Stat through GPS statistical software tools such as G-census and EvaCva within a historical perspective. The theoretical framework of this study, i.e., the reason for regional variations in Japan, is the Goki-Shichido (Five Home Provinces and Seven Circuits of Ancient Japan). This historical knowledge helps in understanding the significance of the regional cultural heritage that remains in each municipality today. The book pays special attention to municipal variations within the same prefecture, utilizing a completely unique approach, unlike those that have been pursued by other researchers. This volume studies two present-day prefectures for detailed analyses based on the Goki-Shichido framework for impacts of regional variations of population decline in Japan. They are Niigata Prefecture, made up of the formerly named Echigo and Sado provinces; Ishikawa Prefecture, formed by the ancient Kaga and Noto provinces; Fukui Prefecture, based on the earlier Wakasa and Echizen provinces of the Hokurikudo; Nagano Prefecture, still called Shinano Province today and commonly divided into four areas and ten regions; and Gifu Prefecture, composed of the ancient Mino and Hida provinces of the Tosando as examples of the impact of municipal power on regional variations of shrinking Japan. However, due to the limitation of the number of pages set forth for Springer Briefs in Population Studies: Population Studies of Japan, for which the current publication is a part, it has become necessary to divide the book into two volumes, namely Volume I and Volume II. Because of this limitation the current volume I is consisted of three chapters, namely, Chapter 1: Issues, theoretical framework, and methodology; Chapter 2: Niigata Prefecture in the Hokurikudo; and Chapter 3: Ishikawa Prefecture in the Hokurikudo. The remaining three prefectures, i.e., Fukui in the Hokurikudo area, Nagano and Gifu both in the Tosando area will be discussed in the Volume II of this book. By presenting unique analyses of regional variations on small municipal levels, with demographic variables, social indicators, and historical identities, this book offers suggestions for effective regional policies to revitalize a shrinking Japan to a sustainable one. The Volume I, therefore, analyzes and discusses in detail both Niigata and Ishikawa prefectures of the Hokurikudo.Table of ContentsChapter 1: Introduction: Issues, Theoretical Framework, and Methodolog.- Chapter 2: Niigata Prefecture in Hokurikudo of Goki-Shichido and Regional Variations.- Chapter 3: Ishikawa Prefecture in Hokurikudo of Goki-Shichido and Regional Variations.

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Book SynopsisThis book explores the phenomenon of total power in East Asia, with particular attention to China, Korea, and Japan. It shows how total power enables an examination of regional experience as a part of global context in order to demarcate the connections with other countries and regions that have similar political cultures, such as those in Central Asia, the Middle East, and East Africa. Moreover, it elucidates that the phenomenon of total power unpacks the interrelations not only between different countries, but also between political, economic, religious, or cultural aspects of the region as a whole, and of each country in particular. This book takes East Asia as a classic example of where total power has achieved the highest forms of development during traditional periods in the form of absolute economic dependence of society on the state, ideologically enshrined by a system of moral obligations toward supreme power that allowed for the establishment of a monopoly on forced labour, and the appropriation and distribution of social products. The author emphasizes the importance of exploring the tradition of total power with reference to the ongoing global crisis of European democracy. In doing so, the book shows that democratization has not brought qualitative changes to the political culture of East Asia. An essential interdisciplinary read for scholars studying political science, particularly East-West relations, this book situates East Asian political culture within a global context.Table of ContentsChapter 1. Formation of East Asian Complex of Total Power A.East Asian Complex of TotalPower during Traditional Period B.Total Power in China C.Adaptation of Total Power inKorea D.Adaptation of Total Power in Japan E.Total Power and the Problem of RegionalOrder.- Chapter 2. Modernization of East Asian Complex of Total Power.- Chapter 3. Japanese Empire: Modernized Total Power.- Chapter 4. Total Power and East Asian Nation-States during Cold War.- Chapter 5. East Asian Tradition of Total Power and Neoliberal Globalization.

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Book SynopsisIn diesem Buch wird die chinesische Politik theoretisiert, insbesondere Chinas "deliberative Demokratie (xieshang minzhu 协商民主)". In einem vergleichenden Rahmen zwischen China und dem Westen hinterfragt der Autor den Anspruch der chinesischen Regierung, die Bürger zu repräsentieren, und zeigt dem Leser, wie all diese Konzepte innerhalb der chinesischen Ideologie, des demokratischen Diskurses und der Regierungsführung zusammenwirken und in welchem Verhältnis sie zum chinesischen Autoritarismus stehen. Vor allem stellt dieses Buch eine nachhaltige Hybridisierung der politischen Theorie dar, die weder eine einfache demokratisch-autoritäre Dichotomie noch eine Neuinterpretation der offiziellen Propaganda ist. Diese Studie wird für Wissenschaftler der chinesischen Politik und Staatskunst von Interesse sein, da sie Licht auf einen neu entstehenden Staatsdiskurs wirft - das chinesische xieshang minzhu. Noch wichtiger ist, dass dieses Buch über eine einfache rhetorische und sprachliche Verwendung der "deliberativen Demokratie" im westlichen Sinne hinausgeht und vielmehr den beratenden Charakter der chinesischen Politik hervorhebt, der den chinesischen Autoritarismus begünstigt und festigt.Table of Contents1. Einführung.- 2. Deliberative Demokratie im Westen.- 3. Aythoritäre Deliberation, aythoritäre Konsultation und darüber hinaus.- 4. Konsultative Demokratie und darüber hinaus, eine indifferente Neukonzeption der "deliberativen Demokratie".- 5. Die Wiedererstarkung des chinesischen Autoritarismus? Die Institutionalisierung der Konsultation.- 6. Konsultatives/deliberatives Regieren in der Praxis.- 7. Schlussfolgerung.

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Book SynopsisDieses Buch vergleicht die Einwanderungspolitik der EU-Staaten und der asiatischen Länder - Deutschland, Polen, Estland, Taiwan, China, Südkorea, Japan, Vietnam und Thailand -, analysiert die Stärken und Schwächen der verschiedenen politischen Akteure in den Regionen und untersucht, was aus den Erfahrungen der verschiedenen Staaten gelernt werden kann. In den letzten Jahrzehnten ist die Einwanderungspolitik aufgrund der Globalisierung zu einem heißen Thema geworden. Seit der Flüchtlingskrise im Jahr 2015, als mehr als eine Million Migranten und Flüchtlinge nach Europa kamen, steht die EU vor Herausforderungen im Bereich der Einwanderung. In Asien ist die Einwanderungsproblematik noch komplizierter geworden, da die wirtschaftlichen Beziehungen zwischen den asiatischen Ländern in den letzten Jahren erheblich zugenommen haben. Mit Beiträgen von Professoren, Experten und Wissenschaftlern aus verschiedenen Ländern Europas und Asiens bietet das Buch sowohl eingehende Analysen als auch breite Perspektiven zu diesem Thema und ist damit eine wertvolle Lektüre für Wissenschaftler und politische Entscheidungsträger gleichermaßen. Table of ContentsEinleitung.- Eine Studie zur Migrationspolitik in Japan.- Politische Rechte von Einwanderern in Korea.- Hat Chinas Soft Power die Jugend Taiwans angelockt? Preliminary Evidence for Overseas Employment.- The Nexus between Foreign Labor Policy and Human Trafficking in Taiwan.- Labour Immigration Policy in Vietnam.- Thailand Immigrant Policy: Herausforderung und Chance vor und nach der ASEANISIERUNG.- Die Herausforderung der Einwanderung nach Europa.- Die Migrationspolitik Osteuropas: Der Fall von Polen und Ungarn: Die Reaktion der deutschen Parteien auf die Flüchtlingskrise 2015: Eine Langzeitanalyse der Dynamik der Parteipositionierung.- Die Auswirkungen der EU-Einwanderungspolitik auf die normative Macht in Europa.- Die Gestaltung der Einwanderungspolitik in den neuen EU-Mitgliedstaaten: der Fall der estnischen Asylpolitik.

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Book SynopsisThis book presents a new organizing framework for studying democratic recession and autocratization in Southeast Asia. By introducing a new concept, “democratic backlash,” the book details how democratic recession inevitably provokes resistance that often forms the nucleus of new democratic movements, and in doing so, argues that it is important to identify these reverse trends that may eventually become dominant.The book contributes to current literature which thus far has sought to understand the causes and consequences of the decline in democracy around the world. Previous literature has focused primarily on advanced democracies, or alternatively, on large scale quantitative comparison. As such, this book helps fill a research gap with its focus on Southeast Asia, employing a comparative case study approach.Chapter authors are experts on Southeast Asia, a region that has experienced democratic recession and autocratization in a variety of ways, from rising populism to military coups.Table of ContentsIntroductionDemocratic Decline and Rising Autocratization in Southeast Asia: A Framework for AnalysisPart One: Democratic Recession in Southeast AsiaThe Sharp Edge of Power: China’s Power and Democratic Erosion in the PhilippinesChallenging the Surveillance State: The Anti-Terrorism Act and the Decline of Philippine DemocracyAnies Baswedan and Sub-State Populism in Jakarta IndonesiaIn Limbo: Islamist Populism and Democratic Stagnation in MalaysiaPart Two: Autocratization and Authoritarian TechniquesThe ‘Backdoor’ Government and Executive Aggrandisement: Democratic Backsliding in MalaysiaThailand’s Authoritarian Innovation and Its Resistance: The Case of Propaganda in ‘ROTC Cyber’ ActivityPart Three: Reinforcing Norms and Democratic StructuresRural Grassroots Governance-Building in MyanmarDemocratization of rural Indonesia through village head election: A glimpse of hope from IndramayuNot So Great Transformation: Democratization and Social Conflict in Timor-LestePart Four: Democratic BacklashRegimes, Repression, Repertoires: Student Protest Movements and the Repertoires of Contention in the Philippines and IndonesiaA Time for Change: From a Hybrid Authoritarian Regime to the Creation of a New Federal Myanmar ArmySocial Media and Democratic Recession in Southeast Asia

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Book SynopsisThis book documents and analyses the differentiated control policies, the determinant factors behind, social resilience, and international relations during the pandemic from a comparative perspective in a facts-based, data-supporting manner. The intermittent outbreak of cases, public sentiments after long anxiety, questions over the efficacy of vaccines, have forced governments as well as the public to rethink differing approaches and policies in the combat against not just COVID, but the delta variant. In this context, this book establishes itself as a timely product, perhaps the first of its kind, to provide a widely covered individual country-based observation of policies, with an emphasis on multidimensional determinant factors behind the policies. A comparative study of social resilience during the pandemic constitutes another highlight of the book. The different policies tested social resilience differently in parameters such as mortality rates, vaccination coverage, social mobility, travel arrangements, trust in government, and general human development. Above and beyond observations and analyses at local and national levels, this book expands its scope to incorporate international relations, contemplating over the impacts of the pandemic on international relations, power shifts, and new world/global orders, crystallized in the indisputable rise of China. Table of ContentsIntroduction.- Public Policies in Controlling Pandemic.- Cultural and Historical Comparison of Factors Behind Pandemic Control Policies.- Political, Institutional, and State Theory Comparison. Governmental Intervention or Civil Cooperation? Reliance on Governmental Arrangement Versus Resort to Institutional Power?.- International Relations and Great Power Comparison. Changes in the Soft Power and Nation Branding for Individual Countries Following their Handling of the Pandemic, Etc.- Public Health Systems and Social Policy System Regimes Comparison.- Public Wealth Regimes and Impact on Pandemic Control Policy and Social Resilience.- Economic Comparison: Costs and Benefits of Different Control Policies.- Comprehensive/ “Great Game” Strategy Comparison. Issues Around the Various Schools of Thought, Including Conspiracy Theories, Relationship Between the Pandemic, Pandemic-Control, China’s Rise, and New World Order (International Power Shift), Economic Production, and Global Supply Chain Changes, as Well as Impacts on Policymaking, Etc.- Social Resilience.- Data-Driven, Data-Supported Analysis of Resilience, Like Social and Psychological Resilience Comparison.- Sociology of the Pandemic and the Impact on Social Resilience: Comparative Studies.- Big Data Social Resilience Analysis Comparative Studies.- Economic and Political Comparison in Resilience.- “New Normal” Preparing for and Resulting From “Living With Covid.”.- Public Sentiments, Public Trust in Governance Affect Pandemic Control, Public Backlash After Once Successful Handling Of Pandemic by Coercive Force.- Social Costs and Benefits Analysis of Pandemic Control Policies.- Will Leave for Other Issues of Comparative Nature Surrounding the Pandemic Studies. Current Chapters Include.- Comparison of Pandemics in History. What was the Social, Economic, Diplomatic, as Well as Political Implications by Previous Well-Known Pandemics in History, such as the Black Death in the 14th Century, Harbin Plaque in 1910~1911, The Spanish Flu Pandemic in 1918~1919, and The SARS in 2002-2003?.- Vaccination-Related Topics, such as Comparison of Efficacy of Various Vaccines, Attitudes Towards Vaccine, Vaccine Passport, and Others. China’s International Participation in Vaccine Provision?.- Corona-A New Grand Narrative?.- Other Topics. Geographical Comparison: Routes of Pandemic Spreading and Border Re-Opening.

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Book SynopsisThe cases of Singapore and Switzerland present a fascinating puzzle: how have two small states achieved similar levels of success through divergent pathways? Are both approaches equally sustainable, and what lessons do they hold for each other? While Singapore is the archetypal developmental state, whose success can be attributed to strong political leadership and long-term planning, Switzerland's success is a more organic process, due to the propitious convergence of strong industries and a resilient citizenry. Yet throughout the course of their development, both countries have had to deal with the dual challenges of culturally heterogeneous populations and challenging regional contexts. Edited by Yvonne Guo and Jun Jie Woo, with forewords from Ambassadors Thomas Kupfer and Tommy Koh, Singapore and Switzerland: Secrets to Small State Success features contributions from distinguished scholars and policymakers who explore the dynamics of two small states which have topped international rankings in a dazzling array of policy areas, from economic competitiveness to education to governance, but whose pathways to success could not be more different.

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Book SynopsisThe optimism provoked by Myanmar's political reforms in 2011-2012 has now given way to a sense that the uneven nature of change in this nation of 54 million has lead to instability and uncertainty. The liberalization of critical sectors and expansion of certain freedoms - such as political and legal opportunities for expression and mobilization - contrasts with the entrenchment of structural problems. It becomes ever more difficult to tackle ethnic marginalization and conflict, over-dependence on natural resource extraction, inadequate public services, and problems of under-capacity in the civilian bureaucracy.The result is the build up of a toxic environment in which classism, racism, and bigotry threaten to rend Myanmar's already delicate social fabric. The contributors to this volume bring unique perspectives and methodologies to bear to unravel Myanmar's tangled challenges. Whether it is through studying corruption by analyzing the country's real estate bubble, assessing civil society advocacy capacity against extractive industries, or gauging the strength (and surprising weakness) of Myanmar's military, the volume employs unconventional approaches and analytical rigor to address a fundamental question: is Myanmar itself unraveling?Trade Review“Variously wide-ranging and penetrating, the essays assembled in this volume examine Myanmar's short decade of dramatic political and social change in all its complexity. . . . Dense with original research and fresh interpretations of what is happening in Myanmar and why, they bode well for the future of scholarship on this no-longer overlooked country at the nexus of South and Southeast Asia.”

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Book SynopsisBurma, also known as Myanmar, strategically located between China and India, is one of the largest and most richly endowed states in Southeast Asia. Yet it remains both economically and politically underdeveloped. Why is this so? We argue that much of the reason has to do with an ongoing struggle for national identity. This struggle involves not only whether the state should be authoritarian or democratic, but how Burma's myriad ethnic minorities should be accommodated within it, what external reference national reference groups the country should identify and align with, and how it should move forward. Identity formation normally occurs much earlier in the national developmental process, but Burma has had unusually intransigent problems that were never successfully resolved during the colonial period and have simply been suppressed by force since then. This protracted divisiveness has stunted the nation's modernization and growth.Written from a unique perspective, this book on Myanmar deviates from the traditional authoritarian versus democratic rhetoric. Although that is certainly part of the picture, this multifaceted analysis focuses rather on the issue of identity formation — an issue that has all too often failed to make the headlines. Much can be learned from Myanmar's identity problems, making this book essential reading for all students and professionals interested in development studies or comparative politics. By whatever name, Burma is not only a fascinating country but one likely to play an increasingly vital role in Asia's future.Table of ContentsMass Politics; Elite Politics; Political Economy; Foreign Policy.

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Book SynopsisThe cases of Singapore and Switzerland present a fascinating puzzle: how have two small states achieved similar levels of success through divergent pathways? Are both approaches equally sustainable, and what lessons do they hold for each other? While Singapore is the archetypal developmental state, whose success can be attributed to strong political leadership and long-term planning, Switzerland's success is a more organic process, due to the propitious convergence of strong industries and a resilient citizenry. Yet throughout the course of their development, both countries have had to deal with the dual challenges of culturally heterogeneous populations and challenging regional contexts. Edited by Yvonne Guo and Jun Jie Woo, with forewords from Ambassadors Thomas Kupfer and Tommy Koh, Singapore and Switzerland: Secrets to Small State Success features contributions from distinguished scholars and policymakers who explore the dynamics of two small states which have topped international rankings in a dazzling array of policy areas, from economic competitiveness to education to governance, but whose pathways to success could not be more different.Table of ContentsIntroduction and Background; Public Administration; Foreign Policy; Trade Policy; Financial Sector Policy; Government-Linked Companies; SME Policy; Education Policy; Language and Cultural Policy; Immigration Policy; Inequality and its Implications; Conclusion;

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Book SynopsisBurma, also known as Myanmar, strategically located between China and India, is one of the largest and most richly endowed states in Southeast Asia. Yet it remains both economically and politically underdeveloped. Why is this so? We argue that much of the reason has to do with an ongoing struggle for national identity. This struggle involves not only whether the state should be authoritarian or democratic, but how Burma's myriad ethnic minorities should be accommodated within it, what external reference national reference groups the country should identify and align with, and how it should move forward. Identity formation normally occurs much earlier in the national developmental process, but Burma has had unusually intransigent problems that were never successfully resolved during the colonial period and have simply been suppressed by force since then. This protracted divisiveness has stunted the nation's modernization and growth.Written from a unique perspective, this book on Myanmar deviates from the traditional authoritarian versus democratic rhetoric. Although that is certainly part of the picture, this multifaceted analysis focuses rather on the issue of identity formation — an issue that has all too often failed to make the headlines. Much can be learned from Myanmar's identity problems, making this book essential reading for all students and professionals interested in development studies or comparative politics. By whatever name, Burma is not only a fascinating country but one likely to play an increasingly vital role in Asia's future.

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Book SynopsisThe deep analyses make clear that the post-2015 period has been one of active negotiations of authority between old and new state institutions as well as citizens and groups.

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