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Showing 1 - 9 of 9 matches in All Departments
Conventional political science depicts legitimate elections as rational affairs in which informed voters select candidates for office according to how their coherently presented aims, ideologies and policies appeal to the self-interest of the electorate. In reality elections, whether in first world democracies, or in the various governmental systems present in Asia, can more realistically be seen as cultural events in which candidates' campaigns are shaped, consciously or unconsciously, to appeal to the cultural understanding and practices of the electorate. The election campaign period is one in which the masses are mobilized to participate in a range of cultural activities, from flying the party colours in noisy motorcycle parades to attending political rallies for or against, or simply to be entertained by the performances on the political stage, and to gambling on the outcome of the contest. The essays in this book analyse electioneering activities in nine Asian countries in terms of popular cultural practices in each location, ranging from updated traditional cultures to mimicry and caricatures of present day television dramas. In presenting political election as an expression of popular culture this book portrays electoral behaviour as a meaningful cultural practice. As such this book will appeal to student and scholars of political science and cultural studies alike, as well as those with a more general interest in Asian studies.
Singapore's successful public housing programme is a source of political legitimacy for the ruling People's Action Party. Beng-Huat Chua accounts for the success of public housing in Singapore and draws out lessons for other nations. Housing in Singapore, he explains in this incisive analysis, is seen neither as a consumer good (as in the US) nor as a social right (as in the social democracies of Europe). The author goes on to look at the ways in which Singapore's planners have dealt with the problems of creating communities in a modern urban environment. He concludes that the success of the public housing programme has done much for Singapore.
In Liberalism Disavowed, Beng Huat Chua examines the rejection of Western-style liberalism in Singapore since the nation's expulsion from Malaysia and formal independence as a republic in 1965. The People's Action Party, which has ruled Singapore since 1959, has forged an independent non-Western ideology that is evident in various government policies that Chua analyzes, among them multiracialism, public housing, and widespread social distributions to the citizenry. Singapore is prosperous and peaceful, it's highly advanced on various metrics of economic development, it has a great deal of regional influence, it is home to sophisticated industries and a large financial service sector, and it features what are by Western standards unusually low levels of social inequality. Paradoxically, however, it is no beacon of political liberalism. Chua sets forth ample evidence that the dominance of the People's Action Party is based on a combination of economic success and media control, limits on public protests, libel suits against political opponents, and severely curtailed civil liberties.
With the collapse of European socialism in the late 1980s, ascendancy of the liberal capitalist democracy and individual self-interest became prevalent in the West. In contrast, many polities in Asia, both by tradition and choice, have explicitly adopted communitarianism as a national ideology, for example Confucianism in Korea, Hong Kong and Japan, Islam in Malaysia and the Panca Sila in Indonesia. Here, communitarianism arguably informs public policies and political practices and the concept of the 'social' in terms of responsibilities and collective welfare is preserved. Communitarian Politics in Asia examines instances in southeast and east Asian countries where communitarianism is both articulated as national ideology and embedded as the ethos of social life and assesses the relative merits of a set of practices in their respective local political context. The book not only augments existing international debate on liberalism and communitarianism but also provides empirical examples of communitarian political practices that will substantiate and/or refute conceptual points, such as redistributive justice and costs to individuals, in this ongoing debate.
The Crisis of Welfare in East Asia adopts a unique and critical perspective on contemporary social welfare policies in East Asia. This edited volume reflects on current welfare theories and challenges the dominant productivist ideology that overemphasizes the influence of work and family. James Lee and Kam-Wah Chan bring together authors from different social policy domains to provide an updated assessment of inadequacies and limitations in current social policies as well as the problematic theories guiding them. The authors demystify the so-called 'East Asian Welfare Model' and reengage themselves in the identification of an appropriate welfare ideology, which includes a selective integration of social policy and economic development. The Crisis of Welfare in East Asia is a dynamic and enlightening read that will interest students of public policy and those interested in welfare capitalism.
The Crisis of Welfare in East Asia adopts a unique and critical perspective on contemporary social welfare policies in East Asia. This edited volume reflects on current welfare theories and challenges the dominant productivist ideology that overemphasizes the influence of work and family. James Lee and Kam-Wah Chan bring together authors from different social policy domains to provide an updated assessment of inadequacies and limitations in current social policies as well as the problematic theories guiding them. The authors demystify the so-called "East Asian Welfare Model" and reengage themselves in the identification of an appropriate welfare ideology, which includes a selective integration of social policy and economic development. The Crisis of Welfare in East Asia is a dynamic and enlightening read that will interest students of public policy and those interested in welfare capitalism.
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