scholarly journals Democracy in authoritarian states? Political change and regime stability in Malaysia and Singapore

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Aaron Anandarajah S. Kunaraja
Keyword(s):  
Public Discourse ◽  
Civil Liberties ◽  
Electoral System ◽  
Transition Process ◽  
Science Literature ◽  
Regime Stability ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Democratic System ◽  
Political Scene ◽  
Ruling Party

<p>In Political Science literature, Malaysia and Singapore have consistently been classified as semi-democracies; combining elements of democracy such as regularly-held elections with restrictions on civil liberties more reminiscent of authoritarian regimes. Semi-democracy or competitive authoritarianism in both countries have been relatively stable with extended periods of strong economic performance. However, recent developments in the country’s political scene have cast some doubt on the resilience of such a system.  In the case of Malaysia, the last two elections have shown a consistent loss in support for the ruling Barisan Nasional or National Front coalition which has been in power since independence in 1957. It also appears that restrictions on civil liberties have been lifted, albeit partially. The ‘complacency’ that existed among the middle class previously has largely given way while civil society is playing a much more prominent role in public discourse.  Singapore has also experienced similar developments, though not to the extent to the extent of the ‘political tsunami’ in Malaysia. Nevertheless the ruling PAP had its lowest share of the popular vote in decades in the 2011 elections and Singaporean society is increasingly vocal about grievances regarding income inequality.  Keeping in mind that there has been little structural change to the electoral system that still heavily favours the incumbent government and that key institutions of the state are still controlled by the ruling party, are both countries in a transition process to a more democratic system or will the ruling coalition retain power through these structural and institutional arrangements for the foreseeable future? In other words, will two of the world’s longest-running competitive authoritarian or semi-democratic states be resilient enough to withstand the pressures for change?</p>

scholarly journals Democracy in authoritarian states? Political change and regime stability in Malaysia and Singapore

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Aaron Anandarajah S. Kunaraja
Keyword(s):  
Public Discourse ◽  
Civil Liberties ◽  
Electoral System ◽  
Transition Process ◽  
Science Literature ◽  
Regime Stability ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Democratic System ◽  
Political Scene ◽  
Ruling Party

<p>In Political Science literature, Malaysia and Singapore have consistently been classified as semi-democracies; combining elements of democracy such as regularly-held elections with restrictions on civil liberties more reminiscent of authoritarian regimes. Semi-democracy or competitive authoritarianism in both countries have been relatively stable with extended periods of strong economic performance. However, recent developments in the country’s political scene have cast some doubt on the resilience of such a system.  In the case of Malaysia, the last two elections have shown a consistent loss in support for the ruling Barisan Nasional or National Front coalition which has been in power since independence in 1957. It also appears that restrictions on civil liberties have been lifted, albeit partially. The ‘complacency’ that existed among the middle class previously has largely given way while civil society is playing a much more prominent role in public discourse.  Singapore has also experienced similar developments, though not to the extent to the extent of the ‘political tsunami’ in Malaysia. Nevertheless the ruling PAP had its lowest share of the popular vote in decades in the 2011 elections and Singaporean society is increasingly vocal about grievances regarding income inequality.  Keeping in mind that there has been little structural change to the electoral system that still heavily favours the incumbent government and that key institutions of the state are still controlled by the ruling party, are both countries in a transition process to a more democratic system or will the ruling coalition retain power through these structural and institutional arrangements for the foreseeable future? In other words, will two of the world’s longest-running competitive authoritarian or semi-democratic states be resilient enough to withstand the pressures for change?</p>

Paying Attention to Foreign Affairs: How Public Opinion Affects Presidential Decision Making by Thomas Knecht

2012 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 145-146
Author(s):  
Terrence L. Chapman
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Public Opinion ◽  
Public Discourse ◽  
Domestic Politics ◽  
Public Attitudes ◽  
Science Literature ◽  
Government Behavior ◽  
Ability To Act ◽  
The Media ◽  
The Relationship

Despite increased attention to the linkages between domestic politics and international relations in political science literature over the last 20 years, considerable debate remains about how well equipped citizens are to act as informed constraints on governments or how attentive and responsive government actors are to public opinion. Debates about citizens' ability to act as a check on government behavior are not new, of course, and have a long tradition in political philosophy and in public discourse. Yet the proliferation of theories of domestic–international linkages in contemporary IR scholarship has unfortunately been accompanied by incomplete dialogue between public opinion and IR scholars and often by claims of unidirectional or unconditional causality regarding domestic constraints, elite framing and opinion leadership, citizens' informational capacities, and the role of the media. The relationship among these factors in shaping foreign policy is quite complex, however, and fortunately Thomas Knecht acknowledges this complexity and advances a conditional argument about the relationship between public attitudes and presidential decision making.

scholarly journals Informação, Publicidade, Propaganda: Correspondentes estrangeiros, agências noticiosas e a “Grande Guerra de palavras” da primeira metade do século XX

2021 ◽  
Vol 45 ◽  
pp. 11-31
Author(s):  
Fernando Clara
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
Public Space ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Public Discourse ◽  
Foreign Correspondents ◽  
Decisive Importance ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
News Agencies ◽  
The Great War ◽  
Political Scene

The essay takes as a starting point Goebbels’ speech delivered at the closing session of the Continental Advertising Congress, held in Vienna in June 1938, and explores the transformations that the communicational public space of the first half of the twentieth century underwent following the two world conflicts that erupted then. In the first part, the essay addresses the progressive hybridisation of public discourse at the time, the increasing blurring of information, advertising and propaganda, and the rapid acceleration of the international circulation of communication during the period. In this context, special attention is paid to actors who, though not new to the international political scene – such as foreign correspondents and news agencies –, gained a new and decisive importance throughout the period in question. The second part analyses two case studies involving these actors and their power on the international political scene during World War II. Geographically, the two case studies are centred around an axis that is usually considered peripheral to the war – neutral Portugal – but which appears central and, in a way, paradigmatic to the “Great War of Words” that was also being fought in the international public space.

scholarly journals Neopatrimonialism and Party Clientelism

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Teimuraz Kareli
Keyword(s):  
Social Groups ◽  
Electoral System ◽  
Party Systems ◽  
Political Systems ◽  
Dominant Party ◽  
The Government ◽  
Basic Features ◽  
The Right ◽  
Party Dominance ◽  
Ruling Party

The article deals with the features of formation of the party systems in the post-Soviet space. To understand the specific processes, the attention is focused on the inverse logic of the post-Soviet states, the basic features of which can be expressed by the concept of neopatrimonialism. In this context the functioning features of political parties, their principal tasks and the logic of creating the "power party" are described. The article examines the key criteria for the concept of the dominant party, such as its ability to consistently and steadily win the elections, the significant duration of its stay in power, as well as its personnel Control over the government. In the sociopolitical discourse the "power party" enjoys a privileged ideological position and has more opportunities compared to its competitors to appeal to voters. Along with that the party dominance reveals itself not only in its external manifestation (the stay in power), but also in the substantial one – the ability to exercise an effective political choice. The article analyzes the factors of sustainability of the "power party" systems: the historical merits of the "power party"; the ruling party’s ability to effectively take advantage of the electoral system; its strong relationships with the most affluent social groups and major corporations, as well as with the predominant ethnic or linguistic social groups; a privileged access of the ruling party to media resources. These factors are also effective in the polycentric political systems without any dominant party. However, under the dominant party systems they manifest themselves in a complex way, providing the ruling camp with a multi-layered protection due to a synergy effect. Particular attention is paid to the phenomenon of clientelism, widely used by the ruling party as a strategy of political mobilization. However, if discrimination arose by clientelism reaches the level that denies clients the right to choose, this is certainly not consistent with the rules of democracy.

Democracy In Slovenia: Slovenia’s Entry Into The European Union After The Disintegration Of Yugoslavia

2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 92-116
Author(s):  
Putti Ananda Hiswi
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Transition Process ◽  
Online News ◽  
Democratic Peace ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Liberal Democratic ◽  
Liberal Economy ◽  
History Of ◽  
Democratic System ◽  
Independent Country

After the disintegration of Yugoslavia, Slovenia made changes in its ideology and political system to become part of the European Union. However, as a newly independent country, Slovenia faces an unfinished successional political transition. Undertaking a democratic system shift will cause Slovenia to face several challenges: accepting and implementing new democratic laws, introducing a liberal economy with free initiative, and achieving national sovereignty as an independent country. Apart from being a newly independent country, Slovenia also has a history of war with Italy when it was under Yugoslavia during the Second World War. These conditions make Slovenia’s entry into the European Union problematic. This article aims to understand Slovenia’s policy transition process after the disintegration of Yugoslavia and its consideration to join the European Union. This article uses qualitative methods with data and literatures collection from various official documents, books, journals, and online news which discuss integration process and democracy implementation in Slovenia related to its integration to European Union. This article concludes that Slovenia’s decision to join the European Union - despite its position as a newly independent country and the history of war with Italy - was due to the belief that a common liberal democratic system could help open relations with fellow democracies. The similarity of this system can be seen from the application of the three pillars of liberal democracy in democratic peace theory. The theory postulates that when the three pillars are applied, liberal countries will not go to war with each other

The Campaign Is Over, but the Battle Continues

2018 ◽  
pp. 173-178
Author(s):  
Anna L. Bailey
Keyword(s):  
Competitive Advantage ◽  
Policy Development ◽  
Public Discourse ◽  
Alcohol Problem ◽  
Alcohol Policy ◽  
Advocacy Coalitions ◽  
Beer Industry ◽  
Recent Developments

Shows how, even after the passage of the 2011 Law and the fading away of the alcohol problem from public discourse, the same fiercely contested policy battles between advocacy coalitions have continued to shape alcohol regulation in Russia. The policy activity of the “campaign” period of 2009-12 should be seen as just one phase in a broader trend of alcohol policy development: the ongoing struggle between the domestic vodka industry and multinational beer industry for regulatory advantage. Contemporary Russian alcohol policy continues to take the form of a battle between these two opposing sides, as both the vodka and beer industries try to secure regulations that give them a competitive advantage and impose costs on their rivals. Recent developments suggest that the vodka lobby still has the upper hand in this respect.

Unintended consequences of prohibiting advocacy of hatred and regulating campaign finance: The weakening status of freedom of speech in Israel

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barak Medina
Keyword(s):  
Public Discourse ◽  
Unintended Consequences ◽  
Human Rights Law ◽  
Jewish State ◽  
State Neutrality ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
One Step ◽  
The Government ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Constitutional Identity

Abstract A central dilemma in human rights law is how to reconcile the government’s duty to respect freedom with its obligation to protect individuals that might be harmed by the exercise of said freedom. Intolerance toward the dissemination of certain illiberal positions may have adverse social and political unintended results. One central concern is that such a policy would create a common culture that does not appreciate the critical importance of a vibrant public discourse. As such, it might enable governments, in terms of popular legitimacy, to curtail speech beyond the limits of justifiable infringements. Recent developments in Israel illustrate this concern. In recent years, normatively legitimate antiracism legislation was unjustifiably expanded by imposing sanctions on expressions that were deemed harmful to national sentiments or questioning the legitimacy of Israel’s Constitutional Identity as a Jewish state. Similarly, laws against the support of terrorism were followed by prohibitions on advocating boycotts against Israel. This Article proposes to halt the sociological slippery-slope trend of curtailing speech far and beyond the permissible scope of such a policy, by implementing rules-based legal doctrines that may foster a stronger public pressure on the government to protect free speech; restricting the scope of “harm-in-one-step” approach; and providing a clearer definition of the requirement of state neutrality in the context of regulating speech.

RECENT DEVELOPMENTS 2001/2

2001 ◽  
Vol 45 (2) ◽  
pp. 230-235
Keyword(s):  
General Election ◽  
Election Campaign ◽  
Electoral Process ◽  
High Court ◽  
Democratic Change ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Election Results ◽  
Ruling Party

CHALLENGING RESTRICTIONS ON THE RIGHT TO PROTECTION OF THE LAW IN ZIMBABWE.In June 2000, a general election was held in Zimbabwe. Of the 120 common roll constituencies, 62 were won by the ruling party, ZANU(PF) and 57 by the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC). The MDC alleged that the general election campaign was marred by widespread violence, intimidation and illegal practices. As a result proceedings were instituted in the High Court challenging the outcome of the electoral process in 37 constituencies. The hearings were due to commence in January 2001. On 8 December the President issued the Electoral Act (Modification) (No. 3) Notice, 2000 (SI 318/2000), which purported to justify the validation of the election results by reference to a series of assertions.

Credible Threat

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Sobieraj
Keyword(s):  
Gender Inequality ◽  
Public Discourse ◽  
Minority Groups ◽  
Civil Liberties ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
Credible Threat ◽  
Societal Level ◽  
Identity Based ◽  
Racial Ethnic ◽  
Depth Interviews

This book argues that the rampant hate-filled attacks against women online are best understood as patterned resistance to women’s political voice and visibility. This abuse and harassment coalesces into an often-unrecognized form of gender inequality that constrains women’s use of digital public spaces, much as the pervasive threat of sexual intimidation and violence constrain women’s freedom and comfort in physical public spaces. What’s more, the abuse exacerbates inequality among women, those from racial, ethnic, religious, and/or other minority groups, are disproportionately targeted. Drawing on in-depth interviews with women who have been on the receiving end of digital hate, Credible Threat shows that the onslaught of epithets and stereotypes, rape threats, and unsolicited commentary about their physical appearance and sexual desirability come at great professional, personal, and psychological costs for the women targeted—and also with underexplored societal level costs that demand attention. When effective, identity-based attacks undermine women’s contributions to public discourse, create a climate of self-censorship, and at times, push women out of digital publics altogether. Given the uneven distribution of toxicity, those women whose voices are already most underrepresented (e.g., women in male-dominated fields, those from historically undervalued groups) are particularly at risk. In the end, identity-based attacks online erode civil liberties, diminish public discourse, limit the knowledge we have to inform policy and electoral decision making, and teach all women that activism and public service are unappealing, high-risk endeavors to be avoided.

Metaphors we vote by

2010 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 237-259 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tatjana Đurović ◽  
Nadežda Silaški
Keyword(s):  
Data Collection ◽  
Political Parties ◽  
Gender Roles ◽  
Democratic Party ◽  
Public Discourse ◽  
Small Data ◽  
Argumentative Discourse ◽  
Marriage Metaphor ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Political Scene

This paper looks at how the marriage metaphor structures the discourse concerning the relationship between political parties in Serbia. In January 2007, in the first general election to be held in Serbia since its union with Montenegro was dissolved in 2006, no party succeeded in gaining an absolute majority. Eventually, after more than three months of coalition talks, the main pro-reform parties agreed to form a government: the conservative and moderately nationalist right-leaning Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS), together with the pro-Western Democratic Party (DS). Compiling a small data collection from the leading Serbian dailies and political weeklies we have tried to track the metaphors through highly argumentative discourse in regard to the formation of political coalitions and their break-up. The main aim of this study is to show how the metaphors may be mapped and used as a vehicle of public discourse for achieving overt or covert political and ideological objectives on the complex political scene in contemporary Serbia. We will also argue that Serbian political discourse is highly gendered, as gender roles, manifested through the assignment of wife and husband roles to political parties, are clearly delineated according to the traditional male-female dichotomy, implying stereotypical traits and patriarchal values characteristic of Serbian culture.

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