Democratization and the Myth of the Liberalizing Middle Classes

Abstract

In the East and Southeast Asian newly industrialised countries (NICs), or to use the preferred acronym of a recent World Bank Report, High Performing Asian Economies (HPAEs), it appears that political development occurs in the wake of economic modernization. Arbitrary rule gives way to constitutional and institutional procedures and restraints, and competitive elections replace the military coup as the favoured means of legitimating leadership transition.