Electoral Competition and the New Party System in Mexico

Mexico's former opposition parties had specific social bases that would not, on their own, have catapulted either opposition party into power. In the 1990s, specific regional bases of support developed for the parties, reflecting their efforts to develop their organizations more locally. Nationally, this led to the emergence of two parallel two-party systems, PAN-PRI competition in the north and center-west and PRD-PRI competition in the south. In parallel, a proregime-antiregime cleavage came to dominate the Mexican party system, which, combined with local-level opposition efforts to oust the PRI, created new incentives for the opposition parties to abandon past emphases on ideological differences and to act like catch-all parties instead. The regime cleavage fostered the dealignment of the Mexican electorate, a process that promoted the development of catch-all parties. Movement within the parties to behave like catch-all parties has not come without internal tensions, but electoral dynamics prove powerful inducements to catch-all behavior.     

Fighting the Hellhounds: Pro-democracy Activists and Party Politics in Post-Suharto Indonesia

In the literature on post-Suharto Indonesia, an increasingly dominant stream has portrayed the political system as being hijacked by predatory elite interests associated with the fallen New Order regime. While such characterisations describe important elements of the post-1998 polity, they do not tell the full story. At the same time that patronage-driven career politicians have staked their claims in the newly democratic state, a large number of civil society activists also started to play an active role in formal politics. This article illustrates how human rights advocates, women activists and labour leaders have tried to promote their causes not from the margins of civil society, but from within the power centre of political institutions. To be sure, some activists-turned-politicians have failed in this effort, but others have initiated key pieces of legislation that led to ground-breaking reforms. In comparative terms, the article demonstrates that Indonesian activists have created an effective political niche for themselves, avoiding both the patterns of state co-optation so prevalent in South Korea and the anti-system attitudes of activist politicians in Malaysia.     

国家形象与当代中美日在东南亚的竞争

国家形象是国家"软力量"的重要一环,在维护国家权利合法性方面起着其他力量不可替代的作用.中美日在东南亚地区的权利和影响自1997年以来,因其国家形象的变化而此消彼长,正是国家形象在一国对外关系中的政治、经济与安全功能的一个绝好例证.     

东南亚华人参政的特点和前景

政治权利是族群和个体的根本权利 ,是经济利益的根本保障。近 3 0年来 ,东南亚华人的政治地位有所改善 ,参政意识也随之提升。东南亚华人参与当地政治活动可分为两种类型 :一是华人政党或社团代表华族群体参与 ,如新加坡、马来西亚和印尼 ,但惟有新加坡华族能平等参与社会政治 ;二是以公民身份参政 ,不凸现华族身份 ,不代表华族群体 ,如泰国、菲律宾和越南。     

Personalist Politics, Clientelism and Citizenship: Local Elections in El Alto, Bolivia

The article investigates the citizenship practices of urban Aymara in a neighbourhood of El Alto, Bolivia, through an examination of the municipal elections of December 1999. Using ethnographic methods, I focus on the instrumental and affective sides of clientelism, a central feature of Bolivian elections. I argue that clientelism is a part of citizenship practice, a means of engaging with the state in the person of the politician. A majority of the Bolivian population are marginalised from the oligarchic mestizo system of government, as represented by the traditional political parties. However, at local level, and especially during election campaigns, there is more permeability, and this article sees clientelism as a set of strategies through which citizens attempt to make politics, and politicians, more representative and responsive.     

Emerging Infectious Disease Surveillance in Southeast Asia: Cambodia,Indonesia, and the US Naval Area Medical Research Unit 2

Abstract

Emerging infectious diseases (EIDs) pose international security threats. What cultural, political, and economic challenges stand in the way of setting up EID Surveillance infrastructure? Are there general principles that might guide engagement with developing countries and support such infrastructure? Using the US Naval Area Medical Research Unit 2 as a common denominator, this study compares barriers to EID surveillance in Cambodia and Indonesia and presents key factors that constrain disease surveillance systems. As extensive interviews revealed, low levels of development in general are the main impediments to building EID surveillance infrastructure and are perhaps beyond the scope of health and scientific agencies at this point. Ultimately, political economy matters and promoting greater understanding of these issues is a critical first step in mitigating negative outcomes.     

第三届"东亚政治社会转型"研讨会综述

2006年8月24～25日,由中国社会科学院亚洲太平洋研究所主办的第三届"东亚政治社会转型"学术研讨会在北京召开.来自全国各知名院校和研究机构的40多位学者出席了会议.与会代表围绕着"东亚:政党政治与政治参与"这一主题展开了学术交流.     

比较政治学在东南亚权威主义研究中的新进展:议题、方法与趋势

自21世纪以来,比较政治学研究发生了从民主转型到权威主义政治的转向,东南亚的权威主义国家也得到了比此前更多的关注。现有研究已经建立起系统的理论分析框架,形成了从权威主义起源到运作过程,再到持续结果的主要研究议题,出现了以斯雷特、比宾斯基和布朗利为代表的学者群体,他们分别提出了抗争政治与权威主义利维坦形成、执政党组织与权威主义持续性以及精英联盟关系与经济危机结果等理论。这些研究采用了诸如控制式比较、过程追踪和正负面案例的比较分析方法,并引入了时间和空间等维度去发展和检验理论。在未来的研究中,澄清起源和运作过程对权威主义持续结果的作用以形成统一的理论框架,在权威主义韧性外引入经济发展、社会稳定和公共福利等国家治理维度的议题,拓宽研究视野,将区域政治与国别政治相结合,是东南亚权威主义三个值得进一步探讨的研究方向。     

2009年泰国政治、经济和外交形势

2009年泰国政治、经济和外交形势复杂,且三者相互纠结,互相影响.政治上,纷争仍未结束.经济上,第一至第三季度连续滑坡,到第四季度才实现增长.外交上,利用东盟轮值主席国地位积极开展多边外交,但泰柬关系的恶化带来一些消极影响.     

大国竞争与中国对东南亚的经济外交

近些年来,随着美国高调"重返"东南亚和日本紧随其后强化其在东南亚的存在,大国在东南亚地区的竞争日益明朗。美日"重返"东南亚使得中国与东盟的经济合作不仅面临着更有力的竞争对手,经济外交为中国崛起带来的安抚效果也大打折扣,东盟国家的大国平衡策略则加剧了大国的竞争效应。为此,中国有必要进一步提高经济外交的能力,通过寻找各方利益契合点、灵活运用正负面经济手段、提供更多更有效的区域公共产品等方式来维护中国在东南亚地区的政治经济利益。     

冷战后东南亚的民族分离主义运动--以印度尼西亚为例

自20世纪90年代末以来,东南亚的民族分离主义运动不断发展,尤以印度尼西亚为典型.这种发展有着复杂的原因,其中最根本的还在于不同地区和不同民族之间在"中心"与"边缘"关系上存在着巨大的社会经济差异与不均衡性.因此,减少这种不均衡性,将有助于解决印尼乃至整个东南亚地区的民族分离主义问题.     

泰国2010年政治、经济和外交形势

2010年泰国政治、经济和外交形势都有较大程度改善。政治上,政府成功解决了3月至5月的国内政治危机,完成宪法修订,政府威信逐步提高;经济上,克服了政局动荡和自然灾害的消极影响,实现强劲复苏,全年GDP增速达到7.8%,创15年来最快年度经济增速;外交上,进一步深化与中国等大国的双边关系,但与柬埔寨的关系仍未得到彻底改善。     

Electoral Cycles, Party Organization and Mobilization in Canada

Canadian political parties oscillate between periods of inter-election quiescence and electoral year mobilization. In this paper we measure, across a series of elections, organizational activity in inter-election periods as parties develop strategic positions and seek to reshape their bases, and then their subsequent mobilization strategies and successes. Our research strategy employs ecological models rooted in electoral district level data including party resources and activity (from annual financial accounts), census data describing the electoral districts, as well as conventional aggregate electoral data. Our initial models utilise evidence from Ontario, Canada's largest province, and cover several electoral cycles that witnessed a string of governmental turnovers. This analysis provides a more nuanced model of party systems than those based on simple election results. Even in a period of remarkable electoral flux, party activity and success appear to be deeply rooted in the diverse constituency social and political contexts of the system.     

Public Opinion, Privatisation and the Electoral Politics of Telstra

During the 1996 election campaign, the Liberal-National Party Coalition pledged that if elected it would partly privatise Telstra. The pledge was a central part of its campaign pitch. This paper argues that the proposal came at a time when the tide of public opinion had moved against privatisation; it shows how the Opposition used poll data both to present its own proposal in the most favourable light and to portray the difference between its position and that of Labor Government's as minimal; and, using the surveys commissioned by both sides, it evaluates the success of this strategy. More generally, it suggests that in a "post-ideological" age, party ideology remains important. And it illustrates how polls can be used by parties not just to establish what the majority thinks but to galvanise support, neutralise opposition and convert those who harbour doubts.     

Casino Interests,Fujian Tongxianghui and Electoral Politics in Macao

The study of hometown associations has been traditionally focused on their social and cultural activities, but little research has been conducted on their political and electoral participation. The direct elections held for the Legislative Assembly in September 2013 in the Macao Special Administrative Region were characterised by the emergence of a clear triangular relationship between casino interests, Fujianese tongxianghui (a hometown association or an interest group with members sharing the same locality ties) and electoral politics. The prominent victory of an electoral group led by the Fujianese tongxianghui and represented under the umbrella of the United Citizens Association of Macao (UCAM) was unprecedented in Macao’s political participation and historical development. As a community leader of the Fujian community, Chan Meng Kam formed the UCAM to perform multiple functions: protecting his casino interests, articulating the interests of the Fujianese and the society vis-à-vis the casino state, acting as an intermediary between the Macao government and ordinary citizens, especially in the northern district which is the power base of the UCAM, and serving as a united front machinery for a unique sub-ethnic interest group to win the hearts and minds of the people of Macao.     

"当代东南亚政治与外交"学术研讨会综述

2006年9月21～24日,厦门大学东南亚研究中心和<当代亚太>编辑部共同主办了"当代东南亚政治与外交"学术研讨会,来自全国各高校和研究机构的近30位学者出席了会议.与会学者从宏观和微观层面系统探讨了后冷战时期东南亚政治与外交格局的发展,深入分析了有关东南亚与大国的关系、区域合作与经济关系等热点问题.