AUTHORITARIANISM TO DEMOCRACY: EAST ASIA IN TRANSITION

This article examines the significant political transitions from authoritarianism to democracy that occurred across East Asia in the late 1980s. The study focuses on key cases such as South Korea, Taiwan, and the Philippines, analyzing the domestic and international factors that drove these changes. The research explores the role of economic development, the rise of a politically active middle class, civil society movements, and external pressure in undermining long-standing authoritarian regimes. The paper compares the different pathways to democracy in the region, from the "people power" revolution in the Philippines to the more negotiated transitions in South Korea and Taiwan. The analysis concludes by assessing the challenges of democratic consolidation these new democracies faced.

The late 1980s witnessed a remarkable wave of democratization across East Asia, challenging the long-held notion that authoritarianism was a prerequisite for the region's economic success. This paper provides a comparative analysis of this political transition. The study begins by outlining the common structural factors that created the conditions for change, most notably the socio-economic transformations wrought by decades of rapid, state-led industrialization. This created a more complex society with a burgeoning middle class that began to demand political rights commensurate with its economic status. The core of the article is a comparative examination of the specific transition processes in the Philippines, South Korea, and Taiwan. It highlights the role of "soft power" and popular mobilization in the Philippines, contrasts it with the more elite-driven, negotiated pacts that characterized the transitions in South Korea and Taiwan, and examines the different roles played by their respective militaries. The paper also analyzes the influence of the international context, particularly the shifting policies of the United States, which moved from supporting anti-communist autocrats to promoting democracy. The findings suggest that while each country's path was unique, a common thread was the growing inability of rigid authoritarian regimes to manage the complex societies they had helped to create, leading to a region-wide quest for more open and accountable political systems.