{"title":"Indonesia’s New Developmental State: Interrogating Participatory Village Governance","authors":"M. Syukri","doi":"10.1080/00472336.2022.2089904","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00472336.2022.2089904","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":47420,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Contemporary Asia","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2022-08-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43036435","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The Age of Political Disincorporation: Geo-Capitalist Conflict and the Politics of Authoritarian Statism","authors":"Kanishka Jayasuriya","doi":"10.1080/00472336.2022.2092535","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00472336.2022.2092535","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract This review essay examines two recent volumes on the clash between the USA and China: Clash of Empires by Hung (2022) and Trade Wars are Class Wars by Klein and Pettis (2020). These volumes make a significant contribution to our understanding of the current strategic competition between the US and China. They have the virtue of moving beyond the sterile international relations perspectives and locating these conflicts within the broader structure of capitalist transformation. The framework of inter-imperial conflict is found useful in understanding the conflict between the USA and China. However, a serious lacuna of these approaches is their economism which neglects the political effects of emerging inter-imperial rivalry or modes of geo-capitalist engagement. In particular, this essay argues that the key effects are found in the transformation of the political forms of the state that have enabled the rise of radical right-wing forces and new forms of authoritarian rule. In this new geo-capitalist era, there is likely to be a reassertion of the national state in various new or post-neoliberal guises but such forms are likely to take on the characteristic of deeply coercive authoritarian statism or even post fascism.","PeriodicalId":47420,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Contemporary Asia","volume":"53 1","pages":"165 - 178"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2022-08-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45807664","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Governing the Digital Economy: An Exploration of Blockchains with Chinese Characteristics","authors":"G. Sigley, Warwick Powell","doi":"10.1080/00472336.2022.2093774","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00472336.2022.2093774","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract In 2019 President Xi Jinping called for the prioritisation of blockchain technology as part of China’s next phase of development. In China, blockchain technologies have been experimentally deployed in various areas including court records, securities exchanges, finance, and food supply chains. The emergence of blockchain as a governmental technology raises numerous questions, including: (i) what are the conditions of emergence and existence of China’s interest in blockchain technology? (ii) what are the features of “blockchains with Chinese characteristics”? (iii) what implications are there for the post-COVID-19 pandemic world, in which technological issues are likely to be pivotal points of contention? This article seeks to examine these questions and frame a research programme that can shed light on how blockchains may impact the evolution and shape of China’s social and economic structure and the interaction of China with the rest of the world, including the prospect of “decoupling” and “deglobalisation.” Examples of blockchain innovation are drawn from food and pharmaceutical supply chains, the Healthy China 2030 policy, the digital RMB/Yuan and the Belt and Road Initiative with attention to the emerging legal and institutional frames that support the application of blockchain technologies.","PeriodicalId":47420,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Contemporary Asia","volume":"53 1","pages":"648 - 667"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2022-08-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45922450","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Death from Overwork in a Time of Pandemic: How Delivery Work Became a Locus of Public Debate in South Korea","authors":"Y. Asahina, Jaeseog Yang","doi":"10.1080/00472336.2022.2092885","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00472336.2022.2092885","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract During the COVID-19 pandemic in South Korea, the plight of delivery workers suddenly became a locus of public debate. On the surface, this seems puzzling. Although the severely exploitative working conditions of delivery workers have been endemic for decades, these conditions had never before caused a society-wide controversy. Drawing insights from Jeffrey Alexander’s theory of societalisation, this article examines how the global health crisis not only worsened working conditions but also provided opportunities for workers and labour unions to problematise previously neglected aspects of labour exploitation. The analysis identifies three different states of the issue: (i) the disregard for ill-treatment of delivery workers, (ii) the emergence of shocking narratives, and (iii) attempts to regulate the practices of contract-based labour.","PeriodicalId":47420,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Contemporary Asia","volume":"53 1","pages":"608 - 625"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2022-07-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44673340","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"“Technocratic Socialism”: The Political Thought of Lee Kuan Yew and Devan Nair (1954–1976)","authors":"Quah Say Jye","doi":"10.1080/00472336.2022.2086480","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00472336.2022.2086480","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Despite initially expressing a firm commitment to socialism and its ideals, the People’s Action Party’s socialist roots remain curiously under-explored. To take a first step in reconstructing the party leadership’s understanding of socialism from 1954 to 1976, this article investigates the socialist political thought of two of their key figures – founding Secretary-General Lee Kuan Yew and stalwart union leader Devan Nair. This article reconstructs Lee and Nair’s theory of socialism that it terms “technocratic socialism.” It draws from the historiographical method of Quentin Skinner to read Lee and Nair as intervening in their specific Cold War and decolonisation context, where socialism was dominated by Marxism-Leninism. Four key overlapping tenets of the theory are posited: (i) a loose form of historical materialism; (ii) a conception of the technocratic elite as the privileged subject; (iii) equality of opportunity as a moral principle; and (iv) a geo-political position which emphasised non-alignment, material development, and power politics. The article concludes with discussion of technocratic socialism’s socialist credentials.","PeriodicalId":47420,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Contemporary Asia","volume":"53 1","pages":"584 - 607"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2022-07-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43270981","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Beijing’s Changing Hong Kong Policy: The Rise and Fall of Pragmatism","authors":"J. Cheng","doi":"10.1080/00472336.2022.2084767","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00472336.2022.2084767","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Through a historical account of Beijing's Hong Kong policy since the Sino-British negotiations in the early 1980s, the article attempts to analyse its major considerations and limitations. This analysis is intended to shed light on the contradictions between the Chinese authorities and Hong Kong people, and especially the local pro-democracy movement. The performance of civil society organisations, and Hong Kong people’s values and attitudes as reflected by public opinion surveys are also considered. Significant emphasis is accorded to the recent political suppression in Hong Kong following the Occupy Central Campaign. While Beijing is now in control, the heavy political price it will pay is also examined.","PeriodicalId":47420,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Contemporary Asia","volume":"53 1","pages":"626 - 647"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2022-07-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46225713","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Memories of Tiananmen: Politics and Processes of Collective Remembering in Hong Kong, 1989–2019","authors":"J. Cheng","doi":"10.1080/00472336.2022.2083002","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00472336.2022.2083002","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":47420,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Contemporary Asia","volume":"53 1","pages":"548 - 550"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2022-06-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"42160742","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Closed Loop, Open Borders: Wealth Inequality and Uneven and Combined Development In India","authors":"A. D’Costa","doi":"10.1080/00472336.2022.2079548","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00472336.2022.2079548","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract The purpose of this article is to offer an alternative perspective to worsening wealth disparity in India. It does so by critically applying the framework of uneven and combined development in a novel way. It develops two analytical constructs based on internal and external forces that collectively contribute to increasing wealth inequality. The internal force is a closed loop in which the state privileges rent-seeking activities as a response to uneven development in the first place. The external force comprises open borders that not only facilitate wealth and capital flight, which is linked to rent-seeking activities but also deprives the economy of critical resources for development. Together, the specific institutional arrangements associated with the closed loop and the siphoning off of wealth under open borders in the form of capital flight to the global economy exacerbate wealth inequality.","PeriodicalId":47420,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Contemporary Asia","volume":"53 1","pages":"668 - 692"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2022-06-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46210450","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Compressed Development: Time and Timing in Economic Development","authors":"N. Kang","doi":"10.1080/00472336.2022.2079549","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00472336.2022.2079549","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":47420,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Contemporary Asia","volume":"53 1","pages":"361 - 363"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2022-06-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43934718","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Love and Death of King Ananda Mahidol of Thailand","authors":"M. Cogan","doi":"10.1080/00472336.2022.2069047","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/00472336.2022.2069047","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":47420,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Contemporary Asia","volume":"53 1","pages":"355 - 357"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2,"publicationDate":"2022-06-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46261799","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}