Reflects on the contemporary situations in the new democracies of East Asia, and debates on the prospect of introducing liberal democracy to this area. The chapters cover a wide range of cases, including in-depth examination of China, Korea, Taiwan, the Philippines, Thailand, and broad comparisons of other countries.

1. East Asia's New Democracies: An Introduction Yin-wah Chu and Siu-lun Wong Part 1: Transition, Consolidation, Reversal: Actors Then and Now 2. Social and Political Developments in China: Challenges for Democratization Jude Howell 3. Civil Society and Democracy-Making in Taiwan: Reexamining the Link Hsin-Huang Michael Hsiao and Ming-sho Ho 4. The Bottom-Up Nature of Korean Democratization: Civil Society, Anti-Americanism and Popular Protest Bruce Cumings 5. Modernization Theory's Last Redoubt: Democratization in East and Southeast Asia Mark R. Thompson 6. Development and Change in Korean Democracy since the Democratic Transition in 1987: The Three Kims' Politics and After Hyug-Baeg Im 7. Thailand's Conservative Democratization Kevin Hewison Part 2: Democracy in East Asia? Achievements and Enduring Challenges 8. Democracy and Disorder: Will Democratization Bring Greater Regional Instability to East Asia? Amitav Acharya 9. Democracy's Double Edge: Financing Social Policy in Industrial East Asia Joseph Wong 10. Devolution and Democracy: A Fragile Connection Ledivina V. Cariño 11. Rule of Law and Democracy: Lessons for China from Asian Experiences Randall Peerenboom 12. Group Rights and Democracy in Southeast Asia Beng Huat Chua 13. Diagnosing the Micro Foundation of Democracy in Asia: Evidence from the AsiaBarometer Survey: 2003-2008 Satoru Mikami and Takashi Inoguchi