The Paradox of Free Market Democracy: Indonesia and the Problems Facing Neoliberal Reform (A CFR Paper) - Council on Foreign Relations Welcome to CFR. Skip to section navigation Skip to content
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The Paradox of Free Market Democracy: Indonesia and the Problems Facing Neoliberal Reform (A CFR Paper) Author: Amy L. Chua Download Now
Free Market Democracy (147K PDF)	Publisher
June 2000 Share
This paper will situate the recent problems in Indonesia in a more general framework that I will call the paradox of free-market democracy. The basic thesis I will advance is as follows. In Indonesia, as in many developing countries, class and ethnicity overlap in a distinctive and potentially explosive way: namely, in the form of a starkly economically dominant ethnic minority -- here, the Sino-Indonesians. In such circumstances, contrary to conventional wisdom, markets and democracy may not be mutually reinforcing. On the contrary, the combined pursuit of marketization and democratization in Indonesia may catalyze ethnic tensions in highly determinate and predictable ways, with potentially very serious consequences, including the subversion of markets and democracy themselves. The principal challenge for neoliberal reform inIndonesia will be to find institutions capable of grappling with the problems of rapid democratization in the face of pervasive poverty, ethnic division, and an historically resented, market-dominant "outsider" minority.	More on... Emerging Markets, Indonesia
The Paradox of Free Market Democracy: Indonesia and the Problems Facing Neoliberal Reform (A CFR Paper) - Council on Foreign Relations Welcome to CFR. Skip to section navigation Skip to content
HomeIndonesiaThe Paradox of Free Market Democracy: Indonesia and the Problems Facing Neoliberal Reform (a CFR Paper) Connect With Us: Other Report
The Paradox of Free Market Democracy: Indonesia and the Problems Facing Neoliberal Reform (A CFR Paper) Author: Amy L. Chua Download Now
Free Market Democracy (147K PDF)	Publisher
June 2000 Share
This paper will situate the recent problems in Indonesia in a more general framework that I will call the paradox of free-market democracy. The basic thesis I will advance is as follows. In Indonesia, as in many developing countries, class and ethnicity overlap in a distinctive a
nd potentially explosive way: namely, in the form of a starkly economically dominant ethnic minority -- here, the Sino-Indonesians. In such circumstances, contrary to conventional wisdom, markets and democracy may not be mutually reinforcing. On the contrary, the combined pursuit of marketization and democratization in Indonesia may catalyze ethnic tensions in highly determinate and predictable ways, with potentially very serious consequences, including the subversion of markets and democracy themselves. The principal challenge for neoliberal reform inIndonesia will be to find institutions capable of grappling with the problems of rapid democratization in the face of pervasive poverty, ethnic division, and an historically resented, market-dominant "outsider" minority.	More on... Emerging Markets, Indonesia