Localising Power in Post-Authoritarian Indonesia: A Southeast Asia Perspective (Contemporary Issues in Asia and the Pacific)

This book is about how the design of institutional change results in unintended consequences. Many post-authoritarian societies have adopted decentralization—effectively localizing power—as part and parcel of democratization, but also in their efforts to entrench "good governance." Vedi Hadiz shifts the attention to the accompanying tensions and contradictions that define the terms under which the localization of power actually takes place. In the process, he develops a compelling analysis that ties social and institutional change to the outcomes of social conflict in local arenas of power. Using the case of Indonesia, and comparing it with Thailand and the Philippines, Hadiz seeks to understand the seeming puzzle of how local predatory systems of power remain resilient in the face of international and domestic pressures. Forcefully persuasive and characteristically passionate, Hadiz challenges readers while arguing convincingly that local power and politics still matter greatly in our globalized world. This book is about how the design of institutional change results in unintended consequences. Many post-authoritarian societies have adopted decentralization - effectively localizing power - as part and parcel of democratization, but also in their efforts to entrench 'good governance'. Vedi Hadiz shifts the attention to the accompanying tensions and contradictions that define the terms under which the localization of power actually takes place. In the process, he develops a compelling analysis that ties social and institutional change to the outcomes of social conflict in local arenas of power. Using the case of Indonesia, and comparing it with Thailand and the Philippines, the book seeks to understand the seeming puzzle of how local predatory systems of power remain resilient in the face of international and domestic pressures. Hadiz challenges readers while arguing convincingly that local power and politics still matter greatly in our globalized world Introduction : Localisation And Globalisation -- Decentralisation, Development And Democracy : Theoretical Issues And Debates -- The Post-authoritarian Context : Technocratic Ambitions And The Challenge Of Predatory Power -- The Localisation Of Power And Institutional Change -- A Political Sociology Of Local Elites -- Money Politics And Thuggery In New Local Democracies -- The Politics Of Inclusion And Exclusion -- Conclusion : Decentralisation, Recentralisation And Globalisation. Vedi R. Hadiz. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Content: Introduction : localisation and globalisation -- Decentralisation, development and democracy : theoretical issues and debates -- The post-authoritarian context : technocratic ambitions and the challenge of predatory power -- The localisation of power and institutional change -- A political sociology of local elites -- Money politics and thuggery in new local democracies -- The politics of inclusion and exclusion -- Conclusion : decentralisation, recentralisation, globalisation. This book provides an important statement on the underlying social dynamics of local politics in Indonesia following the end of the New Order in 1998. It represents the culmination of a substantial and influential body of work by Hadiz on the political economy of Indonesia's post-authoritarian transition.