Tradition versus Democracy in the South Pacific: Fiji, Tonga and Western Samoa (Cambridge Asia-Pacific Studies)

Much Recent Literature On Non-western Countries Celebrates The Renaissance Of Indigenous Culture, Tradition Versus Democracy In The South Pacific, However, Looks More Critically At Fiji, Tonga And Western Samoa, Showing How Current Movements To Reclaim And Celebrate 'tradition' May Protect The Power And Privileges Of Indigenous Elites And Promote Political Conservatism. Stephanie Lawson Argues That Opposition To 'western' Democracy In The Name Of 'tradition' Is Not Necessarily Representative Of Indigenous People At The Grassroots Level, And Is Often Carefully Manipulated To Benefit An Elite. Lawson Is Critical Of Cultural Relativism, A Concept Which, She Suggests, Limits The Discussion Of Democracy In Non-western Countries And Leads To Deterministic Stereotypes. Relativism Can Also Reinscribe An Essentialist Framework, Creating An Ethical Void In Which Little Of Critical Value Can Be Said. She Is Equally Skeptical, However, Of Universalist Positions Which Seek To Promote A Single, Fixed Conception Of Democratic Politics And Which Can Be As Dogmatic In Assumption As Relativist Modes Of Theorizing. 1. Tradition And Democracy. The Idea Of Tradition. Tradition And Modernity. Tradition As Ideology. The Problem Of Authenticity. Democracy -- 2. Constitutional Development, Chiefly Power And The Politics Of Tradition In Fiji. The Plural Society. Colonization And Indirect Rule. The Politics Of Land And Indigenous Paramountcy. Fijian Sociopolitical Structures. The Background To The 1970 Constitution. The Rise And Fall Of Labour. The 1990 Constitution. Party Politics And Elections In The Republic -- 3. The Monarchy Versus Democracy In The Kingdom Of Tonga. The Origins Of The Political System. The Sociopolitical System. European Contact And Christian Conversion. Constitutional Development. The Reign Of Queen Salote Tupou Iii. Transformations Under Tupou Iv. The Pro-democracy Movement. The Conservative Reaction -- 4. Preserving Tradition Through Democratization: The Introduction Of Universal Suffrage In Western Samoa. The Samoan Polity. Samoa Before The Coming Of Europeans. From Contact To Colonial Rule. Politics And Law After Independence: The First Twenty Years. The Rise Of Political Parties And Party Politics. The Introduction Of Universal Suffrage. Fa'asamoa And Fa'amatai. The Village Fono Act Of 1990 -- 5. Conclusion: Tradition Versus The West. Stephanie Lawson. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 206-221) And Index. Much literature on non-Western traditions celebrates the renaissance of indigenous cultures. Others have been more critical of this renaissance, especially with respect to its political implications. This study analyses the assertion of 'tradition' by indigenous elites, looking especially at the way it is used to differentiate 'the West' from the 'non-West'. This is important to contemporary discussion about the validity of democracy outside the West and problems concerning universalism and relativism. The discussion of Fiji focuses on constitutional development and the traditionalist emphasis on chiefly legitimacy. The rise of the Pro-Democracy Movement in Tonga is considered against the background of a conservative political order that has so far resisted pressure for reform. The move to universal suffrage in Western Samoa is seen not as a rejection of traditional ways in favour of democratic norms, but as a means of preserving important aspects of traditional culture This study analyzes the ways in which political elites use the idea of "tradition" to legitimize certain practices and institutions. Within this framework, case studies focus on constitutional development and the chiefly power in Fiji, the monarchy and the Pro-Democracy Movement in Tonga, and the political issues surrounding the move to universal suffrage in Western Samoa. The book provides a critical approach to the political implications of romanticizing non-Western cultural traditions, especially in terms of democratic development.

This book looks at the way in which the idea of 'tradition' is used by political elites to legitimate certain practices and institutions.