This is a volume on changes in governance systems and practices pertaining to the idea of ‘democratization’ in Southeast Asia, intentionally positioned in a ‘thick’ historical context of globalization. The assumption is twofold: firstly, ‘globalization’ – in all its varieties – affects societies, triggers responses and causes alterations in established national governance systems and practices. Secondly, ‘change’ invariably occurs, but we do not know the direction of change globalization causes in particular Southeast Asian settings, and the possible ramifications of this process.

Also, we do not have a ready-made theory to outline the direction of change. Typically, the changes we observe are not in line with the suggestions contained in the dominant strands of the ‘globalization literature’ (such as Beck 2000; Ohmae 1995), nor those contained in the democratic ‘transition literature’ (such as Diamond 1999; Diamond and Plattner 1998; cf. Lipset 1959). Although of uncontested merit in their own right, we have sought to move beyond, or perhaps beneath these broad suggestions of increasing liberalization on the one hand, democratization at the national level on the other. We are thus not particularly interested in discussing whether the Southeast Asian countries are becoming ‘more’ or ‘less’ democratic. Rather, we wish to discuss the specific changes in governance practices, and only then how these changes might or might not contribute towards a process of ‘democratization’. In consequence we have sought as vividly as possible to reflect the diverse, innovative, reactionary, but also progressive responses to various forms of globalization pressure. Diversity, para-doxes and culturally flavoured processes have marked these changes, posing a real challenge to any uniform analysis. Rather than corroborate existing theories, we shall attempt to theorize our findings. Rather than to apply deductive logic, our task here is to historicize the links between globalization, cultural themes and political development (cf. Alagappa 1995: 45).

This volume began with a historical narrative by Loh, wherein changes and continuities in Southeast Asia were described in their own terms, and only then put into the context of ‘globalization’.