Ian Holliday

Productivist Welfare Capitalism: Social Policy in East Asia

The article engages with the literature on the ‘East Asian welfare model’ by using Esping-Andersens ‘worlds of welfare capitalism’ approach to analyze social policy in the region. It describes the main features of a productivist world of welfare capitalism that stands alongside Esping-Andersens conservative, liberal and social democratic worlds. It then shows that Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan are all part of this world, though they divide into sub-groups within it. To account for productivist welfare capitalism in East Asia, the article focuses particularly on bureaucratic politics at the unit level, and on a range of key shaping factors at the system level. It closes by considering the implications of East Asian experience for comparative social policy analysis.

Governance in the Information Age: Building E-Government in Hong Kong

The article reviews the literatures on e-government and governance reform, and engages in detailed analysis of e-government initiatives and parallel policy changes undertaken in Hong Kong, which is currently an acknowledged leader in the field. It finds that the Hong Kong government has made considerable progress in developing online service delivery, notably for the business sector, but that wider governance changes are limited. The article holds that to succeed in addressing the challenges of the information age, the Hong Kong government needs to adopt a broader strategy that goes beyond service delivery to encompass citizen engagement and participation.

Social Policy Under One Country, Two Systems: Institutional Dynamics in China and Hong Kong since 1997

Hong Kongs 1997 reversion to Chinese sovereignty brought two hitherto distinctive social policy systems into one country. As Hong Kong is gradually assimilated into China in the coming decades, the two social policy systems will need to identify elements of convergence. In this article, we argue those elements can be found in parallel efforts to curtail the reach of the state, extend the role of the market, enhance individual responsibility, and in the development of a productivist social policy orientation in both societies. The social policy systems of the two societies remain strikingly different in many ways, reflecting their diametrically opposed starting points. But their reform trajectories appear to be pointing in similar directions.

E-health in the East Asian tigers

Summary Objective: The article analyzes e-health progress in East Asias leading tiger economies: Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan. It describes five main dimensions of e-health provision in the tigers: policymaking, regulation, provision, funding and physician-patient relations. Methods: We conducted a series of fieldwork interviews and analyzed key healthcare websites. Results and Conclusion: Our main finding is that the development of e-health in the region is less advanced than might be expected. Our explanation focuses on institutional, cultural and financial factors.

Set the junta free: Pre-transitional justice in Myanmar's democratisation

Myanmar is in political deadlock. In part, this is because the opposition has not confronted problems of transitional justice, notably how to deal with members of the military junta who have participated in gross human rights violations. There are therefore few incentives for the ruling generals to consider talking about change. To tackle this problem, the article develops a model of pre-transitional justice that is focused on the critical ‘torturer problem’. It is also informed by recent developments in international criminal law, and by the spread of truth commissions and lustration systems. The integrated reconciliatory model that results is suitable for political negotiation, capable of generating discontinuities with an authoritarian past, and legally and technically feasible. Applying it to Myanmar, the article holds that qualified amnesty is necessary for political reform.

Ethics of Intervention: Just War Theory and the Challenge of the 21st Century

The diverse and complex ways in which individuals from one society now engage in the political affairs of individuals living in other societies have generated a wealth of academic and practitioner analysis. In ensuing debates, ethics of intervention have featured prominently. However, just war theory, traditionally a key frame for ethical analysis, plays a comparatively small part in contemporary discourse. This article thus examines how just war thinking can be used to guide current interventionist practice, and in particular how it can structure analysis of recourse to engagement. It begins by surveying recent debate. It then conceptualizes intervention by developing an eight-part typology. Next, it presents a six-part framework for ethical evaluation of recourse to intervention, drawn from just war theory but attuned to contemporary practice. It closes by briefly considering operationalization of the framework in the real world of international politics.

Governing from the Centre: Core Executive Capacity in Britain and Japan

The article contributes to debates about core executive capacity by analyzing the British and Japanese cases. First it examines the historical development, contemporary structures and current operations of the two cases. Then it compares their performance in five key areas: overseeing government policy in the domestic sphere; overseeing government policy in the external sphere; managing executive relations with the legislature; overseeing public finances; and managing public relations. It finds that the performance of the two systems is variable both internally across distinct areas of business and, to a lesser extent, comparatively across similar areas. Overall, however, the British core executive is shown to have considerably greater capacity for coordinating and managing policy flows through the system than the Japanese. Governing from the centre is more feasible in Britain than in Japan.

Japan and the Myanmar Stalemate: Regional Power and Resolution of a Regional Problem

For years Myanmar has been caught in a political stalemate generated both by deadlock between the military government and the democratic opposition, and by polar differences between China and the United States. In searching for ways forward, analysts might therefore want to look beyond these dominant actors. This article considers the contribution that a regional power, Japan, could make to political change. It examines first political stalemate in Myanmar, second Japan as a regional power, third Japanese engagement with Myanmar, fourth Japan and resolution of the Myanmar problem, and fifth future possibilities. The argument is that strong historical ties and good relations inside and outside Myanmar put Japan in a pivotal position. As part of its reassurance diplomacy in East Asia, Japan should take the lead in tackling this regional problem. Since a May 1990 general election that saw the National League for Democracy (NLD) secure a landslide victory and the ruling State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) respond by reinforcing its dictatorship, Myanmar has been in political stasis. Although progress has been made on some fronts, notably in relations between the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), as the military junta is now known, and the insurgent rebel armies with which it long fought civil wars, the uneasy political deadlock that settled on the country some 15 years ago has not been broken. Furthermore, within a complex internal context, the standoff between the two major protagonists from 1990 remains critical. Now, as then, the NLD, brandishing democratic legitimacy, charismatic leader Aung San Suu Kyi and latent popular support, confronts the military junta, wielding guns, power, and fear.

Building a Chinese Medicine Sector in Hong Kong

In the past 10–15 years, policy makers in Hong Kong have started to turn their attention to Chinese medicine. This article reviews their progress to date, and examines the different regional policy models they might learn from in framing health care policies to cover both Chinese and modern scientific medicine. It argues that the best way forward for Hong Kong is to position itself on a spectrum of nondiscriminatory state practice that offers equal respect to both traditional and modern medicines. In East Asia, China stands towards one end of this spectrum, and South Korea and Taiwan towards the other. The article holds that Hong Kong should place itself somewhere between the two.

The Yadana syndrome? Big oil and principles of corporate engagement in myanmar

In debates about economic globalisation, the case for leading corporations to engage with some of the worlds most desperate development challenges is increasingly heard. However, it remains an open question whether investment should take place in extreme contexts. On the one hand, foreign capitalist involvement in extractive industries has long been seen as highly exploitative. Should such activity now be encouraged? On the other, all forms of corporate engagement with regimes that commit gross human rights violations are widely viewed as thoroughly unprincipled. Should this activity now be endorsed? The article tackles these issues by examining the controversial involvement of Western oil companies in Myanmars Yadana gas project. It addresses two main questions. First, is that involvement itself to be welcomed? Second, from this experience, can wider lessons about global corporate citizenship be drawn? The argument is that it is not possible to reach an overall evaluation of the Yadana project. However, principles of responsible cross‐border corporate engagement can be derived from it.1