Democracy for Sale: Elections, Clientelism, and the State in Indonesia

Author:   Edward Aspinall ,  Ward Berenschot
Publisher:   Cornell University Press
ISBN:  

9781501732980


Pages:   330
Publication Date:   15 April 2019
Recommended Age:   From 18 years
Format:   Paperback
Availability:   In Print   Availability explained
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Democracy for Sale: Elections, Clientelism, and the State in Indonesia


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Overview

Democracy for Sale is an on-the-ground account of Indonesian democracy, analyzing its election campaigns and behind-the-scenes machinations. Edward Aspinall and Ward Berenschot assess the informal networks and political strategies that shape access to power and privilege in the messy political environment of contemporary Indonesia. In post-Suharto Indonesian politics the exchange of patronage for political support is commonplace. Clientelism, argue the authors, saturates the political system, and in Democracy for Sale they reveal the everyday practices of vote buying, influence peddling, manipulating government programs, and skimming money from government projects. In doing so, Aspinall and Berenschot advance three major arguments. The first argument points toward the role of religion, kinship, and other identities in Indonesian clientelism. The second explains how and why Indonesia's distinctive system of free-wheeling clientelism came into being. And the third argument addresses variation in the patterns and intensity of clientelism. Through these arguments and with comparative leverage from political practices in India and Argentina, Democracy for Sale provides compelling evidence of the importance of informal networks and relationships rather than formal parties and institutions in contemporary Indonesia.

Full Product Details

Author:   Edward Aspinall ,  Ward Berenschot
Publisher:   Cornell University Press
Imprint:   Cornell University Press
Dimensions:   Width: 15.20cm , Height: 2.20cm , Length: 22.90cm
Weight:   0.907kg
ISBN:  

9781501732980


ISBN 10:   1501732986
Pages:   330
Publication Date:   15 April 2019
Recommended Age:   From 18 years
Audience:   General/trade ,  General
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   In Print   Availability explained
This item will be ordered in for you from one of our suppliers. Upon receipt, we will promptly dispatch it out to you. For in store availability, please contact us.

Table of Contents

List of Tables and Figures Glossary Acknowledgments 1. Indonesia's Patronage Democracy 2. Capturing Varieties of Clientelism Part 1: INSTITUTIONS 3. Historical Origins of Free-Wheeling Clientelism 4. Electoral Institutions, Political Parties and Candidates Part 2: NETWORKS AND RESOURCES 5. Success Teams and Vote Buying 6. Social Networks and Club Goods Part 3: DISCRETIONARY CONTROL 7. Governance and Public Spending 8. Bureaucrats and the Power of Office Part 4: COMPARING ACROSS INDONESIA 9. Campaign Financing, Business and the Public Sphere 10. Explaining Variation in Indonesia's Patronage Democracy Conclusion: Clientelism and the Search for Good Governance Appendixes Notes References Index

Reviews

Democracy for Sale combines rich details about the variety and variability of clientelism in Indonesia with a framework for comparing and analyzing clientelism across a variety of country contexts. This is a volume all scholars of clientelism, patronage, and money politics will want on their shelf. -- Allen Hicken, University of Michigan Democracy for Sale is an outstanding book with a compelling mix of methodologies that will be useful for scientists interested in clientelism in general. -- Andreas Ufen, German Institute of Global and Area Studies, and coeditor of <I>Democratization in Post-Suharto Indonesia</I> and <I>Party Politics in Southeast Asia</I> Democracy for Sale promises to be a major contribution to Indonesian politics, and also a book that will be read, discussed, and cited by authors working cross-nationally. -- Tom Pepinsky, Cornell University, and author of <I>Economic Crises and the Breakdown of Authoritarian Regimes</I>


Democracy for Sale offers deep insights into political life in Southeast Asia and fresh contributions to the age-old debate over whether true democracy, uncompromised by money and entrenched power, is ever possible. * Foreign Affairs * A painstakingly researched examination of the way Indonesia has become a patronage democracy.... Aspinall and Berenschot's book shows how many has weakened political parties, ensures that personalities matter more than policy, favors incumbents, and almost forces politicians to become corrupt in order to recoup the expense of running for office. * New York Review of Books *


A painstakingly researched examination of the way Indonesia has become a patronage democracy.... Aspinall and Berenschot's book shows how many has weakened political parties, ensures that personalities matter more than policy, favors incumbents, and almost forces politicians to become corrupt in order to recoup the expense of running for office. * New York Review of Books * Democracy for Sale offers deep insights into political life in Southeast Asia and fresh contributions to the age-old debate over whether true democracy, uncompromised by money and entrenched power, is ever possible. * Foreign Affairs *


Author Information

Edward Aspinall is Professor of Politics at the Australian National University. He is the author of several books, among them Opposing Suharto and Islam and Nation, and the coedited volume Electoral Dynamics in Indonesia. Ward Berenschot is a researcher at KITLV Leiden and the author of Riot Politics and the co-edited volume In Search of Middle Indonesia.

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