Overview

In Political Dynamics of Grassroots Democracy in Vietnam, Hai Hong Nguyen investigates the correlation between independent variables and grassroots democracy to demonstrate that grassroots democracy has created a mutually empowering mechanism for both the party-state and the peasantry.

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9781137580887

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'Political Dynamics of Grassroots Democracy in Vietnam is an in-depth and carefully constructed account of how grassroots democracy functions in both contemporary Vietnamese politics and community relations. A must read for scholars studying Vietnamese political and economic development and those interested in understanding the contours of authoritarian forms of power in the context of rapid economic liberalisation.' Melissa Curley and David Martin Jones, School of Political Science and International Studies, University of Queensland, Australia 'Hai Hong Nguyen's Political Dynamics of Grassroots Democracy in Vietnam is a path-breaking study of Vietnam's attempt to apply its concept of grassroots democracy to local government in response to rural unrest in the late 1990s. Based on field work in Vietnam, it represents a major milestone in the study of politics in Vietnam and will be the foundation for all future studies on political change in Vietnam.' Carlyle A. Thayer, Emeritus Professor, University of New South Wales at the Australian Defence Force Academy, Canberra, Australia '[This book] by the distinguished young scholar Hai Hong Nguyen is among those rare books that brilliantly transforms the way we think about Vietnam, one-party political systems, power, and the future of democracy.' John Keane, Professor of Politics, University of Sydney, Australia

'Political Dynamics of Grassroots Democracy in Vietnam is an in-depth and carefully constructed account of how grassroots democracy functions in both contemporary Vietnamese politics and community relations. A must read for scholars studying Vietnamese political and economic development and those interested in understanding the contours of authoritarian forms of power in the context of rapid economic liberalisation.' - Melissa Curley and David Martin Jones, School of Political Science and International Studies, University of Queensland, Australia 'Hai Hong Nguyen's Political Dynamics of Grassroots Democracy in Vietnam is a path-breaking study of Vietnam's attempt to apply its concept of grassroots democracy to local government in response to rural unrest in the late 1990s. Based on field work in Vietnam, it represents a major milestone in the study of politics in Vietnam and will be the foundation for all future studies on political change in Vietnam.' - Carlyle A. Thayer, Emeritus Professor, University of New South Wales at the Australian Defence Force Academy, Canberra, Australia '[This book] by the distinguished young scholar Hai Hong Nguyen is among those rare books that brilliantly transforms the way we think about Vietnam, one-party political systems, power, and the future of democracy.' - John Keane, Professor of Politics, University of Sydney, Australia

'Political Dynamics of Grassroots Democracy in Vietnam is an in-depth and carefully constructed account of how grassroots democracy functions in both contemporary Vietnamese politics and community relations. A must read for scholars studying Vietnamese political and economic development and those interested in understanding the contours of authoritarian forms of power in the context of rapid economic liberalisation.' Melissa Curley and David Martin Jones, School of Political Science and International Studies, University of Queensland, Australia 'Hai Hong Nguyen's Political Dynamics of Grassroots Democracy in Vietnam is a path-breaking study of Vietnam's attempt to apply its concept of grassroots democracy to local government in response to rural unrest in the late 1990s. Based on field work in Vietnam, it represents a major milestone in the study of politics in Vietnam and will be the foundation for all future studies on political change in Vietnam.' Carlyle A. Thayer, Emeritus Professor, University of New South Wales at the Australian Defence Force Academy, Canberra, Australia '[This book] by the distinguished young scholar Hai Hong Nguyen is among those rare books that brilliantly transforms the way we think about Vietnam, one-party political systems, power, and the future of democracy.' John Keane, Professor of Politics, University of Sydney, Australia Review of Nguyen Hong Hai's Beyond the Law: Understanding the Political Dynamics of Grassroots Democracy in Vietnam Outline of the Project 1. Nguyen Hong Hai's (in Vietnamese form, Hai Hong Nguyen in Western style) Beyond the Law is a study of Vietnam's attempt to bring apply its concept of 'grassroots democracy' to local government in response to rural unrest and violence in the late 1990's. The program was later extended to all of Vietnam's provinces and administrative units. The author critically examines three major schools of thought on the casual factors that promote democratization - modernization theory, human empowerment theory and social capital theory. The author draws on his critique to develop his own framework for explaining the paradox of how Vietnam's one-party state can promote democracy at local level while retaining it authoritarian features at national level. The author then applies his framework to three provincial case studies in order to explain why the promotion of grassroots democracy succeeded in one case but was less successful in others. Project 2. This project does offer an original and constructive contribution to the general field of democratization theory because of the author's modification of existing approaches. The author presents the first detailed analysis of Vietnam that will serve comparative politics specialists well because Vietnam can now be compared to China (on which much has been written). This work addresses political change in authoritarian states at the micro-level when most studies are at the macro-level. 3. Yes the work adequately engages with the major schools of thought on democratization theory as noted in the project summary above. The author also explains why other theories are less relevant. Yes the author's analysis takes the academic literature forward by examining a case where grassroots democracy has progressed; most studies examines why democratization at the local level failed. This is also an important contribution to Vietnam Studies because of the author's field word and focus on politics at the local level. 4. What are the strength and weaknesses of the proposal? The strengths have been identified above - the manuscript offers a critique of existing democratization theory, borrows from this theory and presents a framework for analysis that permits an evaluation of the democratization process in three provinces in Vietnam. The manuscript is well structured and organized. It forms a coherent whole and the material is presented in an engaging manner. This work will be the foundation for all future studies on political change in Vietnam and will encourage other scholars to conduct local level research. Al;though the manuscript is focused on three case studies in Vietnam it will have a more general appeal to scholars focusing on similar processes in China at 'riceroots level.' The material in this manuscript covers development up to 2013. This does not detract from the larger argument that grassroots democracy can be successful in authoritarian states. The thesis does not, in my opinion, have any major weaknesses. No major revisions are required. I have not detected any significant omissions. Because English is not the author's native language some editing of English language expression will be required. On a minor point, the author will have change the word 'thesis' (as in PhD thesis) to book throughout the manuscript. This will also clarify 'the thesis' - the author's main arguments from 'the thesis' meaning a doctoral dissertation. The manuscript is unlikely to be adopted as a course text book. But it will be a welcome addition to university libraries and to academic specialists who focus their work on larger issues of democratization theory. These scholars will want to review this book to incorporate its findings into the larger literature. China specialists will want to reach this book for comparisons with local government reforms in China. 5. The author has already demonstrated through a high quality PhD dissertation that is is capable and qualified to produce a high quality book. The author, now freed from academic constraints, may choose to be more assertive in his arguments and finding - this is a suggestion not a requirement. 6. I am not aware that this book has been submitted to any particular Palgrave Macmillan series. Market and Competion 7. Yes this book is likely to have both interdisciplinary and international appeal. Democratisation theory draws on several disciplines and this should appeal to general theorists as well as regionally focused specialists. The book will appeal to academics focused on comparative politics in Southeast Asia as well as Vietnam country specilaists. The international appeal is based on the author's critique and modification of democratization theory. 8. This manuscript compares favourably to other books focusing on democratization in a particular country or region because of its theoretical content and country-specific empirical data. It should be stressed that there is no comparable book on local politics in Vietnam available in the international market. The author's native fluency in Vietnamese makes this a seminal contribution to Vietnamese political studies. Recommendation I recommend 'a' that you publish this book as it stands after minor revisions (suggested above, including English language expression, and at the author's discretion). In the event that Palgrave Macmillan decide to publish this manuscript I am more than willing to provide an endorsement of the final manuscript for use in publicity purposes. Carlyle A. Thayer May 12, 2015 (written aboard Qantas flight No. 127 Sydney-Hong Kong)

Author Information

Hai Hong Nguyen is a Research Fellow at the University of Queensland, Australia. He holds a Masters in International Human Rights and Humanitarian Law from Lund University, Sweden, and a PhD in Political Science from the University of Queensland, Australia. He has been teaching international human rights law, international relations, and politics in Vietnam and Australia.

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