OPINION | ACADEMIA- Can Southeast Asia become a Shangri-La for deliberative democracy?

Protesters belonging to the Society Concerned About Women’s Representation carry a banner calling for greater representation of women in the legislature during a rally in front of the Elections Supervisory Agency (Bawaslu) in Jakarta on April 8, 2023. ( Antara/Reno Esnir)

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Simone Galimberti
The Jakarta Post
Kathmandu  .

Let me start with an ambitious, perhaps idealistic, proposition: Southeast Asia could aspire to become a different type of Shangri-La, not only a fulcrum for geopolitics and strategic defense discussions but also the epicenter for a renewal of democracy.

The odds, at least apparently, are high against my bet and my hopes and the enthusiasm stemming from them should not be unmitigated. After all, the ongoing shenanigans in Thailand prove how complicated (and messy) a political transition to a better democratic framework can turn out to be.

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Yet if existing shortcomings in the region’s political systems are undeniable amid an overall democratic backsliding worldwide, Southeast Asia could become a trailblazer in rethinking how democracy can work.

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to Read Full Story | Click to read: https://www.thejakartapost.com/opinion/2023/06/09/can-southeast-asia-become-a-shangri-la-for-deliberative-democracy.html.

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