Political Theory of Tyranny in Singapore and Burma: Aristotle and the Rhetoric of Benevolent Despotism (Routledgecurzon Contemporary Southeast Asia Series)

305 Pages·2006·1.77 MB·English

by  Stephen Mccarthy

The Political Theory of Tyranny in
Singapore and Burma
The Political Theory of Tyranny in Singapore and Burmaapplies classical polit-
ical theory to modern comparative political analysis in Southeast Asia to
examine the role of rhetoric in maintaining or transforming a regime.
Drawing from Aristotle to develop the rhetoric of benevolent despotism,
McCarthy examines how rhetoric addresses commonly held beliefs and
how this informs modern comparative political theory. Using Singapore
and Burma as case studies, the book questions the basic assumptions of
democratization theory, examining the political science of tyranny and
exploring the rhetorical manipulation of religion for the purpose of polit-
ical legitimacy. McCarthy shows how political leaders in Singapore and
Burma have either invented or manipulated traditional beliefs by their
selective interpretation of Confucian or Buddhist traditions in their favor,
and it is by analyzing the rhetoric of benevolent despotism used in these
countries that fundamental similarities between rhetorical strategies
undertaken by leaders in both regimes can be seen.
The Political Theory of Tyranny in Singapore and Burma presents the first
study to combine the fields of classical rhetoric, political philosophy, and
comparative politics, and will be essential reading for scholars working
within these fields and the areas of international relations and Southeast
Asian studies.
Stephen McCarthy is a Research Fellow at the Griffith Asia Institute,
Griffith University, Brisbane.
Routledge contemporary Southeast Asia series
1 Land Tenure, Conservation and Development in Southeast Asia
Peter Eaton
2 The Politics of Indonesia-Malaysia Relations
One kin, two nations
Joseph Chinyong Liow
3 Governance and Civil Society in Myanmar
Education, health and environment
Helen James
4 Regionalism in Post-Suharto Indonesia
Edited by Maribeth Erb, Priyambudi Sulistiyanto and Carole Faucher
5 Living with Transition in Laos
Market integration in Southeast Asia
Jonathan Rigg
6 Christianity, Islam and Nationalism in Indonesia
Charles E. Farhadian
7 Violent Conflicts in Indonesia
Analysis, representation, resolution
Edited by Charles A. Coppel
8 Revolution, Reform and Regionalism in Southeast Asia
Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam
Ronald Bruce St John
9 The Political Theory of Tyranny in Singapore and Burma
Aristotle and the rhetoric of benevolent despotism
Stephen McCarthy
The Political Theory of
Tyranny in Singapore
and Burma
Aristotle and the rhetoric of
benevolent despotism
Stephen McCarthy
First published 2006
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada
by Routledge
270 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016
This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2006.
“To purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor & Francis or Routledge’s
collection of thousands of eBooks please go to www.eBookstore.tandf.co.uk.”
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2006 Stephen McCarthy
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or
reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical,
or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including
photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or
retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
A catalog record for this book has been requested
ISBN10: 0-415-70186-4 (hbk)
ISBN10: 0-203-08752-6 (ebk)
ISBN13: 978-0-415-70186-0 (hbk)
ISBN13: 978-0-203-08752-7 (ebk)
Dedicated to Richard W. Staveley

Contents
List of illustrations x
Acknowledgments xi
1 Introduction 1
2 The intellectual crisis in comparative politics 8
Comparative politics and development 8
Asian political culture 11
Democrazy– the determinism of democratization studies 14
Western liberal democracy as the end of history 16
Cultural relativism and liberal democratic values: are they
reconcilable? 20
Modern comparative politics and the Aristotelian tradition 30
Social capital theory: a new paradigm? 34
Conclusion 39
3 The political science of tyranny 41
Tyranny, ancient and modern 41
Aristotle on the preservation of tyranny 47
Machiavelli on the preservation of tyranny 49
Stability and justice in a regime 52
The rhetoric of tyranny 53
Commonly held opinions (endoxa) and mass political culture 57
Enthymemes of tyrannical rhetoric 59
Conclusion 64
4 Tyranny in Singapore? 65
Political awakening in Singapore and the rise of Lee Kuan Yew 65
The rhetoric of survival 69
viii Contents
Lee Kuan Yew’s rule over Singapore 70
Aristotle on the preservation of Lee’s regime 74
5 The rhetoric of Asian values 78
Asian values – inventing the endoxa78
The politics of Confucianism – manipulating the endoxa85
Asian values, Confucianism, and human rights 88
The politics of the Singapore story – manipulating the endoxa99
Conclusion 101
6 Stability and justice in Singapore 105
The art of legislating in Singapore 107
The role of the opposition 111
The art of defamation 112
The inconvenience of elections 114
The citizen army 115
Will economics determine the PAP’s fate? 116
Conclusion 118
7 Tyranny in Burma 122
TheTatmadaw’s rule over Burma 123
Aristotle on the preservation of the Tatmadaw’s regime 126
The legitimacy of the Tatmadaw130
Theendoxaon kingship and Buddhism 139
8 Buddhist political rhetoric 148
The politics of Bogyoke Aung San 149
The Buddhist political rhetoric of Aung San 154
The Buddhist political rhetoric of Aung San Suu Kyi 165
The Buddhist political rhetoric of the Tatmadaw174
9 Stability and justice in Burma 186
Conventions, talks, and concessions 187
Economic reform and international pressure for democracy 189
Change from the inside? 193
Institutions, power, and trust 195
Conclusion 200
Contents ix
10 Conclusion 202
Appendix A: Methodology – Burma case study 210
Appendix B: Findings – Burma case study 218
Notes 225
Bibliography 258
Index 278