'Starbucks Formula': Liberalization equals liberalism<\/p>\n
By Karim Raslan<\/p>\n
KUALA LUMPUR (JP): Recent events in the region from the
\nelection of the morally compromised Thai billionaire Thaksin
\nShinawatra after a cynical, cash-infused and irresponsibility
\npopulist campaign, to the restiveness in Indonesia's provinces
\nand the continuing impasse in the Philippines have led me to
\nquestion Asia's reform movement.<\/p>\n
However, before damning the progress to date and in particular
\nthe tragic rejection of Chuan Leekpai's Democrats (Asia's
\ncleanest and most reform-minded party) our initial assumptions
\nwere wrong: an increase in political and economic liberalization
\ndoes not automatically lead to an age of liberalism.<\/p>\n
The primacy of liberalization and liberalism -- which can be
\ndubbed the Starbucks Formula (because it is applied in a cookie-
\ncutter fashion with little vacation from country to country) --
\nis due in part to the currency crisis of 1997.<\/p>\n
Hitherto, the gradualist approach to political and economic
\nreform and its emphasis on a respect for indigenous cultures and
\nlocal needs had drawn its moral legitimacy from sound economic
\nmanagement.<\/p>\n
However, in the face of wilting exchange rates and crashing
\neconomies the gradualist approach was discredited. Interestingly
\nwords and phrases associated with that period such as \"Asian
\nvalues\", \"Malaysia Inc.\" and \"Singapore Inc.\" have also
\ndisappeared from the political lexicon.<\/p>\n
The Starbucks Formula (liberalization equals liberalism) leapt
\ninto the breach providing commentators and policy-makers alike
\nwith an easy alternative in their search for a solution to
\nSoutheast Asia's problems. Unfortunately the equation whilst neat
\nis both simplistic and incorrect.<\/p>\n
The Starbucks Formula is surely vital for a country's long
\nterm stability and prosperity. But the formula must be tempered
\nby a good deal of domestic fine-tuning. In Starbucks parlance, a
\nlatte has to be blended to accommodate local tastes, combining in
\nturn the oiliness of Malaysia's Kopi O and the acidity of Kopi
\nBali with the creaminess of a cappuccino.<\/p>\n
On a more serious note there are these points to make: firstly
\nthe key semantic differences between the words liberalization and
\nliberalism: secondly the danger of knee-jerk and unthinking
\nliberalization and its unintended consequence, the liberal regime
\nand thirdly (citing regional examples), a plea for greater
\nsensitivity in this discourse.<\/p>\n
\"Liberalization\" merely means the process by which policies or
\nlaws are eased and or relaxed. However, ideologically driven
\nmedia, such as the Asian Wall Street Journal and The Economist
\nwith their fixation on the moral primacy of the market have
\ntended to promote trade and tariff liberalization above all other
\nissues.<\/p>\n
Liberalization in their eyes is purely a master of easing the
\npath for the movement of capital, goods and knowledge but not of
\npeople. Sovereign states, cultures and religions are both
\ndispensable and regressive, mere barriers to profitability. Thus
\nthe word liberalization assumes the guise of globalization, of
\nwhich nothing bad can be said.<\/p>\n
They see the resolution of economic issues as being the
\nfoundation for socio-political stability.<\/p>\n
Their calls are often in complete disregard to a country's
\nsocio-economic conditions. In the case of Indonesia, a torrent of
\ncheap sugar or rice imports at this juncture might spark off even
\ngreater social dislocation in the rural economy.<\/p>\n
Sugar farmers led by the Indonesian Farmers Association
\nchairman Siswono Yudohusodo argued in Tempo weekly recently that
\ntoo large a reduction in the duty on sugar imports could
\njeopardize the livelihood of over 9.4 million people.<\/p>\n
When a country's economy is verging on collapse such a reform
\nwould be comparable a Soviet-style collectivization of the rural
\nsector.<\/p>\n
By way of comparison liberalism connotes a very specific set
\nof political and moral philosophies (championed by men such as
\nRousseau, Goethe and Kant). Evolving in 18th century Europe,
\nthese ideas ware chiefly concerned with the application of
\nscience and reason to the study of mankind and all other academic
\ndisciplines -- including most importantly -- the Bible and
\nChristianity.<\/p>\n
Known subsequently as the Age of Enlightenment, the period was
\nto witness an unprecedented erosion in religious faith as the
\nscientific method, that now lies at the core of the secular
\nwestern civilization and the political system we now describe as
\na liberal democracy, was brought to bear on all forms of
\nreligious worship and scripture.<\/p>\n
Clearly such secular political philosophizes are abhorrent to
\nthe prevailing Wahhabi interpretations espoused by the
\nconservative Islamic forces in both Indonesia and Malaysia. This
\nbegs the million dollar question: how would liberalism fare under
\nan avowedly Islamic regime?<\/p>\n
As the Starbucks Formula is applied across Southeast Asia,
\nmany of the noble sounding reforms -- the granting of regional
\nautonomy and increased media freedoms are crumbling under the
\nweight of excessive expectations.<\/p>\n
For example, it is unlikely that the granting of autonomy to
\nprovincial governments in Indonesia will result in a decrease in
\ncorruption or an improvement in standards of governance.<\/p>\n
Jakarta's failure to match the varying provincial demands will
\nundermine the process nationwide, turning a high-minded reform
\ninto yet another crisis for the embattled President Abdurrahman
\nWahid, or Gus Dur.<\/p>\n
In Irian Jaya for example, the West Papuans, led by the
\ncolorful Theys Eluay have called for outright independence.<\/p>\n
I doubt whether the recent decision by the troubled province
\nof Acheh to institute the Sharia law will not bring about the
\nlong-awaited peace. Instead, the move will embolden forces
\nelsewhere in the archipelago to promote sectarian interests over
\nreconciliation. This could well lead Indonesia into chaos, thus
\npermitting the forces of liberalism an opportunity to step in.<\/p>\n
In this way, an impractical and hastily implemented reform
\nagenda that ignores previous centers of authority can result in
\nwhat is now termed in Indonesia as a return to neo-tribalism.<\/p>\n
Encouraged by the military, the different peoples of the
\nRepublic have already (especially in Maluku) made a worrying
\nreturn, to an atavistic past settling scores in the bloodiest of
\nfashions.<\/p>\n
Liberalization, whether it be of political or economic, has
\ndeep and wide-ranging local implications. These have to be dealt
\nwith in a responsible and flexible \"manner if the overall
\nexperiment is to succeed.<\/p>\n
The mistiming of a sequence of reforms can lead to a backlash
\nand a rejection of the reform process. In Thailand, for example
\nChuan Leekpai is paying the penalty of too slavish an
\nacquiescence to the SMF and World Bank.<\/p>\n
Faced by a candidate who had no compunction in buying control
\nof leading media groups, Chuan was -- ironically -- hampered by
\nhis disdain for money politics and high ethical standards.<\/p>\n
It is clear then that the process of liberalization has to
\nbeen introduced with reference to a societys educational,
\ncultural and ethical standards.<\/p>\n
Disregard these factors at your peril. If the Starbucks
\nFormula is to succeed in making Southeast Asia a liberal redoubt
\nthere has to be a balance of culturally specific policies
\nalongside the tried and tested formula: the one without the other
\nis doomed to failure.<\/p>\n
The writer is a columnist of The Business Times in Singapore
\nand The Sun in Malaysia.<\/p>",
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