ABSTRACT

Three great waves of democratization have washed across the modern world, and each has brought change to East Asia. In Samuel P. Huntington’s oft-cited words, a political system is democratic “to the extent that its most powerful collective decision-makers are selected through fair, honest, and periodic elections in which candidates freely compete for votes and in which virtually all the adult population is eligible to vote” (1991, 7). The “first wave” (1828–1926) brought nascent democracy to Japan, while the “second” (1943–1962) and “third” (1974–2001) waves carried it to South Korea and Taiwan, respectively. Interestingly, the three waves left behind a parliamentary system in Japan, a presidential republic in South Korea, and a semi-presidential republic in Taiwan. While these dissimilar institutional arrangements currently exist within thriving democracies, it is important to recall that “reverse waves” washed away the first two attempts at East Asian democratization. Indeed, the “first reverse wave” (1922–1942) obliterated Japan’s initial experiment with democracy, while the “second reverse wave” (1958–1975) led to the failure of South Korea’s initial attempt (ibid, 14). It remains to be seen whether or not Taiwanese democracy will succumb to an as yet unseen “third reverse wave” or if a possible “fourth wave” will bring democracy to China or, perhaps, even North Korea.