Dismantling democratic change in Asia: Modalities and weapons of choice

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Abstract The global phenomenon of democratic decay and constitutional retrogression has garnered intense scrutiny, particularly over the past five years. This article demonstrates that such patterns have also emerged in several Asian countries that have undergone democratic political change in the last twenty-five years or so. Drawing on illustrations from various jurisdictions across South Asia and Southeast Asia, it explores how political actors have assaulted and eroded democratic constitutional commitments following political change, even when—in some cases—they pledged to uphold constitutional democracy. This article thus illustrates that the dismantling of democratic change in Asia is multi-dimensional and that it reflects three main imperatives: consolidation (of political authority), dissolution (of institutional accountability), and suppression (of political competition). It also brings to light the range of actors involved and tools used in the dismantling process. Crucially, this article highlights that constitutional amendments have not been a pervasive “weapon of choice” in targeting democratic commitments; instead, anti-democrats have utilized ordinary legislation, nonjudicial interpretation, and incremental changes in political conventions. Ultimately, as this article shows both explicitly and implicitly, “variety”—in imperatives, actors, tools, and interests at stake—is a key aspect to consider in understanding, identifying, and suppressing efforts to dismantle Asia’s democratic change.