Emergence of a 'new' type of political leaders in Asia and Russia : Democratization and globalization

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We studied a new type of political leaders in several countries in Asia with comparison among Asian countries and with Russia in mind. We took up leaders (and a political party) as follows : Roh Moo-hyun, Korean president; Hu Jintao, Chinese president; Thaksin Shinawatra, Thai prime minister; Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, president, and Fadel Muhammad, governor of Gorontalo province of Indonesia; Khairy Jamaluddin, deputy chief of UMNO Youth wing, and a son-in-law of Malaysia's prime minister Badawi,; BJP of India; and Vladimir Putin, Russian president. The purpose of this study was to examine (1) the background factors giving way to the emergence of these leaders and (2) their effects upon democracy.Regarding the background, several factors were identified. First of all, democratization was critically important in countries previously ruled by unelected rulers. Now rulers should be elected at the polls. Second, people in those countries yearned for a strong leader due to the economic and political crises in the 1990s. Third, these leaders pursued populist policies to rescue the poor and weak people suffering from economic hardship. China and India were not exceptions concerning this point. Fourth, these leaders were fond of direct appeal to the people with less dependence on political organizations including political parties. Tactical and fervent use of mass media (television, radio, and internet) was a common feature of those leaders.Regarding the effect, it is important to note that not all leaders could exert strong leadership. While national leaders in Korea and Indonesia were not successful, national leaders in Russia and Thailand, and a provincial leader in Indonesia were successful. Significant was how to institutionalize the strong leadership. While Putin managed to build a new regime, Thaksin was resisted and toppled by old powers.