Economic Liberalization, Democratization and Civil Society in the Developing World

FUNSO AFOLAYAN Lecturer in African and World History, University of New Hampshire, Durham GERARD CLARKE Lecturer in Development Studies, University of Wales, Swansea SUSAN DICKLITCH Lecturer in African Politics, Franklin Marshall University, Pennsylvania KATHERINE ISBESTER Ph.D. in Political Science, University of Toronto SIDNEY JONES Executive Director of the Asia Division of Human Rights Watch STEVE J. KING Assistant Professor of Government, Georgetown University FRANCIS KOK-WAH LOH Associate Professor of Political Science, Universiti Sains Malaysia PETE MOORE Ph.D. Department of Political Science, McGill University, Montreal JULIUS E. NYANG'ORO Professor and Chair of African and Afro-American Studies, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill VIVIANA PATRONI Lecturer in Political Science, Wilfred Laurier University, Ontario, Canada

This twelve country comparative volume examines the impact of economic structural adjustment programmes upon grassroots civil association and the implications for political liberalisation and democratization in the developing countries of Latin America, Africa, Asia and the Middle East.This twelve country comparative volume examines the impact of economic structural adjustment programmes upon grassroots civil association and the implications for political liberalisation and democratization in the developing countries of Latin America, Africa, Asia and the Middle East. The authors take an in-depth look at the impact of economic reform upon women's groups, human rights organisations, social-welfare non-governmental organisations, unions and business associations. They challenge the prevailing assumption that economic reform will automatically lead to greater democratization.