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Viet Nam — a Transition Tiger? »

Authored by: Brian Van Arkadie, Raymond Mallon
Publication date: January 2004
Viet Nam has seen consistent rapid economic growth and impressive declines in poverty since it initiated its Doi Moi economic reforms in the late 1980s. Viet Nam has taken a selective, step-by-step approach to reform—an approach often criticised by proponents of the Washington Consensus. That this approach has been so successful has come as something of a surprise to much of the international community. Analysing closely aspects of Viet Nam’s reform process, enterprise development, income growth and poverty alleviation, Viet Nam: a transition tiger? argues that Viet Nam’s remarkable development is not readily explained by the more orthodox versions of the Washington Consensus. Successful policy is not built on mechanistic replication of some general reform blueprint, but on responding pragmatically to specific national circumstances. Government policy has had an impact on economic performance but economic experience has also guided the formulation of economic policy. Faced with increasingly complex economic conditions, Vietnamese policymakers will need to rely more than ever on their flexibility and pragmatism if Viet Nam’s remarkable economic performance is to be sustained.

Out of the Ashes »

Destruction and Reconstruction of East Timor

Edited by: James J. Fox, Dionisio Babo Soares
Publication date: November 2003
Out of the Ashes is a collection of essays that examine the historical background to developments in East Timor and provide political analysis on the initial reconstruction stage in the country’s transition to independence. The volume is divided into three thematic sections – background, assessment and reconstruction – bringing together the experiences and knowledge of academic researchers and key participants in the extraordinary events of 1999 and 2000. After years of Indonesian rule, the people of East Timor voted to reject an offer of autonomy choosing instead independence from Indonesia. This decision enraged pro-integrationist militia who, backed by the Indonesian military, launched a program of violence and destruction against the inhabitants of East Timor. President Habibie eventually agreed to the presence of a United Nations peace-keeping force, but by this stage East Timor had been ravaged by destruction. The new East Timorese government faced the challenges of the future with an understanding that the successful struggle for independence was both a culmination and a starting point for the new nation. As the events of 1999 recede, many of the issues and challenges highlighted in Out of the Ashes remain of central significance to the future of East Timor. These essays provide essential reading for students and interested observers of the first new nation of the 21st century.