Pacific Affairs: An International Review of Asia and the Pacific

Volume 75, No. 2

 

Democratic Standard and Performance in Twelve Pacific Micro-States
By Dag Anckar

 

Abstract

The small Pacific island states pose a challenge to democratic theory. On the one hand, as evident from a comparative examination of Freedom House data, they are indeed by any reasonable measure a qualified family of democratic nations. On the other hand, although they perform satisfactorily in terms of literacy rate, they do not generally satisfy the modernization theory requirements that equate wealth and democracy. Furthermore, explanations of democracy that stress the impact of a colonial legacy do not seem to apply. The islands may therefore be taken as a pretext for an idea already established in classical political thought, suggesting that small size and democratic conduct go together. To understand Pacific democratization and democracy, research into mechanisms and channels that link small size and democracy is needed; however, rather than focusing on Pacific particularities, research on political life and democracy in the Pacific islands needs to assume a broader comparative outlook.