South and South-East Asia,1945-1979 problems and policies

The fourteen states of South and South east Asia, stretching from Pakistan to the Philippines, existed under Western dominance for over two centuries. The Second World War brought decolonisation in its wake. This is the first book both to deal critically with the political, economic and social problems which these countries have faced since 1945 and to examine the policies adopted to resolve those problems.

The author sets out to answer the following questions: how differently were these countries conditioned by their colonial legacies? Why did all the countries adopt democracy, yet some of them subsequently discard democratic institutions? Under what constraints has democracy functioned in Sri Lanka, India, Malaysia and Singapore? Why has constitu tional communism not yet succeeded in capturing central power in any country outside Indo-China?

In considering these factors Dr Pandey looks at the roles the countries have played in bringing to an end an era of cold war and sustaining one of détente. He also looks at the enormous economic and social problems confronting these countries, so providing a concise and helpful study for all students of twentieth-century history.

B. N. Pandey is lecturer in Modern Indian History at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. His publications for Macmillan include: The Break-up of British India, Nehru and The Indian Nationalist Movement, 1885-1947: Select Documents.

The cover illustration shows the opening of the Bandoeng Conference in April 1955 and is reproduced with kind permission of Camera Press.