E-Democracy in East Asia? How the Internet Affects Politics and Civil Society in Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan

 New technologies offer new networking opportunities, which may affect participation by a broader audience. In which ways do such technologies – especially the Internet – affect political participation of citizens in elections and local government initiatives as well as in NGOs and citizens groups? Which particular tools are employed and how effective are they? Those were the questions that the participants of this workshop sought to tackle. It was part of a comparative research project on these issues, and dealt with the impact of the Internet on a variety of political actors, including political parties and candidates, mainstream and minorities, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), the vast majority of citizens and small citizens groups with special concerns.

In two panels, the situation in Japan was contrasted with that in two neighbouring countries, South Korea and Taiwan. Both of them are comparable to Japan in terms of access to new technologies and education – the debate centred on the similarities and differences in all these countries regarding Internet use and its impact on political life, and on possible explanations for this.
Apart from government policies regarding new technologies, other factors such as the state of democracy and the role of civil society in each country, and the ways they interact with new technologies, were considered in the discussion.

See also: Miscellanea 17