| Until this very modern time, democracy is still very | | | | executed by the sponsoring country. What does |
| slow in this ASEAN region. This article attempts to be | | | | being administered and executed by the sponsor |
| one of the deliberation basis regarding causes of | | | | mean? It means that the sponsored country has to |
| sluggishness of ASEAN region's democracy. The | | | | accept many conditions, accept experts and other |
| author hopes the argumentations of these causes to | | | | unprofessional personnel of the sponsoring country. |
| be the indirect solutions. | | | | Accepting foreign experts and personnel means that |
| I. No Passing On | | | | we are, being the sponsored country, are still not |
| Except Thailand, the entire ASEAN region was | | | | independent in executing what we thing are right in |
| subject to Western colonization for a very long | | | | ASEAN's democratic perspectives. And until today: |
| period time. Cambodia suffered almost one hundred | | | | September 2007, we are still not independent. |
| years of French colonization, Vietnam and Laos also | | | | I used to work for an NGO, sponsored by the |
| suffered from French's Indochinese colonization | | | | sponsoring countries of the West. In this NGO, every |
| program. Indonesia was under the Dutch rules; the | | | | decision we make, must be favored by one of the |
| Philippines, Myanmar, Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei | | | | sponsoring countries, who lead us in every activities. I |
| Darussalam were all under British colonization. | | | | feel that after they leave us, we can not |
| The idea of democracy was apparently fetched into | | | | professionally work and probably we will collapse. |
| ASEAN region by this Western colonization. However, | | | | Indeed, we need the finance to move on with |
| the idea was almost totally not absorbed by people | | | | democracy progress, but we need to be the boss in |
| and leaders of ASEAN region at the time. In the case | | | | how to use this finance, we need to be the direct |
| of Cambodia, the French was not only our top | | | | executor, and we need to be an expert, after which |
| authority, but political administrations of almost all | | | | we will be technically independent, follow by financially |
| hierarchies were also governed by the French | | | | independent of our sponsoring countries. |
| personnel. The case was similar for Laos, Vietnam | | | | III. Governed-Governor's Democracy Awareness |
| and most of other ASEAN regional countries. | | | | Imbalance |
| Consequently, the national leaders and people during | | | | Democracy awareness of a huge number of the |
| the colonization period have learned extremely little | | | | population is still far from what we categorize as |
| about the idea of democracy. So when they left us, | | | | "acceptable." People think that not allowing marching |
| we are empty of democratic idea. | | | | for a protest is undemocratic. Citizens urge for Prime |
| II. Still No Passing On After Colonization | | | | Minister's intervention regarding the allegedly unfair |
| After independence from Western colonization, | | | | judgment of the court and many other arbitrary acts |
| ASEAN regional countries' democracy has still been | | | | of the governed, who think that everything that |
| financially and technically sponsored by the West, in | | | | they do and prohibited by the government or local |
| particular the United States of America, who is the | | | | authority are undemocratic. |
| world's most prominent actor in democracy | | | | We need the governed and the governor to have a |
| [evidenced by its Constitution adopted in 1788]. | | | | much better knowledge of democracy, not just |
| Similar to the period of Western colonization, this | | | | imagination about democracy and execute any deed |
| sponsorship on democracy is still administered and | | | | that one think as democratic. |