Democracy in the Third World

Unlike many scholars and commentators, Pinkney (politics, U. of Northumbria at Newcastle) recognizes that "there is something lacking in democracies where the ruling party is invariably able to manipulate resources to ensure its reelection, where many political decisions reflect the wishes of foreign donors rather than popular will, and where the basic rules of competition for power are still in dispute." With that in mind, he explores the various definitions and forms of democracy and examines the conditions conducive to its emergence in the third world and reasons for the failures of many incipient democracies. Annotation c. Book News, Inc.,Portland, OR