oa The Promotion of Democracy and Japan’s and South Korea’s Official Development Assistance Possibilities and Limitations in the Asian Mode of Foreign Aid

Democracy promotion evolved into an international norm in the 1990s and has been one piece of the international development regime led by the Western developed countries. Since the 2000s, however, the rise of democratic emerging aid donors has been remarkable. However, it is unclear whether they could provide an alternative to the promotion of democracy and encourage the reconceptualization of this idea. This study is an attempt to add the potential of Asian development experiences and ideas as an alternative to the promotion of democracy led by Western countries with a special focus on assistance to the political dimension of development. To this end, this study examines Japan’s and South Korea’s democratization assistance, particularly international electoral assistance.