This book deals with the intellectual foundation of the sociopolitical, economic and legal systems of developing countries, using a methodological approach. It calls for not only the need to search for a country s cultural identity, but also a need to analyze the prevalent concepts important to a contemporary modern society, such as the respect for an individual, human rights, freedom, equality, democracy and the universal respect for law. Based on the author s lifelong reflection on why some of these deeply treasured Western values and institutions have not been useful in developing democracy in Asia, it examines which values are applicable and which are not to Asian emerging societies. Using China's historical and contemporary attempts in modernization and development, the author suggests that all mighty rivers are confluences of multiple tributaries. Likewise, an emerging society has to recognize that the dynamism of its history would also be derived from a confluence of multiple cultural traditions. As a valuable resource for decision-makers of developing countries, this book will help to shed some light on the potential pitfalls and fallacies they may encounter in their search for a cultural identity and values to subscribe to, among the many that are circulating in our globalized world.

Contents: Respect for the Individual Person and Individualism; Human Rights and Individual Rights; Freedom from Want and Freedom of Choice; Equality and Respect for Differences; Democracy and the Democratic Process; Law and Order.

George Fusun Ling obtained his graduate degrees from Oxford University and Yale University. He and his family then moved to China, where they witnessed the Culture Revolution. After China implemented the open-door policy in 1978, he ventured into the business world, promoting cultural exchanges between the East and West whilst trading. He was recently also a Visiting Research Fellow at Oxford University.