Democratic State-Building in Pakistan and Taiwan

Abstract: This paper is an attempt to marry the focus on democracy from the study of democratization with the long-term examination of state-formation from the study of the state. The overarching purpose of this marriage is to begin to sketch an answer to how successful democratic states are formed. ‘Third wave’ Pakistan and Taiwan are compared using a common foundations paired comparison with the research question what could explain the divergent outcome of democratic state-building in Pakistan and Taiwan. The narrow answer would be that Taiwan built a highly capable state while Pakistan did not. A broader answer would seem to be that in its pursuit of infrastructural power Pakistan created more problems than it solved, especially as it tackled the inherently value-rational aspects of nation-building. Willing and able to brutally assert itself the Guomindang was able to accomplish the sort of state- and nation-building that Pakistan aspired to. The centrifugal forces unleashed by Pakistan’s attempts at nation-building have gone from creating political gridlock to becoming state-deformative.