Examining the Impact of Colonial Administrations on Post-Independence State Behavior in Southeast Asia

Abstract

This project is concerned with examining the impact of colonial administrations on post-independence state behavior in Southeast Asia. Despite a similar historical context, the region exhibits broad variation in terms of policy preferences after independence. Past literature has focused, largely, upon pre-colonial or independence era factors. This project, however, proposes that state behavior is heavily determined by a combination of three colonial variables: indigenous elite mobility, colonial income diversity, and institutional-infrastructure levels. It also constructs a four-category typology for the purposes of ordering the broad variation we see across post-colonial Southeast Asia. Utilizing heavy archival research and historical analysis, I examine three case studies in the region, Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos, that share a common colonial heritage yet exhibit markedly different post-independence preferences. Vietnam's colonial legacy is characterized by high indigenous elite mobility, medium colonial income diversity, and medium-high levels of institutional-infrastructure. This creates a state where the local elites are capable and socially mobile, but lack the fully developed skill sets, institutions and infrastructure we see in a Developmental state such as South Korea or Taiwan. As a result, Vietnam is a Power-Projection state, where elites pursue security oriented projects as a means of compensating for inequalities between their own social mobility and acquired skills, institutions and infrastructure. In Cambodia, indigenous elite mobility and colonial income diversity are both low, creating an entrenched, less experienced elite. Medium levels of institutional-infrastructure enables the elite to extract wealth for class benefit. As a result, the state becomes an instrument for elite enrichment and is thus classified as Self-Enrichment state. Laos' colonial history is characterized by low levels of indigenous elite mobility, colonial income diversity, and institutional-infrastructure levels. Laos' elite are deeply entrenched, like their counterparts in Cambodia. However, unlike Cambodia, Laos lacks sufficient institutional-infrastructure levels to make wealth extraction worthwhile for an elite class. Laos' inability to execute an internal policy course, or even enrich narrow social class, categorize it as a Null state. The theory and typology presented in this project have broad applications to Southeast Asia and the post-colonial world more generally. It suggests that the colonial period, counter to more recent literature, has a much greater impact on states after independence. As most of the world is a post-colonial state, understanding the mechanisms for preferences in these states is very important.