Asian values was a concept that came into vogue in the 1990s, predicated on the belief in the existence in Asian countries of a unique set of institutions and political ideologies which reflected the region's culture and history. Although there are indeed many differences in Eastern and Western ideas, philosophy, etc., the term is a faux pas in that there is no single set of "Asian" values; as in the West, there are just as significant value differences between, say, China and Japan as between France and Germany. Nonetheless, like their Western counterparts, Eastern countries can be said to share some values, a simple example being the death penalty, which is legal in the former two but today considered immoral in the latter. See also 1990s, the band The 1990s decade refers to the years from 1990 to 1999, inclusive, sometimes informally including popular culture from 2000 and 2001. ... World map showing the location of Asia. ... Philosopher in Meditation (detail), by Rembrandt. ... A faux pas, (IPA , plural: faux pas ) (French for false step) is a violation of accepted, although unwritten, social rules. ... Capital punishment, or the death penalty, is the execution of a convicted criminal by the State as punishment for crimes known as capital crimes or capital offenses. ...

Because the proponents of the concept came from different cultural backgrounds, no single definition of the term exists, but typically "Asian values" encompasses some flavor of Confucianism, in particular loyalty towards the family, corporation and nation, the forgoing of personal freedom for the sake of society's stability and prosperity, the pursuit for academic and technological excellence, and work ethic and thrift. Proponents of "Asian values", who tend to support Asian-style authoritarian governments, claim they are more appropriate for the region than the democratic values and institutions of the West. A frequent criticism is that the idea of "Asian values" is most promoted by the elites who benefit from authoritarian rule, rather than the wider populace of their nation. Confucianist temple Thian Hock Keng in Singapore Confucianism (Chinese: 儒学, Pinyin: Rúxué‚ [ ] , literally The School of the Scholars; or, less accurately, 孔教 Kŏng jiào, The Religion of Confucius) is a Chinese ethical and philosophical system originally developed from the teachings of the early Chinese sage Confucius. ... Political freedom is the right, or the capacity, of self-determination as an expression of the individual will. ... Thrift - Wikipedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... The term authoritarian is used to describe an organization or a state which enforces strong and sometimes oppressive measures against the population, generally without attempts at gaining the consent of the population. ... Democracy is, literally, rule by the people (from the Greek demos, people, and kratos, rule). The methods by which this rule is exercised, and indeed the composition of the people are central to various definitions of democracy, but the general principle is that of majority rule. ... The term Western world or the West can have multiple meanings depending on its context. ...

The concept of "Asian values" was a popular idea in Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, and India, and also in some political circles in Japan. In Malaysia and Singapore, the concept of Asian values was embraced partly because it reconciled Islam, the religion of the Malays, with the Confucianism of the ethnic Chinese, and Hinduism, thereby helping to create a sense of common values between different ethnic and religious groups in those countries, as well as forming an ideology that could challenge the West. In Japan, it was popular among some nationalist circles because it challenged the West and also offered the possibility of Japanese leadership in a new Asia. For other uses, including people named Islam, see Islam (disambiguation). ... Malays (Dutch, Malayo, ultimately from Malay: Melayu) are a diverse group of Austronesian peoples inhabiting the Malay archipelago and Malay peninsula in Southeast Asia. ... Confucianist temple Thian Hock Keng in Singapore Confucianism (Chinese: å„’å­¦, Pinyin: Rúxué‚ [ ] , literally The School of the Scholars; or, less accurately, 孔教 Kŏng jiào, The Religion of Confucius) is a Chinese ethical and philosophical system originally developed from the teachings of the early Chinese sage Confucius. ... Han Chinese (Simplified: 汉; Traditional: 漢; Pinyin: hàn) is a term which refers to the majority ethnic group within China and the largest single human ethnic group in the world. ... Hinduism (Sanskrit - Sanātana (eternal) Dharma also known as Vaidika (Vedic) Dharma) is a religion or philosophy that originated from the Indian subcontinent and nearby surrounding areas. ...

Mahathir bin Mohamad and Lee Kuan Yew, the prime ministers of Malaysia and Singapore, respectively, at that time, were particularly vocal advocates of Asian values. Fareed Zakaria has written extensively on Asian values; meanwhile, Amartya Sen has been one of the concept's strongest critics. Some critics of the term argue that no universal "Asian" value system exists, because the cultural diversity of Asia is too great for there to be a single set of common values across the region. The suggestion that a set of 'Asian values' operated throughout the Asian region, or even just in East Asia, contradicts what we know about the presence of long-standing religious (Islamic, Buddhist, Confucian) and other divisions in the region, and of the major social and cultural transformation that has been underway, especially in the last decade or so. Mahathir bin Mohamad (born July 10, 1925) was the Prime Minister of Malaysia from 1981 to 2003. ... Lee Kuan Yew (Chinese: ; pinyin: Lǐ Guāngyào; born September 16, 1923; also spelled Lee Kwan-Yew) was the first Prime Minister of the Republic of Singapore from 1959 to 1990. ... Fareed Zakaria Fareed Zakaria (born January 20, 1964) is a writer and journalist specializing in international relations. ... Amartya Sen Dr Amartya Kumar Sen CH (Hon) (born November 3, 1933 in India), is an economist and a winner of the Bank of Sweden Prize in Economic Sciences (sometimes referred to informally as the Nobel Prize for Economics) for his work on famine, human development theory, welfare economics, the...

The concept of "Asian values" began to lose currency after the Asian financial crisis weakened the economies of many Asian countries, leading to the collapse of the Suharto regime in Indonesia. The Asian financial crisis was a financial crisis that started in July 1997 in Thailand and affected currencies, stock markets, and other asset prices in several Asian countries, many considered East Asian Tigers. ... Haji Mohammad Soeharto (born June 8, 1921), more commonly referred to as simply Soeharto (Suharto in the English-speaking world), is a former Indonesian military and political leader. ...

Two outspoken critics of Asian values have been the former President of the Republic of China (Taiwan), Lee Teng-hui, and former President of the Republic of Korea (South Korea), Kim Dae Jung. The Office of the President of the Republic of China is located in Zhongzheng District, Taipei City. ... Motto: None Anthem: National Anthem of the Republic of China Capital Taipei City (de facto) Nanjing (de jure)1 Largest city Taipei City Official language(s) Mandarin (GuóyÇ”) Government Semi-presidential system  - President Chen Shui-bian  - Vice President Annette Lu  - Premier Su Tseng-chang Establishment Xinhai Revolution   - Declared October... Lee Teng-hui (Traditional Chinese: 李登輝; Simplified Chinese: 李登辉; Pinyin: Lǐ DÄ“nghuÄ«) born January 15, 1923) is a politician in the Republic of China (ROC). ... The President is head of state of South Korea. ... Kim Dae-Jung during a visit of George W. Bush in Seoul, February 20, 2002 Kim Dae-jung (born January 6, 1926) is a former South Korean president and the 2000 Nobel Peace Prize recipient. ...

See also

• Nihonjinron
• pan-Asianism

This entry is related to, but not included in the Political ideologies series or one of its sub-series. Other related articles can be found at the Politics Portal.

Nihonjinron (日本人論, discourse on, theories about, the Japanese) is a highly popular genre of writing purporting to examine the characteristics--national, social, cultural, behavioural and spiritual--which are presumed to be unique to the Japanese people. ... Pan-Asianism is an ideology that argues that Asian countries and peoples share similar values and similar histories and should be united politically or culturally. ... An ideology is an organized collection of ideas. ...

External links

• | Amartya Sen on Asian Values
• Francis Fukuyama, The Illusion of Exceptionalism
• http://www.puaf.umd.edu/IPPP/li.htm
• http://www.anu.edu.au/asianstudies/values.html