Westminster in small states: comparing the Caribbean and pacific experience

Abstract

Small states, and those in the Caribbean and Pacific regions in particular, are among the most stubbornly and disproportionally democratic countries in the world. And yet, they are rarely studied comparatively, despite sharing seemingly obvious similarities -aside from being small island states with developing economies they also tend to share a British colonial heritage and Westminster-inspired political institutions. This omission is all the more puzzling if we consider that the group does not conform to the standard battery of explanations developed by democratization theorists. To pave the way for further research across these two regions, this article provides a synoptic comparison of the process of democratization in Caribbean and Pacific small states. We highlight important similarities and differences that stem from the interaction between formal institutions and informal practices. We conclude by reiterating the benefits for scholars of democratization by looking at these significant yet hitherto rarely compared cases.

An Exploratory Study on Public Sector Program Evaluation Practices and Culture in Barbados, Belize, Guyana and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines: Where Are We? Where Do We Need To Go?

“…All nations in this archipelago are tied together by a British colonial heritage. The countries in this region have all obtained independence and their political systems all reflect the British Westminster model (Corbett & Veenendaal, 2016). A variety of ethnicities populate this region, all sharing similar cultural and religious beliefs (Brereton & Clarke, 2017).…”

Debt administration in Small Island‐States

“…Each region provides a counterexample to modernization theory and its expectation about socioeconomic prerequisites for democratization to occur (Veenendaal & Corbett, 2015). In the Pacific region, when compared to the Caribbean, there is less political party institutionalization, a shorter colonial history, greater consensual democracy and political structures whereby indigenous Chiefs may be given influential roles (Anckar, 2000(Anckar, , 2002Corbett & Veenendaal, 2016;Srebrnik, 2004).…”

Attempting constitutional reform on the island microjurisdiction of Alderney

“…Another factor thought to influence a small state’s tendency to democracy is its colonial legacy. One school of thought claims that being a British colony (or a colony of a state that was itself a British colony, such as Australia, New Zealand or the United States) has a significant positive impact on a state’s likelihood of being a democracy (Anckar, 2004; Corbett and Veenendaal, 2016; Clague et al, 2001: 27–31; Ott, 2000: 69–70). Indeed, the Commonwealth bears witness to this: Of its 53 member states, 31 are classified as small states.…”