3. Civil Society in Comparative Perspective

This chapter explores the civil society from a comparative perspective in search for the factors and structures that influences its nature, function, and power. With the understanding of the civil society in Bangladesh, this chapter compares three more civil societies active in the developing nations in Asia. Civil societies of India, Pakistan, and the Philippines have been briefly analyzed considering the diversity in the political environment and democratic nature of each country and then have been compared with the Bangladeshi situation. With the analysis and comparison of the four civil societies, it has become relatively easy to infer that the size as well as the influence and power of the civil society are shaped according to the nature, strength, and strategy of the political structures of the political system. Because of strict laws and unwilling political regimes, though India has a stable democracy, civil society here is not totally autonomous, rather uncivil elements are also active here. On the other hand, due to weak political structures and illiberal democracy, the civil society in Pakistan also remains weak despite their vigilant acts at time of national crisis. While the civil society in the Philippines is more involved in politics and in influencing the government decisions to some extent, they are not strong enough to change the elite oligarchic power structure of the country rather often is entangled within it.