This paper argues that relationships between countries and transnational corporations are not zero-sum games, but entail ‘complex governance’, where all actors must be considered in order to understand changes in the international system.

A typical characteristic of the ongoing practice of democracy in Singapore has been described by some scholars as 'illiberal democracy'. Noting that Singapore 's brand of democracy operates within a 'dominant, one-party system', other scholars cushioned such a democratic practice by their reference to 'semi-democracy', 'controlled democracy, 'guided democracy, and 'communitarian democracy'. However, despite the demonstration that there are many restrictions in the type of democracy that exists in Singapore, the benefits are numerous. Singapore is the only country in the world to have transformed itself from a developing country to a developed country in less than only forty years. But its slower move towards a culture of participation must move as quickly as globalization does if it is to remain in relevant and legitimate democracy. If the younger generation understands that they should have the right to a voice before the government acknowledges it, the transition could be more tumultuous than necessary.

The European Commission, supported by the European Courts, developed the framework for competition law and policy in Europe. One of the main purposes of this policy is to build a conceptual and legal foundation to promote market opening and to strengthen community institutions. In this policy framework, ‘collective dominance’ of firms in the European market is the utmost important issue. To deal with this issue, the competition law of the European Union is now relying more on the extensive network of national-level authorities and applying broadly consistent substantive rules. The notion of ‘collective dominance’ in European competition policy is in transition towards policy based on market-center economic considerations as regulations and guidelines increasingly follow an analytic format based on economic perspectives.