The pitfalls of the dictatorship-democracy transition are weak institutions, entrenched interests, ethnic divisions, and an ignorance of how legislative checks and balances are meant to work. Since 1986, the Philippines has attempted to build democratic institutions. China meanwhile has rejected the concept in favor of the path of authoritarianism. What unfolded in the Philippines after 1986 has been repeated in similar ways in Egypt, Libya, Ukraine, and other places which have attempted this perilous transition.
