ABSTRACT
Let us compare the analyses of East Asian economies prior to the 1997 crisis and those after the crisis broke out. We are likely to find that the two would demonstrate an overwhelmingly sharp contrast. Praises toward the region’s economic performance before summer 1997 appeared in many pages of articles, books, and reports, including those published by the International Financial Institutions (IFIs), especially the IMF and the World Bank. The latter’s piece on ‘East Asian Miracle’ was probably the culminating point. As soon as the crisis broke out, these institutions began to propagate a sharply different analysis. The very same countries previously praised for their policies and remarkable performances were swiftly placed into the category of those with misplaced development strategies. All of a sudden, nothing was right with these countries.
