The advocators of Asian values believe that the significance of Asian values lies in that they are beneficial to economic development. If one says that the prosperity of Asia needs Asian values, then the Chinese in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Vietnam can best embody Asian values in economics. It is obvious that people like Suharto don't really support so-called Asian values. They are just using them to cover up their dictatorship and their trampling on human rights. Asian values have sown many seeds of evil in the economy as well, for instance, in the collusion between officials and merchants, transactions between money and power, embezzlement and graft, manipulation of markets, monopolies, and fighting with the people over vested interests.
Corruption is the political tumor of East Asia.
The Asian values which Asian politicians talk about are actually the values nurturing corruption. In East Asia, the countries that have realized stability are actually those that have adopted a representative democratic system. The reason why Western countries like America and Britain can rule in peace for a long time is exactly because in their value concepts and institutions they put individual freedom and rights in a more important position than stability and harmony. Conversely, the more individual freedom and rights are respected, stability becomes easier to achieve. The Asian value concept also especially emphasizes the right to survival and the right to development.