v Foreword Foreword When Chasing the Wind rst came out in 2011, it was, at the same time, an exemplication of one of the key aspects of a working democracy, namely freedom of expression or the uninhibited ow of alternative viewpoints, no matter how controversial, and a no-holds barred deconstruction of the popularly-held notion that the Philippines is itself a working democracy. The ideas put forward by the four original authors were audacious and unconventional, aimed at addressing serious deciencies with the status quo in order to enable the Filipino people to appreciate what needs to be done in order to effectively operationalize a workable democratic project for the Philippines. More than just taking, at face value, the various institutions that were put in place over the years aimed at ensuring participatory democratic governance, such as electoral reforms and Constitutional safeguards, the rst edition of the book took a closer look at whether or not these mechanisms were working in the way they had been intended. This it did by posing hard questions regarding the accountability of public ofcials, indicators for measuring the quality of human life, and a denite period for assessing the actual practice of governance. Rejecting the notion that the Philippines can call itself a democracy simply because its people are free to select their own leaders, the authors took a critical perspective at our purported democratic institutions. They not only asked the question of whether democratically-elected leaders were actually fullling their popular mandates, but also considered the existing system's ability to effectively exact accountability from ofce holders. What these authors uncovered are truths that would present a real challenge to those who would wield power in a democratic setting. In this new edition, the original four authors are joined by an additional four more social scientists who collectively contribute to the ongoing work of critically assessing Philippine Democracy. Together, they seek to expand on the ideas propounded in the original volume, advance new ideas to truly and meaningfully democratize society, and reshape how Filipinos engage public institutions, such as to include the rights we should be demanding from these institutions.