bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Latin American Military: Predatory Reactionaries or Modernizing Patriots?
Authors: Needler Martin C.
Published: March 2007

Until quite recently, the study of Latin American politics existed in a relatively primitive stage. A crude empiricism, occupied with the straightforward description of events or formal institutions, was relieved only by occasional global generalization of an impressionistic character about the informal characteristics of politics. However, substantial advances have begun to be made in the last few years in the direction of more systematic elaboration of theory to account for the distinctive characteristics of politics in the area, and we have begun to see the confrontation with each other and with the data themselves of rival theoretical explanations. Needless to say, this mutual confrontation of rival interpretations is a healthy sign for the deepening of our understanding of Latin American politics.
The Relevance of Latin America to the Foreign Policy of Commonwealth Caribbean States
Authors: Preiswerk Roy
Published: March 2007

For the leaders and people of every new state of Asia, Africa and the Caribbean, independence has brought about a dramatic awakening with respect to the conceptualization of their position in world affairs. The loosening of ties with the metropolis, which had been the primary aim of the struggle for independence, suddenly appears in a double perspective. On the one hand, it contains the threat of distintegration of the established social and economic order and, on the other hand, it opens prospects for new bonds and opportunities. After decades or centuries of predominantly bilateral relationships between colony and metropolis, historical links are confronted with the pressures resulting from geographic proximity .The diversification of foreign contacts is a phenomenon of the very recent past. The leaders and inhabitants of Ghana and the Ivory Coast, Nigeria and Niger, Trinidad and Venezuela, or Guyana and Brazil are only now realizing the full impact of their relationship as neighbours.
The Spanish American Past—Enemy of Change
Authors: Worcester Donald E.
Published: March 2007

The ways in which societies change and adjust to change are determined largely by cultural and historical factors, by long-standing customs and traditions. Cultural values differ widely from one society to another; each solves its problems according to its own values, and value systems, though they may work well for one society, cannot be expected to work as well for another. This is true even of colonies that become independent nations, although the characteristic stamp of the common mother country remains visible. What is unique in the case of Spanish America is the inability of the new nations to shed this stamp, despite determined efforts to do so. To understand the process of change of any country or group of related countries such as those of Spanish America, it is necessary to examine the major cultural characteristics and values, and to consider social and political action in relation to these, rather than to any external standard.
Presidential Succession in Chile: 1817-1966
Authors: Gray Richard B. , Frederick R. Kirwin
Published: March 2007

Research on the presidency in Latin America offers one of the most promising sources of contributions to be made to the study of comparative government. With the exception of a few articles in journals, and chapters on the presidency in political science texts and readers, no general work on the Latin American chief executive is to be found in English. Also lacking are general works on the presidency in individual countries. With more than 700 Latin American presidents in office since the twenty republics were formed in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, investigation seems not only possible but desirable in building modest or middle-range theories of development and modernization in the behavior of Latin American chiefs of state. Given the fact of presidential domination of the political process throughout much, if not most, of the republican period in Latin America, the presidency is an obvious and important focus of study.
Guyana: Socialist Reconstruction or Political Opportunism?
Authors: Premdas Ralph H.
Published: March 2007

Guyana has become the second “socialist” republic in the Western Hemisphere after Cuba. The history of how this occurred is an almost classic example of the futility of inept intervention by outside great powers. Prime Minister Forbes Burnham, brought to office in 1965 by Anglo-American intervention that ousted Marxist Cheddi Jagan from power, has turned Guyana from a safe U.S. client committed to a capitalistic economic model into a strident anti-American bastion on the South American mainland, with a politicoeconomic system in theory and increasingly in practice inspired by Marxism-Leninism. The Burnham regime has nationalized all significant foreign firms, declared itself a cooperative socialist republic, and has forged close collaborative links with Cuba, the People's Republic of China, and such left-oriented African countries as Tanzania, Guinea, Angola, and Mozambique.
Political Assassination in Guatemala: A Case of Institutionalized Terror
Authors: Premo Daniel L.
Published: March 2007

There was but one side to politics in Guatemala. Both parties have a beautiful way of producing unanimity of opinion, by driving out of the country all who do not agree with them.

—John Lloyd Stephens (1839)

The concepts of “political assassination” and “terrorism” are fraught with definitional problems. For purposes of this study, the former will be defined simply as “murder for political motives.” It is one of a series of acts that collectively are intended to produce a psychological state of fear and uncertainty within the general population, i.e., “terrorism,” in an effort to direct political activity through intimidation.

Assassination is usually thought of as a terroristic act associated with opposition political groups. This article examines its use as a mechanism of control by government and private groups who perceive a threat to their privileged position in society.
The New International Economic Order: Centerpiece Venezuela
Authors: Mamalakis Marros
Published: March 2007

“A new economic order is essential for world peace,” proclaimed President Carlos Andrés Pérez of Venezuela (1976) on November 16, 1976, at the UN General Assembly in fulfilling “the mandate which Simon Bolivar gave [the Venezuelans] more than 150 years ago” (Pérez, 1976: 28). Responding to this call of destiny and reaffirming Venezuela's claimed Bolivarian tradition of placing “its resources.at the service of its people, at the servi of Latin America, at the service of humanity” (Pérez, 1976: 28f President Pérez (nicknamed Simonsito) sought in and through the New International Economic Order (NIEO) a new Lebensraum, not of destructive territorial expansion, but of increased purchasing power, dignity, equality, and independence for the poor, weak, underprivileged countries (Pérez, 1976: 7, 11). The NIEO, “a moral obligation of all nations,” “is required as a¡ desideratum of peace,” especially since the disintegrating “old international economic order which emerged from the Second World War … was an unjust system of relations based on inequality … designed to benefit those countries which had accumulated the fruits of technical progress” (Pérez, 1976: 9).
Brazilian External Debt: A Study in Capital Flows and Transfer of Resources
Authors: Garg Ramesh C.
Published: March 2007

In recent years the problem of the external indebtedness of non-oil-exporting countries has gained significant weight in public discussion. With the quadrupling of oil prices since the end of 1973, a rapid increase in the borrowing of LDCs has occurred. The standard of living in these countries is extremely low to begin with; any further room for downward adjustment to offset higher cost of oil imports through a slowing down of economy is simply an unacceptable possibility. Moreover, any further economic restraint on the already slower pace of development would be politically unpopular for the leaders in developing countries. Consequently, many LDCs have resorted to increasing external borrowings to pay for the oil bill, as well as to maintain a minimum rate of economic growth. The total external public debt of these countries is now estimated at around $200 billion (U.S. Senate, 1977: 51). This paper examines the debt servicing experience of Brazil. Lately, Brazil has been the center of attention because it owes some $25-$30 billion to foreign creditors. Its debt servicing burden for 1977 would be approximately $5.3 billion, or 40% of an estimated $12 billion in export earnings.
Soviet Interests in Latin America: New Opportunities and Old Constraints
Authors: Raymond Duncan W.
Published: March 2007

The October 1983 crisis in Grenada left little doubt that the Soviet and Cuban presence had been expanding in the Caribbean basin. But the October crisis did not answer questions regarding the extent of their actual influence there, nor the direction it might take in the future, nor even what the most appropriate U.S. policy responses should be to that influence elsewhere in the region. Therefore, in the wake of the U.S. occupation of Grenada and the evidence it uncovered about the degree of Soviet and Cuban activity there, it is useful to examine the kind of situations that have encouraged the Soviets to expand their presence and/or influence in Latin America. At the same time, it equally is useful to examine the limitations or constraints on such an expanded presence or influence.

Clearly, Soviet policy in Latin America has been the product of two conflicting forces or tendencies.
On the Economic Cost to Panama of Negotiating a Peaceful Solution to the Panama Canal Question
Authors: Osborne Alfred E.
Published: March 2007

Negotiating a treaty between two sovereign nations is no simple matter. Even when there is consensus that a new accord is long overdue, a solution acceptable to both governments and their most vocal constituencies is most elusive and often difficult to conclude within a reasonable period of time. This is especially true when there is strong popular opinion aroused on both sides. Discussions usually drag on, and while diplomats publicly agree that “progress is being made,” there are significant political and economic benefits unrealized by either or both countries involved in the negotiation proceedings (Lopez Guevara, 1976).

The present treaty negotiations between the Republic of Panama and the United States of America is a case in point. That Panamanian public opinion is aroused on the Canal issue is indicated by the 1964 Canal Zone border incidents in which twenty-one Panamanians and three Americans died and by subsequent demonstrations.
Arms Production and National Security in Argentina
Authors: Milenky Edward S.
Published: March 2007

Since 1950, 28 developing countries have produced tanks, ships, aircraft, other major weapons systems, and infantry and artillery weapons for their own use and for export. Local input has ranged from assembly of imported components to completely indigenous design and manufacture. In 1967 exports from lessdeveloped countries (LDCs) were worth $194 million, as compared to exports from all sources of $201 billion. By 1976 world arms exports had increased to $398 billion and LDC exports to $820 million (ACDA, 1978). Even though the role of lessdeveloped countries in world arms production is still small, it is growing and can be significant in some local and regional contexts.

Nascent defense industries in the Third World raise important questions. Terrorists, insurgents, and governments everywhere may find arms more readily available as sources of supply diversify. The spread of weapons manufacture both reflects and promotes the diffusion of power within the international system at large.
The Regionalist Expression of Populism: Guayaquil and the CFP, 1948-1960
Authors: Martz John D.
Published: March 2007

In any general discussion of populism, Latin America is the odd man out [Hennessy, 1969: 28].

Even a cursory review of recent writings on Latin American politics suggests an inclination by many to have done once and for all with the concept of populism. Either it is defined so broadly as to be useless or is relegated to a historical era presumably never again to be seen in the region. Yet the term shows a vitality and stubborn resilience in refusing to disappear, notwithstanding periodic revisions and redefinitions. This is scarcely unique to Latin Americanists. As a pair of European authorities contended more generally:

There can, at present, be no doubt about theimportanceof populism. But no one is quite clear just what itis.As a doctrine or as a movement, it is elusive and protean. It bobs up everywhere, but in many and contradictory shapes. Does it have any underlying unity, or does one name cover a multitude of unconnected tendencies? [Ionescu and Gellner, 1969: 1].
The Limits of Reform Development in Contemporary Costa Rica
Authors: Del Aguila Juan M.
Published: March 2007

Crisis, breakdown, and disintegration have become operative concepts in journalistic, academic, and official assessments of contemporary affairs in Central America. The radicalization and Cubanization of the Nicaraguan revolution, the resurgence of revolutionary messianism and continuing violence in El Salvador and Guatemala, and the increasingly active and direct role which regional powers and European countries are playing in the region have turned Central America into a salient, global confrontational arena.

A systemic view, however, would miss important political processes continuing with surprising strength but unnoticed regularity in some Central American nations indirectly affected by revolutionary conflict and thus partially insulated from the region's high level of violence.
Agrarian Structure and Political Stability in Honduras
Authors: Ruhl J. Mark
Published: March 2007

In recent years, a violent social and political upheaval has been underway in Central America. A revolutionary regime has taken power in Nicaragua, and leftist guerrilla forces have begun to threaten the survival of the existing governments in El Salvador and Guatemala. Geographically surrounded by these three politically unstable countries, Honduras, in contrast, has remained remarkably free of serious internal revolutionary pressures. Although Honduras shares many of the problems of poverty, inequality, dependency, and authoritarian tradition that are associated with its neighbors, Honduran authorities have managed to maintain political order.
Assembly Industries in Mexico: Contexts of Development
Authors: Dillman C. Daniel
Published: March 2007

Beginning in the early 1960s, manufacturing operations of the larger U.S. corporations became more international in scope with the emergence of the globally integrated production system (Moxon, 1974: 60). Fundamental to the successful functioning of the system was an international division of labor. Generally, workers in less developed countries (LDCs) were utilized for labor-intensive tasks, and capital-intensive, highly skilled phases of production were carried out in the United States. The geographical separation of labor inputs became the hallmark of the internationalization of production directed by multinational corporations (MNCs). More efficient modes of transportation, such as containerization and air freight, and improved communication, information, and production control techniques made possible centralized administration of dispersed production units (Vuskovic, 1980: 10). In addition, the global context of production required a new approach to foreign investment—the offshore installation, which eventually assumed two forms: the export platform and the satellite plant.
Intellectuals: Agents of Change in Mexico?
Authors: Camp Roderic A.
Published: March 2007

Intellectuals have always played a role in the political development of their societies. Their role, however, has fluctuated with changes in time and place, and in the 20th century the intellectual's function in society seems ambiguous both to the intellectual himself and to those who have studied him. In spite of this ambiguity, there is a consensus in recent literature that the ability of intellectuals to influence elite groups and the government itself is on the increase (Ladd and Lipset, 1976: 309). The reasons for this increased influence are several, and although there is recognition of the expanding importance of men of knowledge, there are few serious examinations of this group and its role (Marsal and Arent, 1970: 466; Marsal, 1966: 36; Friedmann, 1960: 540-541).
Peopling the Prairies and the Pampas: The Impact of Immigration on Argentine and Canadian Agrarian Development, 1870-1930
Authors: Solberg Carl E.
Published: March 2007

Separated by many thousands of miles and very different cultural heritages, Argentina and Canada might not seem to have much in common. But during the period between 1870 and 1930, there were many striking similarities between the economic development of these two countries at opposite ends of the New World (Blain, 1972). Indeed, by the late 1920s, Alejandro E. Bunge, the distinguished head of the economics faculty at the University of Buenos Aires, was pointing to the “Argentine- Canadian economic parallel” in his publications (Bunge, 1929). Bunge had perceived that Argentina and Canada were two of a small group of historically favored new countries that shared what Canadian economist Melville Watkins (1963: 149) has called, “an enormous advantage over the typical underdeveloped country,” because they did not “start their development with population pressing against scarce resources.”
A Different Perspective for the Financial Crisis in Latin America and the Caribbean
Authors: Soares João Clemente Baena
Published: March 2007

The Latin American and Caribbean countries are facing a serious financial crisis. External debt in the region is over $360 billion, and seven South American countries are among the ten largest debtors in the world. Interest payments alone required, in the years of 1982, 1983, and 1984, more than 35% of total regional exports of goods and services, a percentage which reached the extreme level of over 50% for one country. To be sure, this problem mostly affects the largest economies, since most of the Central American and Caribbean countries apply to interest payments less than 20% of their exports. The debt problem is a reality for the entire region, and it makes it difficult for all the countries to obtain new external financing.
The Industrial Sector and the Debt Crisis in Latin America
Authors: Schwartz Hugh
Published: March 2007

The international debt crisis has received a great deal of attention at the macroeconomic and the political levels, but there have been few analyses of its impact upon individual sectors. Thus this article will consider the consequences of the Latin American debt crisis for manufacturing industry, particularly the adjustments that this sector has made in its response to the crisis.

The adjustment process which the manufacturing sector has undergone has produced implications which depend partly upon factors exogenous to the sector and partly upon the nature, and degree of competitiveness, of the manufacturing activity in each of the countries. In turn, the latter factors have been influenced by those very macroeconomic and exogenous variables. Some variables, such as the exchange rate, play major roles in determining the competitiveness of industry, as has frequently been emphasized in recent years. This is true of a number of variables at the industry and enterprise level as well.
Indifferent Sanctuary: German-Speaking Refugees and Exiles in Argentina, 1933-1945
Authors: Newton Ronald C.
Published: March 2007

Between 1933 and the end of World War II, Argentina became the home of some 43,000 Jewish refugees from Nazism, almost all of them of German, Austrian, or West European origin. Measured against the country's total population, 13 million in 1931, 16 million according to the 1947 census, Argentina received more Jewish refugees per capita than any other country in the world except Palestine (Wasserstein, 1979: 7,45). This did not occur by design of the Argentine government; on the contrary, its immigration policies became interestingly restrictive as the years of the world crisis wore on.

In practice, however, Argentina was unable to patrol effectively its long borders with the neighboring republics of Chile, Bolivia, Paraguay, Brazil, and Uruguay. The overseas consuls of these nations, especially the first three, did a brisk and lucrative trade in visas and entry permits for persons desperate to escape the Nazi terror.
Defense of the Western Hemisphere: Strategy for the 1990s
Authors: Marcella Gabriel
Published: March 2007

What should the strategic relationship between the United States and Latin America be in the next 10 years? This paper will try to provide an agenda for answering this question by trying to clarify some of the issues involved. It seeks to promote responsible dialogue on regional security matters based on realistic assessment of the national interests involved and the impact they have on one another.

United States defense relations with Latin America over the last 40 years have revolved around two strategy frameworks: one East- West and the other North-South. During this time the United States has attempted to integrate Latin America into its East-West global strategy, subordinating Latin American interests to the overall requirement of containing Soviet power.
Nicaraguan Relations with the Non-Aligned Movement
Authors: Vanden Harry E. , Morales Waltraud Queiser
Published: March 2007

Pronouncements by the Reagan Administration not withstanding, the oft repeated accusation that Nicaragua is but a Soviet or Cuban pawn does not appear consistent with a closer examination of the facts (see NACLA, 1985). Beginning with the original 1969 FSLN (Frente Sandinista de Liberación Nacional) Program, the Sandinista leadership which now rules Nicaragua has steadfastly maintained its nonaligned orientation. In fact, since coming to power, the Sandinistas have not only become active members of the Nonaligned Movement, but have also used their ties with the Nonaligned to explain their policies and to garner much needed international support for their actions. In the process, they appear to have taken full advantage of policy options created by the development of the Nonaligned Movement and only recently available to Latin American nations.
Soviet Policy in Latin America: Implications for the United States
Authors: Suchlicki Jaime
Published: March 2007

In Describing Latin America as the “strategic rear” of the United States, the Soviet Union attributes great significance to this region for US interests and, consequently, to any changes which might alter the long-standing US dominance there. That the United States enjoys a unique position in Latin America has consistently been acknowledged by Soviet leaders. The US has been seen as able to enforce a “hands off” policy to extra-hemispheric powers; hence, the Kremlin has referred to “geographic fatalism” as its way of rationalizing the difficulties inherent in successfully effecting communist revolution, or even to advance Soviet influence, in an area so close to the United States.
Thinking about the Next Revolution: Lessons from US Policy in Nicaragua
Authors: Shugart Matthew Soberg
Published: March 2007

The Problem of how to cope with revolutions in Latin America has been, and in all likelihood will remain, a pressing concern for US policymakers. In recent times, the United States has not been very effective in its relations with post-revolutionary regimes. This paper will look at the Nicaraguan case and the ways in which US policy towards that country since the overthrow of Somoza, in July 1979, suggests a misreading of the process of revolution in general. Such misreading might impede our ability to deal effectively with future revolutions in the region.
Churches and Human Rights in Latin America: Recent Trends in the Subcontinent
Authors: Smith Brian H.
Published: March 2007

Over the past fifteen years the military have seized power in most major South American countries, leaving only Colombia and Venezuela with democratic regimes. The armed forces claim that only they are capable of controlling the domestic violence and social disruptions which accompanied the rapid political and economic changes of the 1960s. This process of social conflict and subsequent military intervention has been especially notable in the countries of the subcontinent region—Brazil, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina, Peru, and Uruguay.
Power and Politics in Peronist Trade Unions
Authors: James Daniel
Published: March 2007

The subject of this article is the Peronist union leadership in the period from the fall of Perón in 1955 until the elections of March 1973, which heralded the return of Peronism to power. The first section examines this leadership mainly in terms of its internal power base, especially vis-á-vis its membership. This involves primarily an examination of internal union government, union elections, and potential limitations of leadership power by the rank and file. The second part looks at the union leadership in terms of its power as a political force bargaining on behalf of the Peronist movement. This will also involve a brief look at the union leadership's relationship with Perón himself. Finally, the third section attempts to suggest an explanatory framework within which to situate the development of this union leadership's power.
Toward a Reinterpretation of Political Change in Peru During the First Century of Independence
Authors: Berg Ronald H. , Weaver Frederick Stirton
Published: March 2007

The central purpose of this paper is to show that the character of Peruvian national politics changed substantially during the century after independence from Spain and that a focus on the shifting relations between the central government and social and economic power in the private sector is crucial for appreciating the significance of these political developments and for comprehending their sources. Clearly a wide variety of forces conditioned the organization and exercise of political power in nineteenth-century Peru, but historical interpretations that stress the roles of economic elites (e.g., Bourricaud, 1970), foreign interests (Yepes del Castillo, 1972) or leaders’ personalities (Pike, 1967) obscure the magnitude of these political changes and do not adequately explain them.
Brazil's Rapprochement with Cuba: The Process and the Prospect
Authors: Nazario Olga
Published: March 2007

The Policy of “Responsible Pragmatism,” initiated in 1974 by President Ernesto Geisel, ended Brazil's automatic alignment with the United States and sought out non-ideological ties with Third World and socialist countries instead. This change in policy led Brazil to recognize both the People's Republic of China (in 1974) and the Republic of Angola (in 1975) as well as to improve links with other socialist nations. Resumption of relations with Cuba, however, was rejected by the military regime on grounds that the socialist island did not offer either the energy resources or substantial markets needed by Brazil, two considerations which had gone far to ease the concern of military hardliners over ideological issues.
From Inward- to Outward- Oriented Growth: Paraguay in the 1980s
Authors: Baer Werner , Breuer Luis
Published: March 2007

Since the 1950s, the development strategy of Paraguay has relied on export-led growth. To accomplish this the government placed great emphasis on price and exchange rate stability, first achieved in the late 1950s. Counting on limited resources, the country attempted to attract foreign investment while its own investment programs were directed primarily toward increasing domestic infrastructure, with road construction as a top priority. The latter opened up the eastern frontier region and provided an alternative outlet to the sea via the Brazilian highway system. Historically, Paraguay has counted on the Paraná River and on Argentinian ports for its access to the Atlantic.
Central American Vulnerabililty to Soviet/Cuban Penetration
Authors: Del Aguila Juan M.
Published: March 2007

Societies and regions affected by political turmoil are subject to intrusions by states which, either directly through surrogates, or in association with local anti-status-quo groups, seek to capitalize on internal vulnerabilities. Seldom do conflicts remain isolated from the external milieu, even if fundamental causes of political turmoil are local or domestic in character. In effect, protracted conflicts, such as those sweeping Central America since the late 1970s, offer opportunities for interventionist powers to project themselves into regions where, historically, a less aggressive posture was taken. With little doubt, the view that local actors can best determine the outcome of conflict situations, such as the one in Central America, is naive and fundamentally inaccurate, no more than a pious expression of neoisolationist sentiments directly at odds with reality.
Capitalist Dependency and Socialist Dependency: The Case of Cuba
Authors: Packenham Robert A.
Published: March 2007

Is Socialism a means to eliminate or reduce dependency and its alleged concomitants? According to a number of authors, including those of the most influential recent approaches to the study of Latin American politics and development, it is. Indeed, for most of these authors socialism is the only desirable or acceptable way to address the problems of dependent capitalism. For them, capitalism is inherently exploitative and repressive; socialism is the only desirable or acceptable path to a more autonomous, egalitarian, free and just society (Cardoso and Faletto, 1979: ix-xxiv, 209-216).

As some of the foregoing implies, and as is obvious to anyone familiar with the literature, for many authors the truth or falsity of this view is not a matter amenable to resolution by anything so mundane as reference to historical experience. For such analysts, this view is true by definition. The analyst using this perspective first “assumes” it to be true and then “demonstrates” that it is true by citing data that support it (Cardoso and Faletto, 1979: x).
Back to the Barracks? Five Years ‘Revo’ in Suriname
Authors: Brana-Shute Gary
Published: March 2007

On 25 November 1985 the Republic of Suriname celebrated ten years of independent statehood. That decade witnessed a number of unexpected and quite extraordinary events in the former Dutch colony. Since the last free parliamentary elections in 1977, the country has endured: a military coup d'etat (1980) the arbitrary arrest and detainment of leaders of the “old” political parties (1980); the nullification of its constitution and civil rights (1980) and the imposition of a “state of emergency” (1982); the appointment by the military high command of five civilian cabinets (1981,1982,1983,1984, and 1985); a foreign and domestic policy that has swung erratically between far left and center; a cordial relationship with Cuba unceremoniously broken by Suriname following the US-led invasion of Grenada; the tragic and colossally stupid murder of 15 (possibly more) prominent Surinamers opposed to the revolution (1982); the suspension of more than US$1.5 billion dollars of Dutch foreign aid (1982); seven alleged counter-coups, one of which supposedly enjoyed the support of the CIA and several American mercenaries (1980-1984); deteriorating relations with the Netherlands, to the point where there is no ambassador in the Hague; a rather visionary attempt to dismantle the ethnic structure of pre-revo party politics by creating “one national party;” a cozy relationship with Libya under the guise of “cultural exchange;” and the rapid deterioration of a once booming economy. Now in 1986, in the midst of a dialogue with the “old” political parties, there is robust talk of a return to civilian government.
Civil-Military Relations in Colombia: A Societal Explanation
Authors: Ruhl J. Mark
Published: March 2007

In spite of the reestablishment of civilian democracy in Ecuador and Peru, military government continues to be the norm in Latin America. In recent years, many scholars have examined the rise of military regimes in the region in order to gain a better understanding of the dynamics of civil-military relations. Few analysts, however, have studied civil-military relations in the handful of nations where civilian government has persisted. The purpose of this analysis is, therefore, to contribute to a broader understanding of Latin American military behavior by attempting to explain the Colombian armed forces’ atypical obedience to civilian authority.
Unprecedented Disparities, Unparalled Adjustment Needs: Winners and Losers on the NAFTA 'Fast Track'
Authors: Conroy Michael E. , Glasmeier Amy K.
Published: March 2007

History will record the almost-frenzied pace with which negotiators from Mexico, the United States, and Canada have proceeded to draft a treaty that will change drastically the nature of economic relations among the three nations. Three nations with severe social and economic problems, declining competitiveness in the global economy, and virtually no plans for remedying their domestic shortcomings have rushed to drop their borders. Ironically, this act will further reduce their ability to provide domestic remedies for their current problems. It casts these three economies into the unpredictable winds of free trade precisely at a time when a truly-conservative policy would have dictated economic reform at home and efforts to resolve, first, the major domestic crises in each.
The Aylwin Government and 'Tutelary' Democracy: A Concept in Search of a Case?
Authors: Rabkin Rhoda
Published: March 2007

The Literature on democratic transitions suggests two opposite sorts of dangers that the successful democratizer must avoid: too much uncertainty on the one hand, and too little on the other. The first can lead to conflict, violence, and abortive transitions (Karl and Schmitter, 199D; while the second means there is no democracy at all, but leads to something less which has been variously called: "tutelary democracy," "electoralism," or "democradura."

Before the government of Patricio Aylwin took office in Chile in March 1990, most observers anticipated that the return to democracy would bring considerable social conflict and political instability. Expressing a widely held view, one expert wrote: "Any return to democracy in Chile would entail vocal demands, from a variety of social groups and movements, to reverse the policies instituted by the regime since 1973" (Loveman 1986-87:29). The need to confront human rights abuses during the military government was another potentially explosive political issue.
The CARICOM States and the Group of Three: A New Partnership between Latin America and the Non-Hispanic Caribbean?
Authors: Serbin Andres
Published: March 2007

In 1990, the relationship between the states of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the Latin American states of the Caribbean Basin seemed to have entered a new phase characterized by movement toward convergence, rapprochement, and initiatives of horizontal cooperation. This situation contrasts sharply with a past marked by persistent tensions and divergent views, rooted in legacies dating from colonial times of mutually disqualifying ethno-historical perceptions and boundary disputes and marked by frequent differences within the context of international organizations (Serbín, 1989a, 1989b, 1990d; Serbín and Bryan, 1990).
The Military and the Politics of Change in Guyana
Authors: Griffith Ivelaw L.
Published: March 2007

The death of forbes burnham in August 1985 and the passing of power to Hugh Desmond Hoyte have produced dramatic changes in Guyana, South America's only English-speaking republic. Some of these have involved: (1) privatization of the public sector, (2) abolition of overseas voting, (3) negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), (4) rapprochement with the United States, plus (5) an agreement that observers — including former President Jimmy Carter and representatives from the London-based Commonwealth Secretariat—are being invited to oversee the upcoming elections scheduled for either August or September 1991.

Precipitated by domestic and international pressures, these changes have taken place within the context of a change in regimes as well, in which one dominant leader, Forbes Burnham, has been succeeded by another equally dominant, Desmond Hoyte.
Argentina's Bargaining with the IMF
Authors: Stiles Kendall W.
Published: March 2007

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) recently published a pamphlet on the question of whether the IMF, as an institution, imposes austerity on debtors. The response focused on the second half of the question and argued that IMF adjustment programs were, in fact, not systematically austere. However, from a political perspective, the first half of the question is much more provocative. Does the IMF “impose” its will on member states, and, if so, how? Many have argued i that, by virtue of its political connections with the financial centers of the world and its intellectual sophistication, the so-called “negotiations” which debtor nations conduct with Fund staff, prior to the drafting of an agreement on lending conditions, is little more than an exercise in coercion on the part of the Fund.
The Politics of Peruvian Economic Reform: Overcoming the Legacies of State-Led Development
Authors: Wise Carol
Published: March 2007

On 5 April 1992, Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori dissolved the Congress and suspended all constitutional guarantees, thus rendering Peru the first, among the seven leading countries of Latin America, to initiate a formal break away from the trend toward legally-elected civilian regimes which has been sweeping the region since the early 1980s. Peru's rupture of democratic rule occurred during a wave of domestic violence that evolved from, and is the consequence of, at least three major developments.
Income Distribution and the Enterprise for the Americas Initiative
Authors: Weisskoff Richard
Published: March 2007

The Issue of the Distribution of income is once again emerging as a critical component in the debates regarding Latin America's development path in the 1990s and as a factor underlying the proposed Enterprise of the Americas Initiative (EAI). I will argue that the degree of income inequality in the Latin American societies will prove to be an obvious, if unnoticed, obstacle to social progress which will affect the operation and outcome of the Initiative. In this essay, I review some of the hypotheses and recent findings from the research on income distribution. I shall contrast the conditions of the growth decades of the 1960s and 1970s with the “lost” decade of the 1980s. What have we learned, and what have we avoided learning during these years? How many of the initial conditions which the Alliance for Progress aimed at remedying 30 years ago are still with us?
Recent Trends in International Economic Relations of the CARICOM States
Authors: Gonzales Anthony P.
Published: March 2007

At the time of independence, CARICOM states found themselves extremely dependent upon the international economy, in part a legacy from the economic structure developed during their colonial period and in part due to the small size of their economies. Similar to most third world countries at the time, these economies relied heavily on one or two mineral and/or agricultural export commodities for foreign exchange, government revenue and employment. Furthermore, the prices of these commodities were subject to the vagaries of the international market, making the market for their exports unstable to an untenable degree for these vulnerable price-takers. This highly dependent state also exhibited many other well-known characteristics of underdevelopment, such as low levels of human resource development, savings and investment, technological capacity, and foreign exchange earnings.
The CARICOM States and US Foreign Policy: The Danger of Central Americanization
Authors: Erisman H. Michael
Published: March 2007

Traditionally most North Americans look upon the English-speaking Caribbean primarily as a place for tourists to pursue their quest for the three S's: sun, sand and surf— a perspective which generates little, if any, concern for the region's political dynamics. Indeed, the prevailing attitude seems to be that these countries, known collectively as the CARICOM states, are not politically important because they are so small and thus not worth the time of US officials or political analysts. However, in the early 1980s this attitude began to change as the Reagan administration elevated theentireCaribbean Basin to the status of a major global trouble spot, on the grounds that the US had vital interests there which were being threatened by Leftist-inspired subversion and which required major economic/security initiatives in order to pacify the area. Although most of Washington's energies and resources were focussed on Central America, the English-speaking territories (e.g., Jamaica and Grenada) also came under close scrutiny.
Selected Interamerican Public Policy Issues. The Need for Improved Basic Economic Rights
Authors: Mamalakis Markos J.
Published: March 2007

The aim of public policy is to create an environment within which economic agents can produce efficiently the composite commodities, and components thereof, which are needed to satisfy their economic needs.
Need to Design and Apply a More Effective Anti-Inflationary Plan in Latin America
Authors: Pazos Felipe
Published: March 2007

In recent years, price increases in the inflation-prone countries of Latin America have accelerated from their former customary pace of 2 low digits to 3, 4, or more digits and are inflicting much more economic, social, and political damage than the old, slower price increases ever did. The joint (and inter-related) effects of the debt crisis plus galloping inflation have stopped income growth, reduced per capita income, lowered real salaries, increased unemployment (and underemployment), impaired income distribution, increased absolute poverty, and provoked urban riots.
¿Mision Cumplida?Civil Military Relations and the Chilean Political Transition
Authors: Loveman Brian
Published: March 2007

The armed forces have reconstructed authentic democracy. They have once again definitively carried out their mission…. I love this country more than Life itself.

Captain General Augusto Pinochet11 September 1989

The Constitution of 1980 does not meet, in its elaboration of the manner in which it was ratified, the essential conditions required by constitutional doctrine for the existence of a legitimate political order based on the rule of law.

Francisco Cumplido C. (1983)Minister of Justice (1990)

On 11 March 1990, Patricio Aylwin took office as Chile's first elected president since 1970. Chile thus joined the list of Latin American nations making a transition from military to civilian government. Like the civilian governments in Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Peru, Bolivia, El Salvador and Guatemala, Chile's new government faced the challenge of returning the armed forces to a less central role in politics and reducing their institutional prerogatives.
The Decline of US Military Influence in Latin America
Authors: Samuel Fitch J.
Published: March 2007

The US military presence in Latin America has declined significantly over the last two decades, particularly in the major countries of the region. Despite the determined efforts of the Reagan administration to reverse that trend, with few exceptions the present ability of the United States to influence the Latin American militaries is far removed from the dominant role it played in the 1950s and 1960s. Given the pressures in Washington for further cuts in military aid programs, the trend toward declining US influence and increasingly divergent US-Latin American military interests is likely to continue in the 1990s. Although the United States will continue to be a major force in the region, the primary instruments of US influence are likely to be economic, rather than military-to-military relations.
Economic Stabilization and Structural Adjustment Under Fujimori
Authors: Olarte Efraín Gonzales de
Published: March 2007

When Alberto Fujimori campaigned for president of Peru W i n 1990, he ran on a platform in which he promised to institute a moderate program of gradual economic stabilization, including the privatization of certain state-owned enterprises. These promises were instrumental in his scoring an upset victory over writer Mario Vargas Llosa, who had been the odds-on favorite to win just three months earlier — and, thus, to become Peru's third popularly elected president in his country's ten years of continuous democracy.

Nevertheless, soon after Alán García relinquished the presidential office, in July 1990, to the newly-elected president, those election promises underwent a dramatic reversal. On the grounds that he had inherited a bankrupt country which left him no alternative (no habia otra cosa que hacef), the new president moved quickly to establish a stabilization program of classic orthodoxy in August 1990 (Fujimori, 1990).
The Deepening of Democracy in a Crisis Setting: Political Reform and the Electoral Process in Venezuela
Authors: Ellner Steve
Published: March 2007

During a conference on “Democracy under Pressure” that took place in November 1992 under the aegis of the North-South Center, a Venezuelan political scientist observed that, when all is said and done, the much-touted changes in the Venezuelan political system will probably not amount to much. The two major parties, which have exercised a near monopoly over electoral politics for the past 20 years, would doubtless pull in 80% of the vote in December (1992), only this time with strong local and regional leaders running as candidates.

Some politicians, government officials, and political analysts in Venezuela would agree that electoral reform, decentralization, and the growth of neighborhood associations — features of Venezuelan political life which have become increasingly marked over the last 15 years — do not alter or challenge thestatus quoin any fundamental way. On the other hand, there are also a number of political activists and commentators who, despite some disagreement as to the future direction of these changes, would argue that these developments are extremely significant.
The Military Regimes of Panama
Authors: Gandásegui Marco A.
Published: March 2007

The period of Panamanian history which is commonly referred to as that of the “military regime” (1968-1989) can be divided into two, and clearly distinct, phases. During the first stage (1968-1982), the military regime was engaged in trying to resolve the contradiction posed by two incompatible commitments: the commitment to pursue a national project of capitalist development on the one hand, and a commitment to support US interests on the isthmus on the other. To many observers, Panama assumed this latter commitment when it became a signatory of the Torrijos-Carter Treaties concerning the Panama Canal. The second stage (1983-89) witnessed some significant changes in this agenda, particularly the regime's abandonment, for the most part, of the project for national development, replacing it with a program to militarize the Canal route.
Consolidation after Imposition: Panama's 1992 Referendum
Authors: Scranton Margaret E.
Published: March 2007

In November 1992, Panama held its first nationwide election since the United States invaded the country to remove General Manuel Noriega in December 1989. Many experts, applying the strictest standards, view this referendum as the first credible national election to be held in Panama in 60 years. Others dispute this verdict, citing 1960 as the most “clean” election to held in recent memory. Whatever the benchmark, the 1992 referendum was acclaimed by participants and international observers alike as one that was transparent, free, and fair. As such, the referendum marked a small, but significant, step in the institutionalization of democratic procedures under a civilian regime.

This referendum was especially important for Panama's democratic transition and, consequently, for our understanding of the democratization process in general.