2nd Edition
Latin American Democracy Emerging Reality or Endangered Species?
More than thirty years have passed since Latin America began the arduous task of transitioning from military-led rule to democracy. In this time, more countries have moved toward the institutional bases of democracy than at any time in the region’s history. Nearly all countries have held free, competitive elections and most have had peaceful alternations in power between opposing political forces. Despite these advances, however, Latin American countries continue to face serious domestic and international challenges to the consolidation of stable democratic governance. The challenges range from weak political institutions, corruption, legacies of militarism, transnational crime, and globalization among others.
In the second edition of Latin American Democracy contributors – both academics and practitioners, North Americans, Latin Americans, and Spaniards—explore and assess the state of democratic consolidation in Latin America by focusing on the specific issues and challenges confronting democratic governance in the region. This thoroughly updated revision provides new chapters on:
- the environment,
- decentralization,
- the economy,
- indigenous groups,
- and the role of China in the region.
1. Introduction: Democracy in Latin America: Promises and Perils, Richard Millett Section One: The State of Latin American Democracy 2. Democratic Consolidation in Latin America? Jennifer S. Holmes 3. Measuring Democratic Political Culture in Latin America, Orlando Pérez 4. Latin American Democracy: The View from the South. The United States and the OAS: What Frustrates the Americans? John Maisto 5. Latin American Democracy: The View from the South, Francisco Rojas Aravena. Translated by Leonor Elsner.6. The Rule of Law in Latin America, Luz E. Nagle Section Two: The Status of Institutions 7. Executive-Legislative Relations and Democracy in Latin America, Peter Siavelis 8.Women and Politics in Latin America, María del Mar Martínez Rosón 9. Decentralization and Local Government in Latin America, Lorena Moscovich 10. The State, the Military and the Citizen: New Security Challenges in Latin America, Rut Diamint and Laura Tedesco 11. Democracy and Populism in the Andes: A Problematic Coexistence, Julio Carrión Section Three: Domestic and Regional Issues 12. Indigenous Mobilization and Democracy in Latin America, Roberta Rice 13. Crime and Citizen Security: Democracy’s Achilles Heel, Richard L. Millett 14. Economic Development and Democracy in Latin America. Sheila Amin Gutiérrez de Piñeres & Michael Ferrentino 15. Democratic Governance and Corruption in Latin America, Gerardo Berthin 16. Chinese Influence on Latin America: Challenges and Opportunities, Evan Ellis 17. Conclusion. Slow Progress and False Promises, Orlando Pérez and Jennifer S. Holmes
Biography
Richard L. Millett is professor emeritus at Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville and Vice President of the American Committees on Foreign Relations.
Jennifer S. Holmes is a professor and Head of Public Policy, Political Economy and Political Science at the University of Texas at Dallas.
Orlando J. Pérez is associate dean of the School of Humanities and Social Sciences at Millersville University. He is a member of the Scientific Support Group for the Latin American Public Opinion Project (LAPOP) at Vanderbilt University and directs the Americas Barometer survey in Panama.
"Millett, Holmes and Pérez have undertaken a major revision of their widely read first edition. This new edition offers new material on the environment, decentralization, the economy, indigenous groups and the growing role of China in Latin America. The product is a cohesive volume that provides a comprehensive analysis of recent trends away from democratization. It is written by the top scholars in the field and does an excellent job of looking at topics from both the perspective of the North and that of the South. Unlike other treatments, which focus narrowly on state institutions, this volume goes far beyond that limited perspective and includes such important issues as political culture, populism, crime, corruption, civil-military relations, human rights, the media, and more. A continued must read for scholars, students, and policy makers."
—Mitchell A. Seligson, Centennial Professor of Political Science, and Director of the Americas Barometer, Vanderbilt University
This comprehensive, edited volume contains chapters on all the usual themes in the political development and democracy literature. Chapters cover the roles of political culture, the military, presidentialism, indigenous movements, the representation of women, the strength of institutions, corruption, crime, inequality, governance, and populism. ...Overall, this is a thorough overview of past and current research on the democratic transition and consolidation throughout Latin America.
--L. M. Barnett, Our Lady of the Lake University
