Democracy, Indigenous Movements, and Postliberal Challenge in Latin America

1999 ◽  
Vol 52 (1) ◽  
pp. 76-104 ◽  
Author(s):  
Deborah J. Yashar
Keyword(s):  
Political Institutions ◽  
Research Agenda ◽  
Democratic Consolidation ◽  
Democratic Politics ◽  
Indigenous Movements ◽  
Third Wave ◽  
State Institutions ◽  
Community Rights ◽  
Political Debates ◽  
Ethnic Movements

Scholars of democratic consolidation have come to focus on the links between political institutions and enduring regime outcomes. This article takes issue with the conceptual and analytical underpinnings of this literature by highlighting how new political institutions, rather than securing democratic politics, have in fact had a more checkered effect. It delineates why the theoretical expectations of the democratic consolidation literature have not been realized and draws, by example, on the contemporary ethnic movements that are now challenging third-wave democracies. In particular, it highlights how contemporary indigenous movements, emerging in response to unevenly institutionalized reforms, pose a postliberal challenge to Latin America's I newly founded democracies. These movements have sparked political debates and constitutional reforms over community rights, territorial autonomy, and a multiethnic citizenry. As a whole, I they have laid bare the weakness of state institutions, the contested terms of democracy, and the I indeterminacy of ethnic accommodation in the region. As such, these movements highlight the need to qualify somewhat premature and narrow discussions of democratic consolidation in favor I of a broader research agenda on democratic politics.

The Priority of Democracy

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jack Knight ◽  
James Johnson
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Monetary Policy ◽  
Political Institutions ◽  
Federal Reserve ◽  
Democratic Politics ◽  
Institutional Choice ◽  
Democratic Process ◽  
Strong Case ◽  
The Subject ◽  
The Relationship

Pragmatism and its consequences are central issues in American politics today, yet scholars rarely examine in detail the relationship between pragmatism and politics. This book systematically explores the subject and makes a strong case for adopting a pragmatist approach to democratic politics—and for giving priority to democracy in the process of selecting and reforming political institutions. What is the primary value of democracy? When should we make decisions democratically and when should we rely on markets? And when should we accept the decisions of unelected officials, such as judges or bureaucrats? This book explores how a commitment to pragmatism should affect our answers to such important questions. It concludes that democracy is a good way of determining how these kinds of decisions should be made—even if what the democratic process determines is that not all decisions should be made democratically. So, for example, the democratically elected U.S. Congress may legitimately remove monetary policy from democratic decision-making by putting it under the control of the Federal Reserve. This book argues that pragmatism offers an original and compelling justification of democracy in terms of the unique contributions democratic institutions can make to processes of institutional choice. This focus highlights the important role that democracy plays, not in achieving consensus or commonality, but rather in addressing conflicts. Indeed, the book suggest that democratic politics is perhaps best seen less as a way of reaching consensus or agreement than as a way of structuring the terms of persistent disagreement.

The elimination of violence and terrorism in Iraq strategy

2019 ◽  
pp. 375
Author(s):  
Mona Ali Duaij ◽  
Ahlam Ahmed Issa
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Political Institutions ◽  
The State ◽  
Civil Society Organizations ◽  
State Institutions ◽  
Terrorist Organization ◽  
The Media ◽  
Causes Of Crime ◽  
Religious Aspect

All the Iraqi state institutions and civil society organizations should develop a deliberate systematic policy to eliminate terrorism contracted with all parts of the economic, social, civil and political institutions and important question how to eliminate Daash to a terrorist organization hostile and if he country to eliminate the causes of crime and punish criminals and not to justify any type of crime of any kind, because if we stayed in the curriculum of justifying legitimate crime will deepen our continued terrorism, but give it legitimacy formula must also dry up the sources of terrorism media and private channels and newspapers that have abused the Holy Prophet Muhammad (p) and all kinds of any of their source (a sheei or a Sunni or Christians or Sabians) as well as from the religious aspect is not only the media but a meeting there must be cooperation of both parts of the state facilities and most importantly limiting arms possession only state you can not eliminate terrorism and violence, and we see people carrying arms without the name of the state and remains somewhat carefree is sincerity honesty and patriotism the most important motivation for the elimination of violence and terrorism and cooperation between parts of the Iraqi people and not be driven by a regional or global international schemes want to kill nations and kill our bodies of Sunnis, sheei , Christians, Sabean and Yazidi and others.

scholarly journals Refractory Frontier: Intra-party Democracy in the Zambian Polity

2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 7
Author(s):  
John Bwalya ◽  
Owen B. Sichone
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
Political Party ◽  
National Development ◽  
Democratic Consolidation ◽  
Third Wave ◽  
Leadership Positions ◽  
Leadership Transitions ◽  
Party Members ◽  
Selection Of

Despite the important role that intra-party democracy plays in democratic consolidation, particularly in third-wave democracies, it has not received as much attention as inter-party democracy. Based on the Zambian polity, this article uses the concept of selectocracy to explain why, to a large extent, intra-party democracy has remained a refractory frontier. Two traits of intra-party democracy are examined: leadership transitions at party president-level and the selection of political party members for key leadership positions. The present study of four political parties: United National Independence Party (UNIP), Movement for Multiparty Democracy (MMD), United Party for National Development (UPND) and Patriotic Front (PF) demonstrates that the iron law of oligarchy predominates leadership transitions and selection. Within this milieu, intertwined but fluid factors, inimical to democratic consolidation but underpinning selectocracy, are explained.

The Decline and Rise of Democracy

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Stasavage
Keyword(s):  
Political Institutions ◽  
The United States ◽  
Modern Democracy ◽  
Central State ◽  
Weak State ◽  
State Institutions ◽  
Strong State ◽  
The World ◽  
History Of ◽  
Historical Accounts

Historical accounts of democracy's rise tend to focus on ancient Greece and pre-Renaissance Europe. This book draws from global evidence to show that the story is much richer—democratic practices were present in many places, at many other times, from the Americas before European conquest, to ancient Mesopotamia, to precolonial Africa. Delving into the prevalence of early democracy throughout the world, the book makes the case that understanding how and where these democracies flourished—and when and why they declined—can provide crucial information not just about the history of governance, but also about the ways modern democracies work and where they could manifest in the future. Drawing from examples spanning several millennia, the book first considers why states developed either democratic or autocratic styles of governance and argues that early democracy tended to develop in small places with a weak state and, counterintuitively, simple technologies. When central state institutions (such as a tax bureaucracy) were absent—as in medieval Europe—rulers needed consent from their populace to govern. When central institutions were strong—as in China or the Middle East—consent was less necessary and autocracy more likely. The book then explores the transition from early to modern democracy, which first took shape in England and then the United States, illustrating that modern democracy arose as an effort to combine popular control with a strong state over a large territory. Democracy has been an experiment that has unfolded over time and across the world—and its transformation is ongoing. Amidst rising democratic anxieties, the book widens the historical lens on the growth of political institutions and offers surprising lessons for all who care about governance.

Democratisation and Ethnic Minorities

2018 ◽  
pp. 40-60
Author(s):  
Wu-Ling Chong
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Minorities ◽  
Rule Of Law ◽  
Electoral Politics ◽  
Democratic Politics ◽  
Cultural Identities ◽  
Cultural Environment ◽  
The Rule Of Law ◽  
State Institutions ◽  
Opening Up

This chapter discusses the democratisation process in post-Suharto Indonesia and the role of Chinese Indonesians in the democratisation process. The opening up of democratic politics in the post-Suharto era has offered opportunities for the Chinese to participate directly in electoral politics and run for public office. The relatively liberal socio-cultural environment also allows the Chinese openly to express their ethnic and cultural identities. However, the democratisation process has been marred by poor enforcement of the rule of law, the capture of state institutions and political parties by old and some new predatory interests, and rampant political thuggery. This allows some Chinese to continue gaining wealth through illegal or semi-legal means, and contributes to the continuing, if not growing, ambivalent attitude held towards Chinese Indonesians.

Nexus Politics

2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 56-81 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew Flinders ◽  
Matthew Wood
Keyword(s):  
Social Movements ◽  
Political Participation ◽  
Political Institutions ◽  
Research Agenda ◽  
Sociological Theory ◽  
Political Engagement ◽  
Political Organizations ◽  
Bottom Up ◽  
Governmental Institutions ◽  
Tribal Politics

Existing research on alternative forms of political participation does not adequately account for why those forms of participation at an “everyday” level should be defined as political. In this article we aim to contribute new conceptual and theoretical depth to this research agenda by drawing on sociological theory to posit a framework for determining whether nontraditional forms of political engagement can be defined as genuinely distinctive from traditional participation. Existing “everyday politics” frameworks are analytically underdeveloped, and the article argues instead for drawing upon Michel Maffesoli’s theory of “neo-tribal” politics. Applying Maffesoli’s insights, we provide two questions for operationally defining “everyday” political participation, as expressing autonomy from formal political institutions, and building new political organizations from the bottom up. This creates a substantive research agenda of not only operationally defining political participation, but examining how traditional governmental institutions and social movements respond to a growth in everyday political participation: nexus politics.

scholarly journals Rethinking political distrust

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 213-230 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eri Bertsou
Keyword(s):  
Political Science ◽  
Political Institutions ◽  
Empirical Work ◽  
Democratic Politics ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Unethical Conduct ◽  
Classical Liberal ◽  
Political Distrust ◽  
Established Democracies ◽  
The Relationship

AbstractIncreasing political distrust has become a commonplace observational remark across many established democracies, and it is often used to explain current political phenomena. In contrast to most scholarship that focuses solely on the concept of trust and leaves distrust untheorized, this article makes a contribution by analysing political distrust. It argues that citizen distrust of government and political institutions poses a threat for democratic politics and clarifies the relationship between the distrust observed in established democracies and classical ‘liberal distrust’, which is considered beneficial for democracy. Further, it addresses the relationship between trust and distrust, identifying a series of functional asymmetries between the two concepts, with important implications for theoretical and empirical work in political science. The article suggests that a conceptualization of political distrust based on evaluations of incompetence, unethical conduct and incongruent interests can provide a fruitful ground for future research that aims to understand the causes, consequences, and potential remedies for political distrust.

Democracy and Scandal: A Research Agenda

2013 ◽  
Vol 12 (6) ◽  
pp. 851-862 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jensen Sass ◽  
Thomas Crosbie
Keyword(s):  
Research Agenda ◽  
Process Model ◽  
Democratic Politics ◽  
Democratic Institutions ◽  
Institutional Effects ◽  
Liberal Democratic ◽  
Simple Question ◽  
Recent Edition ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Political Scandal

Abstract In a recent edition of this journal, Scott Brenton (2012) announced a refreshing perspective on the relationship between political scandal and liberal democratic institutions: though scandals are often thought anathema to democratic politics, a cause of public distraction or a sign of institutional degradation, their effect may actually be to reinforce and rejuvenate the polity. We consolidate and then challenge this perspective. We begin by reconstructing Brenton’s observations on scandal as a process model which we term the “scandal reform cycle”. We then suggest a raft of challenges to the model to reveal the complexity of scandals and their uncertain institutional effects. Our larger ambition is to articulate the relationship between scandal and democracy not as a simple question but rather as an ambitious and timely research agenda.

Neo-Liberalism and the Decline of Democratic Governance in Australia: A Problem of Institutional Design?

2005 ◽  
Vol 53 (1) ◽  
pp. 22-42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian Marsh
Keyword(s):  
Conceptual Framework ◽  
Political Institutions ◽  
Institutional Design ◽  
Democratic Governance ◽  
Democratic Politics ◽  
Political Elites ◽  
Subsequent Evolution ◽  
Preliminary Attempt ◽  
Changing Patterns

This paper is a preliminary attempt to evaluate changing patterns of democratic governance, at least in Westminster-style parliamentary settings, and possibly more generally. It has two specific purposes: first, to propose a paradigm for evaluating the empirical evolution of democratic governance; and second, to illustrate the explanatory potential of this paradigm through a mini-case study of changing patterns of governance in one particular polity. The conceptual framework is drawn from March and Olsen's eponymous study (1995) from which polar (‘thick’ and ‘thin’) forms of democratic governance are derived. Four conjectures about its evolution are then explored. First, in its mass party phase, the pattern of democratic governance approximated the ‘thick’ pole. Second, the subsequent evolution of democratic politics has been in the direction of the ‘thin’ (minimalist or populist) pole. Third, the cause of this shift was a failure to adapt political institutions to changing citizen identities, which was masked by the ascendancy amongst political elites of the neo-liberal account of governance. Fourth, the paper considers the means by which democratic governance might be renewed. The approach is applied to explain changes in Australian politics over recent decades.

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