scholarly journals The political crisis of power in modern Venezuela: Reasons, dynamics, prospects of resolution

2021 ◽  
Vol 37 (3) ◽  
pp. 493-507
Author(s):  
Andrei G. Bolshakov ◽  
◽  
Timur Z. Mansurov ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Latin American ◽  
Negotiation Process ◽  
Political Elite ◽  
Political Crisis ◽  
The Political ◽  
Current Crisis ◽  
National Interests ◽  
Liberal Democratic ◽  
Constructive Dialogue ◽  
The One

The article examines the features and contradictions of resolving the political crisis in Venezuela. The authors analyze the activities of the direct parties to the conflict (the ruling regime led by current President Nicolas Maduro and the political opposition supported by the country’s Parliament) to resolve it and get the country out of the impasse. The work emphasizes the importance of socio-economic reasons that led to the emergence of the political crisis and the emergence of political forces, on the one hand, defending the ideas of socialist development, and, on the other, the values of the liberal — democratic structure of the state. The authors focus on the mechanisms and ways of resolving the political crisis implemented by Latin American countries, non-regional states and international organizations. However, their activities, as the study shows, are not effective enough since the national interests of states have a superior influence over the needs of stabilizing the political situation in the country and resolving the crisis. The authors examine the contradictions that prevent the beginning of a constructive dialogue between the parties of the conflict, supported by various segments of the population. The effectiveness of various international platforms and negotiation formats aimed at finding and developing solutions to the current crisis, compromises, and areas of joint activity is analyzed. As a result of the research, the authors come to the conclusion that at present it is necessary to cooperate more closely with both the ruling political elite and the opposition, despite the polar views of their representatives, as well as to expand the number of states in order to form a more objective negotiation process and achieve mutually acceptable solutions.

UKRAINIAN POLITICAL ELITE: SOCIAL EFFECTIVENESS ASSESSMENT BY DOMESTIC SCIENTISTS

2018 ◽  
pp. 21-31
Author(s):  
Л. В. Білоус
Keyword(s):  
Social Transformation ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Social Activity ◽  
Political Elite ◽  
Political Crisis ◽  
The Political ◽  
National Interests ◽  
Social Effectiveness ◽  
Historical Responsibility ◽  
Effectiveness Assessment

The article deals with the analysis of domestic scientists` research on the Ukrainian political elite social effectiveness and provides the coverage of their activity assessment in terms of publicinterests realization. It is noted that among the numerous works of domestic scientists on the consideration of certain aspects of the Ukrainian political elite formation and functioning processes there are A. Pakhariev`s, F. Rudych`s, O. Hladkyi`s, M. Holovatyi`s, M. Shulha`s, M. Mykhailychenko`s, I. Pobochii`s, Y. Shaihorodskyi’s and many other`s researches where the matter is raised. It is noticed that the scientists mainly negatively evaluate the political elite`s social activity in the period of Ukrainian independence. They emphasize that the “formal” political elite, “pseudoelite” of Ukraine is not solid and cohesive. They are not capable of thinking strategically and on a large scale, they are not ready to take historical responsibility for the society`s fate as a whole, adequately protect national interests, fight against corruption and, in general, resolutely carry out reforms. Domestic scientists emphasize that the Ukrainian political elite in their activity are still motivated mainly by their own narrow business interests, but not the interests of the society and the state. The article suggests that the political elite social activity negative assessment bythe domestic scientists is a general theoretical reflection of people`s real distrust of the Ukrainian authority because of political crisis, corruption, low salaries and high prices, inflation, forced emigration abroad, the conflict in the East and so on as various opinion polls show. The analysis of the scientific researches on our country`s political elite social effectiveness assessment has also made it possible to single out the scientists` vision of certain conditions under which a successful fulfillment of the elite`s social transformation subject function is possible.

Studying Political Leadership: The Case of François Mitterrand

1994 ◽  
Vol 42 (3) ◽  
pp. 453-468 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alistair Cole
Keyword(s):  
General Framework ◽  
Political Leadership ◽  
The Other ◽  
The Political ◽  
Environmental Constraints ◽  
Liberal Democratic ◽  
The One

The study of political leadership, in France and elsewhere, must be appreciated in terms of the interaction between leadership resources (personal and positional) on the one hand, and environmental constraints and opportunities on the other. This article proposes a general framework for appraising comparative liberal democratic political leaderships. It illustrates the possibilities of the framework by evaluating the political leadership of the French President François Mitterrand.

scholarly journals Framing international crises: a comparative content analysis of media texts on the collapse of Venezuela

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Berti Olinto
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Media Coverage ◽  
Political Crisis ◽  
International Crises ◽  
National Interests ◽  
Mainstream Media ◽  
News Agencies ◽  
Media Discourses ◽  
Comparative Content

This research explores mainstream and diasporic media coverage and discourses surrounding the Venezuelan economic and political crisis from late March 2017 until early May 2018. A comparative content analysis was applied to a total of 256 news articles, editorials, and stories from the Toronto Star, one of Canada’s largest newspapers, and from La Portada Canadá, a Spanish-language Latin American newspaper in Toronto. The results demonstrated diasporic media’s appropriation of journalistic biases such as human impact, dramatization, and national interests and the reframing of dominant discourses from international news agencies about the Venezuelan crisis. Whereas there are significant similarities between both media’s content regarding the crisis, La Portada Canadá stressed the transnational component of the Venezuelan diaspora through discourses about political and civic engagement in Canada. The Toronto Star focused more on the economic and political components of the crisis, which are closely linked to the country’s national agenda. Keywords: diasporic media, mainstream media, media coverage, media discourses, international crises, humanitarian crisis, Venezuela, Toronto

Questione morale e crisi di regime. La prima Repubblica italiana alla prova degli scandali (1992-1994)

2009 ◽  
pp. 27-42
Author(s):  
Jean Lpuis Briquet
Keyword(s):  
Political System ◽  
Political Change ◽  
Political Competition ◽  
Political Elite ◽  
Political Crisis ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Actors ◽  
Leading Role ◽  
Political Impact ◽  
Before And After

- According to the standard thesis, the political crisis in Italy between 1992 and 1994 and the collapse of the Christian Democrat regime are related to the revelation of corruption of the political elite by the judiciary. However, judicial revelations and corruption scandals have regularly occurred in Italy, before and after this crisis, without provoking a drastic political change and the reject of the political system by the electorate. Considering this paradox, the article suggests an alternate account of the 1992-1994 events that underline the way in which the political competition had been affected by the scandals: the moral crusades against corruption had in this period a political impact because they had been relayed and supported by emerging political actors in order to challenge the established elites and to claim a leading role in reshaping the political system.

Is Democracy Possible in Thailand?

2015 ◽  
pp. 101-110
Author(s):  
N. Rogozhina
Keyword(s):  
Political Development ◽  
Representative Democracy ◽  
Political Elite ◽  
Political Crisis ◽  
The Political ◽  
Main Question ◽  
Middle Classes ◽  
Class Differences ◽  
Traditional Elite ◽  
The Military

The political development of Thailand in XXIth century is characterized by a deep split of the society into opponents and supporters of democratization. The latter are consolidated around the figure of Taksin Sinavatra, the former prime minister. He was overthrown by the military in 2006, but still enjoys the support of the popular majority he gained due to his economic policy aimed at improving the life conditions of the poor in periphery regions. The triumph of his parties in elections since 2001 caused the new power balance in politics traditionally viewed as a focal area of the political establishment – the representatives of the Bangkok upper and middle classes only. The marginalization of their position in the political system and the impossibility of coming to power through elections determined their integration into the anti-government movement, for the purpose of cancelling the representative democracy system that doesn’t meet the interests of the traditional political elite finding itself in a “minority” and unwilling to be under the reign of a “majority”. The deepening of the political crisis provoked the military into undertaking the coup d’état in May 2014 and establishing an authoritarian regime, which ensured the accrescency of power for the traditional elite. Nevertheless, as the author concludes, the future political development of Thailand seems unclear. The power of military in cooperation with their civilian followers is unlikely to reconcile the society, split by class differences and political aspirations. The contemporary political development of Thailand reflects the situation when the “populace” doesn’t want just to remain under control any longer, and the “upper strata” refuses to be under the rule of the electoral majority. The main question raised today is not of the Taksin's destiny, but of an alternative for the Thailand's future political development – restricted democracy directed by upper classes, or representative democracy.

Profitable inefficiency: the politics of port infrastructure in Mombasa, Kenya

2019 ◽  
Vol 57 (1) ◽  
pp. 85-109
Author(s):  
Hugh Lamarque
Keyword(s):  
Dynamic Interaction ◽  
Political Elite ◽  
The Political ◽  
Physical Infrastructure ◽  
Key Sites ◽  
Distribution Of Power ◽  
The One ◽  
Port Infrastructure ◽  
Dry Ports ◽  
Political Settlement

AbstractThis article examines the distribution of power among public, private and criminal interests invested in Mombasa port. It approaches Kenya as a gatekeeper state, in which national elites compete to control the country's points of interaction with the rest of the world. Mombasa's controversial private dry ports are used to highlight (1) how the opportunity to profit from inefficiencies in container storage has been distributed among the political elite, and (2) how the development of the country's principal seaport not only reflects Kenya's underlying political settlements, but is one of the key sites in which those settlements are tested and reshaped. The case exposes a dynamic interaction between Kenya's shifting political settlement on the one hand, and the gate itself – Mombasa port's physical infrastructure and regulations – on the other.

Political crisis and the Rise of the Far Right in Greece

2015 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 173-199 ◽  
Author(s):  
Panagiotis Sotiris
Keyword(s):  
The Other ◽  
Political Crisis ◽  
The Political ◽  
Orthodox Church ◽  
Family Roles ◽  
Greek Orthodox ◽  
Far Right ◽  
Traditional Family ◽  
Greek Orthodox Church ◽  
The One

The electoral rise of Golden Dawn from obscurity to parliamentary representation has drawn attention to its particular neo-fascist discourse. In sharp contrast to the tendency of most far-right movements in Europe to present themselves as being part of the political mainstream, Golden Dawn has never disavowed its openly neo-Nazi references. Its political and ideological discourse combines extreme racism, nationalism and authoritarianism along with traditional conservative positions in favour of traditional family roles and values and the Greek Orthodox Church. The aim of this paper is twofold: on the one hand to situate the ideology and discourse of Golden Dawn in a conjuncture of economic and social crisis, a crisis of the project of European Integration, and examine it as part of a broader authoritarian post-democratic and post-hegemonic transformation of the State in contemporary capitalism; on the other hand to criticize the position suggested recently that Golden Dawn was also the result of the supposedly “national-populist” discourse of the anti-austerity movement. On the contrary, we will insist on the opposition between the discourses and practices of Golden Dawn and the anti-austerity movement in Greece.

scholarly journals Electoral Democracy – 2020 in the Light of Public Choice Theory: Lessons in Institutional Design for Russia

Federalism ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 62-79
Author(s):  
P. A. Orekhovsky
Keyword(s):  
Public Choice ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Institutional Design ◽  
Choice Theory ◽  
Political Stability ◽  
The United States ◽  
Economic Behavior ◽  
Political Crisis ◽  
The Political ◽  
Left Wing

2020 was marked by major landmark events. First of all, there is the political crisis in the United  States  related  to  the  presidential  elections.  Secondly,  there  is  the  UK’s  secession from the EU. Finally, there is the unexpected return to power of left-wing forces in some Latin American countries. This forces us to return to the foundations and conclusions of the theory of public choice – a tool that allowed us to analyze and predict the political and economic behavior of modern electoral democracies.The paper states that the erosion of the middle class leads to the dominance of minorities and their priorities. The position of the median voter is losing its former significance. As a result, the political duopoly becomes unstable, in contrast to the model of political pluralism (oligopoly). The desire of middle-income countries with a high degree of social differentiation to  adopt  a  bipartisan  system  in  the  hope  that  this  will  ensure  political  stability  must  be mistaken. In contrary to what was said, the construct of American federalism, which many scholars  consider  archaic,  effectively  defends  horizontal  democracy  and  discourages  the imposition of values by aggressive minority coalitions. The use of one or another modification of the «electoral colleges» in the presidential and parliamentary elections would strengthen the federal principles of horizontal democracy in Russia. The article presents an analysis of two main approaches to the analysis of corruption – as «opportunistic behavior of an agent in the principal-agent model», and as «status rent». Criticism of the latter approach reveals the view of Russia as an «institutional mutant». Authors who interpret corruption as «status rent» tend to ignore the rent-seeking behavior of actors in rich countries. The article substantiates the idea of transferring to Russia the American legislation regulating the  behavior  of  lobbyists,  the  contribution  of  funds  to  the  electoral  funds  of  parties  and politicians. Such a transplant will dramatically reduce the volume of domestic corruption, while at the same time making the «electoral machines» much more transparent.

Corruption as systemic political decay

2019 ◽  
pp. 019145371986826
Author(s):  
Camila Vergara
Keyword(s):  
Political Corruption ◽  
Political Regime ◽  
The Political ◽  
Normal Functioning ◽  
Liberal Democratic ◽  
Democratic Regimes ◽  
The One ◽  
Systemic Corruption

By offering an analysis of different conceptions of corruption connected to the political regime and contingency in which they developed, the article retrieves a systemic meaning of political corruption. Through the works of Plato, Aristotle, Polybius and Machiavelli, it reconstructs a dimension of political corruption particular to popular governments and also engages with recent neo-republican and institutionalist attempts at redefining political corruption. The article concludes that we still lack a proper conception of systemic corruption comparable to the one of the Ancients because we are yet unable to account for the role procedures and institutions play in fostering corruption through their normal functioning and what this means for liberal democratic regimes.

Togolese Crisis: French Gambit

2018 ◽  
pp. 28-41
Author(s):  
Vasily Filippov
Keyword(s):  
Optimal Solution ◽  
Political Crisis ◽  
The Political ◽  
French Empire ◽  
Fifth Republic ◽  
Current Events ◽  
Wait And See ◽  
The One ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Political Economic

This research explores the political crisis in the Togolese Republic that has been going since the fall of 2017. The problems under investigation: the confrontation between the power personified in the President Faure Gnassinbé, and the opposition led by Jean-Pierre Fabre; the background of the conflict; a role of France in the murder of the First Togolese President Sylvanus Olympio, and the establishment of the half century dictatorship of the Gnassinbé clan. The special attention is paid to the tactic of the French President of the Fifth Republic Emmanuel Macron and the President of Ghana Nana Akufo-Addo, in the settlement of the Togolese crisis. The principle of historicism and the historical reconstruction served as the methods to determine multiple factors of the political instability in Togo. These methods allowed us to conclude that at the core of the situation is the determination of the Elysee Palace to preserve the political, economic and strategical interests of France in this African country. The confrontation between the Togolese President whose legitimacy is questioned by many, and the opposition that has already shifted to the violent resistance to the odious country leader, make French President face a difficult choice. On the one hand, the removal from power of the Gnassingbé clan could seriously politically, economically and strategically hurt the Fifth Republic and become sign of the erosion of the whole “Franceafrique” system. On the other hand, an open support of F. Gnassingbé is fraught with serious reputational damage both, for E. Macron personally and for the entire French diplomacy on the Black continent. This, in turn, could Illy affect the relations of France with its African clientele, the former colonies of the French Empire. All of the above stipulate Paris’ wait-and-see attitude. Apparently, the optimal solution of the problem, according to Macron, is the preservation of the presidential rule of F. Gnassingbé until the 2020 elections. In his opinion, the elections would either confirm the legitimacy of the acting president or would provide a democratic power succession. The time left until the elections he expects to use to secure guarantees from the leaders of the opposition for all the preferences the Fifth Republic enjoys in its relations with the Togolese Republic. In the event of the crisis escalation France is ready to play a political gambit to gain sympathy of the opposition leaders at the cost of removal from power of its former favorite F. Gnassingbé. The novelty and importance of the research is conditioned by the current events in Togo: the political crisis has not yet become a subject of analysis of the Russian and Western scholars.

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