ENGLISH

Global Capitalism, Democracy, and Civil-Military Relations in Colombia

Book information

Publisher
State University of New York Press
Year
2006
ISBN
079146699X, 9780791466995, 9781423769484
LCC
JL2881 .A95 2006
Language
english
Format
PDF
Filesize
8 MB (8677640 bytes)
Series
SUNY Series in Global Politics
Edition
annotated edition
Pages
192\204
Time added
2011-06-04 13:46:07

Description

Through the lens of global capitalism theory, William Avilés examines democratization and civil-military relations in Colombia to explain how social and international forces led to the ostensibly contradictory outcome of democratic and economic reform coinciding with political repression. Focusing on the administrations in power from 1990 to the present, Avilés argues that the reduction in the institutional powers of the military within the state reflected changes in the structure of the global economy, the emergence of globalizing technocrats and politicians, and shifts in U.S. foreign policy strategies toward “democracy promotion.” These same factors explain Colombia’s establishment of a low-intensity democracy—a structure of elite rule in which the strategies of coercion (state and para-state repression) and consensus (competitive elections, civilian control over the military) maintain control and legitimacy. In the age of capitalist globalization, a low-intensity democracy is most concomitant with neoliberalism, establishing the political and economic environment most suitable to the investments of transnational corporations.

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