The recently signed peace-agreement with the FARC poses many opportunities to the Colombian state, as well as new challenges. Even though the biggest guerrilla organisation in the country has now...Show moreThe recently signed peace-agreement with the FARC poses many opportunities to the Colombian state, as well as new challenges. Even though the biggest guerrilla organisation in the country has now been demobilised, organised crime seems to be taking over power in former FARC-territory for interests connected to the illegal drug trade. This paper analyses the ways in which organised crime undermines the possibility of the Colombian government to re-establish rule of law in these regions. It concludes that the magnitude and structure of crime is in Colombia problematic, that the recent visibility of crime undermines the state’s legitimacy, and that the penetration of organised crime into the political sphere, which is vulnerable to corruption, decreases the effectiveness of policies against organised crime.Show less
The recent shift to the right in Latin American politics requires an analysis of the consequences of this development for US-Latin American relations. This is essential since the relations have...Show moreThe recent shift to the right in Latin American politics requires an analysis of the consequences of this development for US-Latin American relations. This is essential since the relations have deteriorated in the previous Pink Tide era, an era in which anti-American left-wing governments gained momentum, which led to a rejection of the US hegemony in the region. Consequently, the purpose of this paper is to investigate the relation between the Latin American political spectrum, the nature of bilateral relations with the United States and US hegemony. Argentina is taken as a case study to demonstrate that the shift to the right results in improved bilateral relations with the United States, which consequently shows an increasing influence of the US in Argentina. If this development spreads to other countries in the region, there is a real potential for the United States to reinforce its hegemony in Latin America.Show less
Este trabajo trata la participación política de las mujeres a nivel nacional en Chile. El énfasis se pone a los cambios en la participación política de las mujeres a nivel nacional en el período...Show moreEste trabajo trata la participación política de las mujeres a nivel nacional en Chile. El énfasis se pone a los cambios en la participación política de las mujeres a nivel nacional en el período 2000 - 2010 con el enfoque en el liderazgo político y en la agenda de género del gobierno de Michelle Bachelet. También este trabajo estudia la evolución de la participación de las mujeres como candidatas en las elecciones parlamentarias en dicho período. Para el análisis de esta temática se utilizan varias teorías de autores como Fernández Poncela, Franceschet, Fernández Ramil, Ríos y Reyes Housholder que describen ante todo la oportunidad política de las mujeres, el liderazgo femenino y la participación sustantiva y descriptiva de las mujeres que son claves para este trabajo. La mayoría de los datos fueron recogidos durante el trabajo de campo que complementa la literatura sobre esta temática. Las entrevistas con varios expertos tratan los temas de machismo, percepción de las mujeres de parte de la sociedad, el comportamiento de los partidos políticos hacia las mujeres, las razones de mayor participación de las mujeres y la figura de Michelle Bachelet y su impacto en la política chilena. El análisis intenta a responder la pregunta si el liderazgo de Michelle Bachelet ha aumentado la participación política de las mujeres y la política de la primera presidenta de Chile ha generado un aumento de las mujeres en la política nacional. El análisis muestra que el impacto de Michelle Bachelet no fue tan alto como se tenía esperado. El trabajo señala que la figura de Bachelet tiene un valor simbólico porque logró visibilizar la agenda de género y la necesidad de la equidad de género en Chile. También es posible resumir que el ámbito político chileno sigue siendo muy machista y muy complejo para que haya una mayor inserción de las mujeres a cargos políticos. Bachelet es una excepción que logró un éxito, pero en el campo de las políticas pro-mujer no siempre fue exitosa. Durante su segundo gobierno logró que se aprobara la ley de cuota de género que finalmente terminó con la baja participación política de las mujeres, pero todavía es necesario promover más las políticas públicas dirigidas a las mujeres y desarrollar la política de género como muestra este trabajo.Show less
Throughout the 20th century, the Brazilian agricultural landscape has gone through meaningful transformations of modernization, globalization and expansionism. While increasingly concentrated land...Show moreThroughout the 20th century, the Brazilian agricultural landscape has gone through meaningful transformations of modernization, globalization and expansionism. While increasingly concentrated land ownership and ruralist hegemony consolidated the position of rural elites, Brazilian agriculture has also progressively integrated into Global Commodity Chains (GCC), dominated by a complex of transnational agribusiness. Simultaneously, lethal violence targeting activists and local communities who seek to frustrate the expanding agricultural frontiers exacerbates, undermining those who resist the agribusiness model. Focusing on the case of the soybean GCC as a commodity complex, this Master’s thesis approaches violence in rural land conflicts as an endogenous regulatory feature of the agribusiness regime of accumulation, leading to the theorization of competitive structures of direct violence.Show less
Since the formation of the Peruvian Republic in 1821, until the creation of the Truth and Reconcili- ation Commission in 2001, collective memory was curated through a single narrative. This type of...Show moreSince the formation of the Peruvian Republic in 1821, until the creation of the Truth and Reconcili- ation Commission in 2001, collective memory was curated through a single narrative. This type of collective memory curation aimed at building a national identity and thus unifying a country with deep-rooted ethnic, social and geographic divisions. However, as Peru was ravaged by an internal war from the year 1980 to 2000, the deadliest conflict the nation has faced in its history, new spaces opened for the curation of collective memory. The most notable of these spaces are memory sites and museums, which fuels the question that guides this thesis: what is the role of memory sites and memory museums in curating collective memory in post-conflict Peru? Firstly, the concept ‘new wars’ and how it has shaped the meaning of post-conflict shall be explored. Followed by a delve into collect- ive memory and how its curation has changed in the last century through memory sites and museums. Consequently, chapter two analyses the socio-political context which led to the development of new ways of curating collective memory in Peru and the role collective memory had and has in national politics. Chapter three analyses the role of the ‘Lugar de la Memoria, Tolerancia y la Inclusion Social’ (Place of Memory, Tolerance and Social Inclusion, LUM) in curating collective memory in post-conflict Peru.Show less
The thesis draws an analytical approach on the issue of political clientelism within the Mexican State. A comparison on the occurence of political clientelism within the PRI regime and the post-PRI...Show moreThe thesis draws an analytical approach on the issue of political clientelism within the Mexican State. A comparison on the occurence of political clientelism within the PRI regime and the post-PRI regimes has been included within the research in order to find out whether the fall of the single-party rule of the PRI has brought any signifcant differences to the levels of political clientelism within the state.Show less
National Identity and Nationalism play a growing role in our globalized world. Being globalized stands for a shrinking world, which has an effect upon every sphere of life – from economic condition...Show moreNational Identity and Nationalism play a growing role in our globalized world. Being globalized stands for a shrinking world, which has an effect upon every sphere of life – from economic condition, to personal freedom, to cultural customs. Bilateralism, or bilateral relationships such as the one between Mexico and the United States bring countries closer together and enable success and growth. Nevertheless, such a relationship also impacts on both countries through cultural convergence and economic dependence. Therefore, this study examines how the Mexico – United States bilateral relation impacts on Mexico´s national identity. It directly addresses the level of anti-American sentiment in Mexico City. Furthermore, it assesses how an increased antiAmerican sentiment and a growing Mexican nationalism impact on Mexico´s foreign policy towards the United States of America. Finally, it evaluates in how far this affects the construction of the Mexican identity itself. The author shows in this study that there exists a connection between a growing anti-American sentiment in the Mexican society and the current stage of the bilateral relationship between Mexico and the United States of America. This study concludes that currently the seemingly volatile relationship between Mexico and the United States of America is also an opportunity or possibility for Mexico to gain next to economic independence, also to reorient the construction of the Mexican national identity distinguished from its neighbouring country.Show less
In the 1970s and 80s, Peru was afflicted by revolutionary violence conducted by the Shining Path movement. The Shining Path aimed to start a revolution that would contribute to the overthrow of the...Show moreIn the 1970s and 80s, Peru was afflicted by revolutionary violence conducted by the Shining Path movement. The Shining Path aimed to start a revolution that would contribute to the overthrow of the old bureaucratic capitalist system and establish the new social state of Peru. Special attention must be given to the major inspirational and operational role of leader of the Shining Path, Abimael Guzmán. His fascination for the Marxist and Maoist ideology formed the principles of the movement. Because of Guzmán’s charismatic position and strong ideological stance, his leadership is often characterized as either revolutionary or terrorist. But what elements of Guzmán’s leadership account for his characterization as revolutionary and what elements depict him as terrorist? This thesis aims to explore the different elements that depict Guzmán as either revolutionary or terrorist by looking to the concepts of leadership, revolutionary and terrorist movements.Show less
The pacification program that was initiated in the city of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil prior to the World Cup 2014 got global media coverage due to the high amount of violence that come with it. The...Show moreThe pacification program that was initiated in the city of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil prior to the World Cup 2014 got global media coverage due to the high amount of violence that come with it. The goal of the program is to make the favelas of Rio de Janeiro an safer living environment, where there would be no more criminal violence and drug-related activities. These poor neighborhoods would be safe and secure living environments, under the control of local police units, instead of criminal gangs. Unfortunately, the high amount of crime and violence is still present in these favelas and the pacification program appeared to have done more damage than good. The police and military units used extremely violent measures to control these criminal gangs, which created a lot of anger towards them by the society. Thereby, it led to an increasing distrust between the citizens and governmental agencies. Thereby, citizens of all social classes joint forces in order to protest against the government and the pacification program. The results suggest that the Brazilian government took the wrong policy by choosing to solve violence with violence. With the program existing already for many years, nowadays the criminal gangs are still in control in large areas of the favelas and are willing to fight the police. The study supports the view that the government should take more peaceful methods, since these proof to be more effective and have a positive result. Whereas the more violent approach, by following the hard lined - “Mano Dura” strategy as other Latin American states did, leads to continuing violence and an failed attempt to resolve the problem.Show less
This thesis provides an in-depth analysis on the impact of the social movement 'Ni Una Menos' on combating violence against women in Argentina. It focuses on the scope of legislative gender...Show moreThis thesis provides an in-depth analysis on the impact of the social movement 'Ni Una Menos' on combating violence against women in Argentina. It focuses on the scope of legislative gender policies, as well as offering an academic discussion on the success of the women's movement in influencing politics regarding the issue of gender violence in the country.Show less
Eva Peron is often seen as a populist, like her husband Juan Peron. It has long been discussed in academic papers that both of them had personalistic and plebiscitarian approaches to the masses,...Show moreEva Peron is often seen as a populist, like her husband Juan Peron. It has long been discussed in academic papers that both of them had personalistic and plebiscitarian approaches to the masses, but what has not been yet discussed in depth is the synergy that existed between the two. Eva Peron was complementing the populism of the colonel in numerous ways. This thesis will discuss how and why could she be considered a populist and how she completed Peron in her actions and discourse. The research will be carried out looking at the state of the art of the concept of populism as a way to understand whether it could fit Eva Peron’s approach or not, and will then analyse the factors that inspired the idea that her and Peron were working as two sides of the same coin.Show less
