This thesis explores Panama’s relations with the US and China, across history and more specifically in the 21st century, through a neorealist lens. Neorealist assumptions are applied to the case,...Show moreThis thesis explores Panama’s relations with the US and China, across history and more specifically in the 21st century, through a neorealist lens. Neorealist assumptions are applied to the case, and Panama’s bandwagoning and balancing strategies with the US and China are discussed as observed by historical trends and economic data such as Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), trade (Panamanian exports and imports from/to the US and China), foreign aid statistics, bilateral agreements, and diplomatic statements by high officials on economic and security issues. The study finds that China’s hegemonic rise in Panama-China relations represents merely an indication of China’s potential to be a long-term hegemonic challenger to US hegemony, and does not signify a shift in hegemony. Panama is seen to balance and bandwagon with both the US and China, choosing alignment depending on the perceived economic gains involved and potential threats to survival. Panama balances with their long-standing ally and regional hegemon, the US, to foremost secure survival in the long-term while in the short-term Panama bandwagons with China for economic gains. Panama’s consideration of China as alternative to the US as a greater power for alignment demonstrates China’s hegemonic character in LAC. Nonetheless, this case study shows that the US maintains its primacy and superiority as a hegemon due to its strong historical ties and yet unrivaled economic and military capacity.Show less
The decreased importance of the state, increased financialization, and growing power of multinationalcorporations have led to a shift of the responsibilities of the state, and a subsequent change...Show moreThe decreased importance of the state, increased financialization, and growing power of multinationalcorporations have led to a shift of the responsibilities of the state, and a subsequent change in the way in which different regimes legitimize their rule. The responsibilities of a regime, and the legitimacy it has are closely related in this regard. The research question that this thesis will aim to answer then is the following: "what is the influence of a regimes source of legitimacy on the responsibilities is has and the attitude the regime adopts vis-à-vis globalisation? For this purpose various theories on globalisation have been brought together in a theoretical model. This model is also tested and applied on Latin America in order to assess the relevance and applicability on non western economies.Show less
La migración nicaragüense hacia Costa Rica tiene una larga historia y su integración ha sido muy compleja. En esta investigación se pone atención a esta temática desde la perspectiva de la sociedad...Show moreLa migración nicaragüense hacia Costa Rica tiene una larga historia y su integración ha sido muy compleja. En esta investigación se pone atención a esta temática desde la perspectiva de la sociedad civil, en cuanto actor que ha recibido escasa atención. Se analizan las actividades desarrolladas por las mismas organizaciones de la sociedad civil, con atención particular al contacto intergrupal, y también en que manera la sociedad civil colabora con las instituciones en la formación de políticas públicas.Show less
This thesis focuses on community-based tourism (CBT) projects in Ecuador. The work discusses the grade of control that indigenous communities have in this form of ecotourism and also analyses the...Show moreThis thesis focuses on community-based tourism (CBT) projects in Ecuador. The work discusses the grade of control that indigenous communities have in this form of ecotourism and also analyses the empowerment of those groups in certain projects. This empowerment is often a result of foreign aid. Although indigenous communities often seem to be in control of CBT projects, empowerment is an issue in some cases.Show less
Latin America’s drug trafficking has been a number one priority for the United States (US) and Latin American countries. War on drugs has begun in 1980s and up to now has no end date. The US has...Show moreLatin America’s drug trafficking has been a number one priority for the United States (US) and Latin American countries. War on drugs has begun in 1980s and up to now has no end date. The US has united with Colombia for Plan Colombia (1999) to battle the drug trafficking, and then consolidated with Mexico to implement Merida Initiative to battle the Drug Trafficking organizations (narco-cartels). The US administration believed if it implemented Plan Colombia into the Merida Initiative, it would yield the same successful outcomes. It is debatable whether Plan Colombia was successful or not, since the fragmentation of cartels within Colombia has made them untraceable, and raw material cultivation has been moved to other countries such as Mexico, Peru, and Bolivia. It is important to note that drug trafficking organizations depending on country, size and structure. Therefore, it is impossible for anti-drug enforcements to implemented initiatives without alterations in different settings and be expected to reach the same goals. Organized crime and drug trafficking organizations in Mexico have become considerably malicious, which was the reason for the conference between President Calderon of Mexico and US administration in 2006 for the implementation of Merida Initiative, aimed at putting an end to trafficking and organized crime. The war on drugs was militarized through the training of Mexican soldiers in the US and funded by the US and other countries. The effects of such anti-drug law enforcement plans were disappointing, to say the least, as it did not go as planned. This has led to increasing violence, fragmentation of drug cartels and unprecedented levels of police corruption. Therefore, this thesis examines the efficiency of Plan Colombia, as well as alternative explanations to its failure. These include economic and cultural causes leading to stability of drug supply from Mexico to match the rising demand of drugs in the US.Show less
A partir de la segunda mitad del siglo XX los procesos de industrialización y modernización de la agricultura transformaron la ruralidad tradicional ecuatoriana. En este contexto, la...Show moreA partir de la segunda mitad del siglo XX los procesos de industrialización y modernización de la agricultura transformaron la ruralidad tradicional ecuatoriana. En este contexto, la marginalización del campesinado y de la población indígena se agudizó, persistiendo el problema de inseguridad alimentaria en el campo. Este estudio presenta un análisis crítico sobre el Programa del Buen Vivir Rural, estrategia alternativa a la política de desarrollo local derivado de los procesos de industrialización, y su capacidad para mejorar el acceso al alimento de la población rural de las provincias de Tungurahua, Chimborazo y Bolívar. El análisis se asienta sobre dos conceptos fundamentales de la política agraria ecuatoriana implementada a partir del 2008: la interculturalidad y la soberanía alimentaria.Show less
The thesis examines the successes and limitations of Evo Morales's alternative model of development called "Vivir Bien" and how the need for alternative development arose in the first place....Show moreThe thesis examines the successes and limitations of Evo Morales's alternative model of development called "Vivir Bien" and how the need for alternative development arose in the first place. Therefore, it expounds the country's trajectory towards dependence on the export of primary resources and the deteriorating effects that development models conceived in the global North and applied in the global South, particularly in Bolivia, had. Evo Morales assumed presidency in 2006 with the promise of overcoming the primary-resource-exports dependency and centering development around local needs, stressing indigenous knowledge and a communitarian lifestyle. His proposal is formulated in the so-called Plan Nacional de Desarrollo, which was issued in 2007. In order to overcome extractivism and raw materials exports, however, the Morales administration suggests to utilize the very extractivism to generate the capital needed to industrialize the extractive sectors and to later diversify the economy. However, the industrialization levels have not increased, and neither has the economy shown notable signs of diversification, on the contrary. As extractivism is a self-reinforcing activity, it does not weaken ties of dependency, does not improve the extracting country's position in the world economy or promote autonomy in the global capitalist system. Further on, extractivism under Morales has led to clashes with the population that Evo Morales supposedly caters to in particular - the indigenous and peasant communities. Therefore, extractivism is not suited to drive alternative development because it contradicts too strongly with a goal of development that takes into account local needs. In fact, it reinforces ties of dependency to the capitalist center and neglects the aspect of citizen participation in political processes.Show less
La presente investigación tiene como objetivo principal evaluar las dimensiones de la trata de personas en Colombia entre el periodo del año 2000 hasta el año 2018, haciendo énfasis en los factores...Show moreLa presente investigación tiene como objetivo principal evaluar las dimensiones de la trata de personas en Colombia entre el periodo del año 2000 hasta el año 2018, haciendo énfasis en los factores históricos y sociales que explican el desarrollo del fenómeno en el país, abordando, además, la intervención del gobierno central en sus esfuerzos por combatir el delito de la trata de personas en Colombia.Show less
Mexico's political history can be defined as relatively turbulent. The hegemonic rule of the dominant PRI party, has influenced Mexico by the distrustful attitude Mexicans continue to have against...Show moreMexico's political history can be defined as relatively turbulent. The hegemonic rule of the dominant PRI party, has influenced Mexico by the distrustful attitude Mexicans continue to have against the political party system. A crisis of political legitimacy and distrust prove to play a large role in the continuing discontent and the emergence of several social movements in Mexico. With the return of the PRI in 2012, one specific movement stood out to mobilize against president Peña Nieto, the #YoSoy132 movement. A lack of faith in the dominant PRI were based upon distrust in institutions, an unstable political system and many fraud allegations. This thesis examines the link between distrust and political legitimacy, and how these notions are connected to the emergence of the #YoSoy132 movement.Show less
In the pluricultural states of Ecuador and Bolivia, indigenous women suffer a notably higher maternal mortality rate than non-indigenous women. Several barriers impede indigenous women from...Show moreIn the pluricultural states of Ecuador and Bolivia, indigenous women suffer a notably higher maternal mortality rate than non-indigenous women. Several barriers impede indigenous women from accessing high-quality care, and cultural barriers hinder them from receiving culturally sensitive care. With the introduction of new universal social policies of intercultural healthcare, Ecuador and Bolivia attempt to provide a complementary healthcare system of traditional and western medicine, with one of its focus on maternal healthcare. With a quantitative and qualitative approach, this research explores that the implementation of intercultural healthcare can improve the health status of indigenous women.Show less
Latin America saw a substantial increase in the number of fatalities in environmental activism in 2017; the region considered the most dangerous place in the world for being an environmental...Show moreLatin America saw a substantial increase in the number of fatalities in environmental activism in 2017; the region considered the most dangerous place in the world for being an environmental defender. Nevertheless, there has been observed a significant increase in female involvement in environmentalism in the last few decades, with the emergence of women at the frontlines of environmental struggle. As the activists are female, the acts of violence exerted against them have often been of a gendered nature, underlining the complex vulnerability the activists are surrounded by in already dangerous circumstances. The thesis aims to identify factors reinforcing vulnerability in female participants of environmental activism, in order to establish a substantiated understanding of how the factors intersect and contribute to the vulnerable position of female environmental activists in contemporary Latin America.Show less
Through case study research centered on women as the subject, this thesis illustrates the complex questions arising between forced migration, state failure, criminal organizations, and gender-based...Show moreThrough case study research centered on women as the subject, this thesis illustrates the complex questions arising between forced migration, state failure, criminal organizations, and gender-based violence, aiming at providing an insight into the dynamics of female mobility through a gendered security analysis method. The research is focused on the two main perpetrators of violence against women, the state and the organized crime, which mutually activate each other, creating a complex landscape of analysis. Both socio-economic conditions, as well as the state of violence, are analyzed in order to draw a conclusion on the underlying aspects of female mobility from the region. The women are analyzed as independent females in NTCA societies as well as within their role as mothers.Show less
This study provides a critical analysis to the issue of malnutrition in Guatemala by looking at the constraints of national food security policy. Even though there are a number of programs and...Show moreThis study provides a critical analysis to the issue of malnutrition in Guatemala by looking at the constraints of national food security policy. Even though there are a number of programs and strategies designed to tackle malnutrition, it is found that they are often not implemented nor executed. This thesis suggests that this can be attributed to weak institutionalism, such as a lack of capacity, coherence and strength, present throughout multiple levels of the national food security and nutrition system (SINASAN). This research first analyses this problem from a historical perspective by examining the high levels of poverty and inequality which are deeply rooted into Guatemalan history and society. A state of food insecurity, a state in which malnutrition is more likely to emerge, is worsened when there is a lack of accessibility and availability to food resulting from income poverty and inequality. This directly implies that levels of malnutrition can only be reduced if poverty and inequality are also tackled. This complexity to the issue of malnutrition is, and will stay, an enormous obstacle for political institutions in creating sustainable and efficient food security programs and policies. Noticeably, weak institutionalism in Guatemala increases this barrier. Namely, a lack of continuity in government administrations leads to temporary and inconsistent food security strategies and excessive bureaucracy, a lack of coordination and structure withhold the proper implementation of food security projects from national level to local level. In other words, this study exposes that Guatemala finds itself in a vicious cycle which delays the reduction of malnutrition.Show less
