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A reviewer confronted with fourteen new books on the Latin-American economy inevitably seeks a common theme on which to hang his remarks, in the hope that this will make sense of his labours. Let it be confessed immediately that diligent search has failed to reveal any such unity in these volumes. Indeed, on the safe assumption that they represent a random selection from the rapidly growing literature on the subject, they might almost be taken as evidence of a diversity of approach. An alternative strategy, therefore, is to argue the existence of central doctrines in the literature on Latin- American development in the last twenty-five years, and to relate to them the literature under review.

AbstractThroughout Latin America, particular business conglomerates have begun to sponsor their own political parties, building those parties on their own corporate assets. These "corporation-based parties" represent a new wave of highly particularized conservative representation in the region. Indeed, corporation-based parties have become a regular—though largely unrecognized—feature of contemporary Latin American party systems. This article develops a theory of how and why particular business conglomerates sponsor their own parties, provides substantial evidence for the existence of corporation-based parties across much of Latin America, and uses a case study of a party built on a Panamanian supermarket chain to demonstrate how such parties are organized. In closing, it discusses the possible future for these parties in the region.

In order to understand the value of any theory, one has to know its origins and background. This is especially true of the various dependency theories, which have always been more than just 'theories of theorists for theorists'. Dependency theories can only be understood against the background of Latin American politics in the 1960s. Taking this into account, there was an obvious connection between the Cuban Revolution on the one hand, and the unfulfilled expectations of development caused by the failure of modernisation efforts, on the other. The basic idea behind dependency theories is the explanation of the historically unequal relations between Latin America and the North Atlantic economies (Europe and the United States). Dependency theories are essentially attempts to justify government policies to acquire control of national development.

A review essay on books by (1) Angelina Snodgrass Godoy, Popular Injustice: Violence, Community, and Law in Latin America (Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2006); (2) J. Patrice McSherry, Predatory States: Operation Condor and Covert War in Latin America (Lanham: Rowman and Littlefield, 2005); (3) Anthony W. Pereira, Political (In)Justice: Authoritarianism and the Rule of Law in Brazil, Chile, and Argentina (Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press, 2005) & (4) Christopher Welna & Gustavo Gallon [Eds], Peace, Democracy, and Human Rights in Columbia (Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 2007).

AbstractWhy are some Latin American states plagued by persistent policy volatility while the policies of others remain relatively stable? This article explores the political economy of natural resource rents and policy volatility across Latin America. It argues that, all else equal, resource rents will create incentives for political leaders, which will result in repeated episodes of policy volatility. This effect, however, will depend on the structure of political institutions. Where political institutions fail to provide a forum for intertemporal exchange among political actors, natural resource rents will result in increased levels of policy volatility. Alternatively, where political institutions facilitate agreement among actors, resource rents will be conducive to policy stability. This argument is tested on a measure of policy volatility for 18 Latin American economies between 1993 and 2008. The statistical tests provide support for the argument.

"Electoral Volatility in Latin America" published on by Oxford University Press.

Enthält Rezensionen u.a. von: Brinks, Daniel M.: The judical response to police killings in Latin America : inequality and the rule of law. - New York/N.Y. : Cambridge University Press, 2008

The relationship among law, politics and global governance in Latin America has deepened. In recent years, the region has undergone important transformations, which include the expansion of democracy, difficulty to control over populism, corruption, drug traffic and the greater integration of the region in the international legal framework. There was an important maturity in politics and law, albeit often fragile and insufficient in the context of the region. Debates such as the right to development, participatory democracy, the new constitutionalism and the greater presence of the countries in international regimes of the global governance region contributed to the advance of the Latin American society. This study analyzes in the past ten years the major advances that Latin American society got among law, politics and global governance. / La relación entre derecho, política y gobernabilidad global en América Latina se ha profundizado. En los últimos años, la región ha sufrido transformaciones importantes, que incluyen la expansión de la democracia, la dificultad de control sobre el populismo, la corrupción, el tráfico de drogas y la mayor integración de la región en el marco jurídico internacional. Hubo una madurez importante en la política y el derecho, aunque frecuentemente frágil e insuficiente en el contexto de la región. Debates como el derecho al desarrollo, la democracia participativa, el nuevo constitucionalismo y la mayor presencia de los países en los regímenes internacionales de la región de gobierno global contribuyeron para el avance de la sociedad latinoamericana. Este estudio presenta un análisis de los grandes avances que la sociedad de América Latina ya ha recibido entre el derecho, la política y la gobernabilidad global en los últimos diez años.