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After the end of the Cold War, the notion of civil society has become part of the scientific discourse, the media discourse as well as the discourse of international organizations. And it has done so despite having different meanings. Indeed, the concept of civil society may refer to the actor of a protest, the project of a mobilization, the open up of a political system dealing with a problem of representation. In other cases, it may also refer to political actors, socio-economic agents, associations or labour unions. In any case, it appears as an ambiguous concept, plural and poorly defined. The aim of this article is to highlight the long historical course of this notion, from the former times and its link to civilization, the modern times and its perceptions as a counter-power, to the contemporary period in which this notion is identified with the third sector. Nowadays, civil society is related to problems of citizenship, citizen participation and public space. Lastly, it poses a fundamental question in all continents, as a consequence of the new information and communication technologies and the globalization of commercial exchanges: is there an international civil society? ; Desde el final de la guerra fría, la noción de sociedad civil se ha impuesto tanto en el discurso científico, como en el relato mediático y los textos de los organismos internacionales, a pesar de tener diferentes significados. Efectivamente, el concepto de sociedad civil puede representar el actor de una protesta, el proyecto de una movilización, la apertura de un sistema político enfrentado a un problema de representatividad o referirse a actores políticos, agentes socioeconómicos, asociaciones o centrales sindicales. En todo caso, aparece como un concepto ambiguo, plural y mal definido. El objetivo de este artículo es poner de manifiesto la larga trayectoria de esta noción, desde la antigüedad y su asociación a la civilización, hasta el periodo contemporáneo con su identificación con el tercer sector, pasando por al época moderna y su percepción como contra-poder. Hoy en día, la sociedad civil plantea problemas de ciudadanía, de participación ciudadana y de espacio público, sin olvidar la pregunta que se formula en todos los continentes como consecuencia de las nuevas tecnologías de la información y la comunicación y de la mundialización de los intercambios comerciales: ¿existe una sociedad civil internacional?

The need for global civil society stems from democratic deficits at the global level, but it is an open question how effective global networks of civil society can be in creating meaningful links of interdependence between societies, global markets and states. Global civil society is actively shaping and informing new constructions for governing globalization as an important actor that can no longer be ignored. It can potentially manage diversity and conflict, support and sustain multi-level public debates. Will a global civil society be able to deliver the enabling frameworks powerful and persistent enough to shape a new global public space?La necesidad de una sociedad civil global proviene de los déficits democráticos existentes a nivel global, pero sigue siendo un asunto pendiente conocer cómo de efectivas pueden ser las redes globales de la sociedad civil en la creación de lazos significativos de interdependencia entre sociedades, mercados globales y estados. La sociedad civil global informa y conforma activamente nuevas construcciones para gobernar globalmente como un actor destacado que no puede ser ignorado más tiempo. Potencialmente puede manejar la diversidad y el conflicto, respaldar y mantener debates públicos en múltiples niveles. ¿Será capaz la sociedad civil global de posibilitar un armazón suficientemente poderoso y persistente para formar un nuevo espacio público global?

This article aims at sinthetizing different perspectives about the rol of internacional civil society (ICV) in the exercise of a global power. It refers to some anglosajon and european recent studies, both at theorical as empirical levels, in order to do an evaluation of the most critical results. Being esceptical about the very concept of ICV, it tries to analize it from different points of view, in order to respond the main problem: is it posible for the ICV to ejercize power at a global level, and which is its legitimity to resolve global issues. The analysis of the concept is based on some results of the classical theory of civil society at a national level, but also examines specific dificulties to define an ICV and its functions in a globalized world. Eventually, it presents some theoretical challenges which are linked with the relation between ICV and a global democratic order. ; Este artículo pretende sintetizar diferentes perspectivas en torno al papel de la Sociedad Civil Internacional (SCI) en el ejercicio de un poder global. Se refiere a distintos y recientes estudios anglosajones y europeos, tanto al nivel teórico como empírico, en aras a realizar una evaluación de sus principales resultados. Siendo escépticos respecto al mismo concepto de SCI, se busca analizarlo desde distintos puntos de vista, para contestar la principal interrogante: es posible para la SCI ejercer el poder al nivel global, y cuál es su legitimidad para resolver problemas globales? El análisis del concepto esta fundamentado en algunos aportes de la teoría clásica de la sociedad civil al nivel nacional, pero también examina las dificultades específicas que plantea el definir una SCI y sus funciones en un mundo globalizado. Finalmente, se presentan algunos retos teóricos que se refieren a la relación entre la SCI y un orden democrático global.

Considero relevante incursionar en la genealogía del concepto de sociedad civil para describir y analizar el fenómeno en nuestros días. Existen dos razones que justifican esta búsqueda de los orígenes del concepto de sociedad civil. La primera de ellas remite a la comprensión de la acción política que llevan a cabo las organizaciones de la sociedad civil en la esfera pública en diferentes contextos históricos; y la segunda deriva de la necesidad de aclarar las diferencias entre la visión clásica y la perspectiva contemporánea de la sociedad civil. I consider relevant to venture into the genealogy of the concept of civil society to describe and analyze this phenomenon in our day. There are two reasons that justify this search for the origins of the concept of civil society. The first one refers to the understanding of political action carried out by civil society organizations in the public sphere in different historical contexts; and the second derives from the need to clarify the differences between the classical vision and the contemporary perspective of civil society.

Entrapped in the ambiguities of the Realpolitik of the Yalta system, East and Central European societies had to proceed on a long path of learning in order to find the right modes of self-organization and articulation to defend their values and identities vis-à-vis dictatorship and authoritarian rule. These bitter lessons contributed to the emergence of a new «strategy», a new vision which materialized in the emerging political philosophy and the political and social practice of civil society. This development would not have been possible without a gradual and fundamental change in political thinking and goal-setting, expressed in the development of a new concept of civil society.Atrapados en las ambigüedades de la Realpolitik del sistema de Yalta, las sociedades del Centro y Este de Europea han tenido que proceder a un largo camino de aprendizaje a fin de encontrar formas correctas de autoorganización y la articulación de la defensa de sus valores e identidades vis-à- vis con una dictadura y una administración autoritaria. Estas amargas lecciones contribuyeron a la emergencia de una nueva «estrategia», una nueva visión materializada en la emergente filosofía política y la práctica social y política de la sociedad civil. Este desarrollo no hubiera sido posible sin el gradual y fundamental cambio en el pensamiento político y el establecimiento de metas, expresadas en el desarrollo de un nuevo concepto de sociedad civil.

In recent years, we have witnessed the emergence of political activism through an irruption of citizen movements – 5M or Occupy–, the birth of new political platforms –5 Stelle, Zyrisa, Podemos– and the rise of new direct action groups, such as Anonymous, Stop-Evictions Movements, cooperatives, to name just a few. In some countries this activism has not just placed substantial pressure on traditional actors of representative democracy and governments, but has also opened up opportunities for structural changes in the policymaking context and procedures (García Marzá, 2012).

En este trabajo se desarrolla una disertación sobre el concepto de sociedad civil, a partir de la cual se analizan cuatro cuestiones principales: 1) algunas características del (re)surgimiento de la sociedad civil en América Latina, 2) la amplitud y ambigüedad del concepto, 3) la complejidad de la relación entre sociedad civil y democracia, y 4) las posibilidades y riesgos de cierta concepción de la sociedad civil frente a lo político y lo democrático. ; Thos work develops a dissertation on the civil society concept, on which are analyzed for principal problems: 1) some characteristic of the emergence of the civil society in Latin America, 2) the extent and ambiguity of the concept, 3) the complexity of the relationship between civil society and democracy, and 4) the possibilities and certain conceptions risks of the civil society as compared to what is political and democratic.

This work examines the evolution of Latin American Civil Society Organizations' (CSOs) resistance practices in the context of datafication and how these relate with the overall notions of symbolic domination denounced by the Latin American School of Communication. Although CSOs in Latin America are still exploring the problems surrounding datafication, signs of vitality are already showing in broader debates around human rights, community development, and media policies. The study identifies the main themes underlying datafication work by Latin American CSOs and assesses how they shape resistance practices and CSOs' perceptions of asymmetrical power relations. While some patterns can fall into existing conceptualisations surrounding resistance practices and data activism, this paper identifies new conceptual and empirical approaches to face the challenges posed by a datafied society.

General Introduction xiii . - Mauricio A. Font. - . - Part I Economy. - . - Introduction: Economic Liberalization. - 3 (6). - Mauricio A. Font. - . - 1 Perspective on a Changing Cuba. - 9 (13). - Mauricio A. Font. - . - 2 Updating Cuba's Economic Model. - 22 (14). - Omar Everleny Perez Villanueva. - . - 3 Cuba's Evolving Public Policies toward Small Enterprise. - 36 (14). - Archibald R. M. Ritter. - . - 4 New Forms of Enterprise in Cuba's Changing Economy. - 50 (14). - Camila Pineiro Harnecker. - . - 5 Foreign Exchange Constraints: Crisis, Adjustment, and Gradual Exit. - 64 (17). - Pavel Vidal Alejandro. - . - 6 Sector agropecuario y lineamientos. - 81 (16). - Armando Nova Gonzalez. - . - 7 Cuba's Agricultural Transformations: Moving toward Market Socialism?. - 97 (14). - Mario A. Gonzalez-Corzo. - . - 8 Tourism in Cuba: Barriers to Economic Growth and Development. - 111 (13). - Hilary Becker. - . - 9 Cuba's Socialist Economy from Distorted Tertiarization to Market-Compatible Reforms. - 124 (13). - Alberto Gabriele. - . - 10 Forecasting Cuba's Economy: Two Years, Five Years, and Twenty Years. - 137 (28). - Emily Morris. - . - Part II Politics and Civil Society. - . - Introduction. - 165 (4). - Carlos Riobo. - . - 11 Cuba: Institutional Challenges for a Heterodox Reform. - 169 (7). - Carlos Alzugaray. - . - Armando Chaguaceda Noriega. - . - 12 The Politics of Culture in Cuba. - 176 (15). - Yvon Grenier. - . - 13 Expansion of the Religious Media in Contemporary Cuba. - 191 (12). - Margaret E. Crahan. - . - 14 Indirect Confrontation: The Evolution of the Political Strategy of the Cuban Catholic Church. - 203 (16). - Robert A. Portada III. - . - 15 Race in Cuban Society Today: The Letter and the Spirit. - 219 (9). - Miguel Barnet. - . - 16 Sparks of Civil Society in Cuba: Afro-Cuban Cultural Production, Artistic Interventions, and the Struggle for a New Public Sphere. - 228 (15). - Zoya Kocur. - . - 17 Clase versus raza en Cuba: la cuestion racial y el alzamiento del Partido Independiente de Color bajo la perspectiva anarquista (1902-1913). - 243 (15). - Amparo Sanchez Cobos. - . - 18 Cuban Freemasons in the Development of Civil Society and Political Opening. - 258 (15). - Jorge Luis Romeu. - . - Part III Cuba and the World. - . - Introduction. - 273 (4). - Carlos Riobo. - . - 19 Cuba's Reintegration into a Changing World. - 277 (10). - Mauricio A. Font. - . - 20 Globalization and the Socialist Multinational: Cuba at the Intersection of Business and Human Rights. - 287 (13). - Larry Cata Backer. - . - 21 La posicion comun de la Union Europea respecto a Cuba: una reflexion critica. - 300 (16). - Jose Chofre-Sirvent. - . - Carmen Anton-Guardiola. - . - 22 North Americans in Cuba in the 1960s. - 316 (14). - David Strug. - . - 23 Reinventing Guantanamo: Cuba-US Biofuel Production Capability. - 330 (16). - J. R. Paron. - . - Maria P. Aristigueta. - . - Conclusion 346 (5). - Mauricio A. Font. - . - Appendix: Economic Indicators 351 (2). - Janaina Said. - . - Acronyms and Terms 353 (4). - Bibliography 357 (31). - Index 388 (17). - About the Contributors 405 . - Close. - . -

The meanings of civil society are dissimilar and conflicting in many aspects, especially if we take into account its relationship with the State and with economic monopolies (Marx and Engels, 1975). The notion of civil society has been gaining strength in different areas of political, philosophical and social thought, a situation that was not present with the same intensity in previous times. However, as a result of such diffusion of what is understood by civil society, an attempt will be made to outline, albeit in a very generalized way, some recent conceptions on this issue. ; Las acepciones de la sociedad civil son disímiles y encontradas en muchos aspectos, sobre todo si se tiene en cuenta su relación con el Estado y con los monopolios económicos (Marx y Engels, 1975). La noción de sociedad civil ha venido tomando fuerza en los distintos ámbitos del pensamiento político, filosófico y social, situación que no se presentaba con la misma intensidad en épocas anteriores. Sin embargo, a raíz de tal difusión de lo que se entiende por sociedad civil, se intentará hacer un esbozo, así sea muy generalizado, de algunas concepciones recientes sobre dicha cuestión. ; Os significados da sociedade civil são diferentes e conflitantes em muitos aspectos, especialmente se levarmos em conta sua relação com o Estado e com os monopólios econômicos (Marx e Engels, 1975). A noção de sociedade civil vem ganhando impulso em diferentes áreas do pensamento político, filosófico e social, uma situação que não estava presente com a mesma intensidade em tempos anteriores. Entretanto, como resultado de tal difusão do que é entendido pela sociedade civil, será feita uma tentativa de delinear, embora muito generalizada, algumas concepções recentes sobre esta questão.

In recent years, we have witnessed the emergence of political activism through an irruption of citizen movements – 5M or Occupy–, the birth of new political platforms –5 Stelle, Zyrisa, Podemos– and the rise of new direct action groups, such as Anonymous, Stop-Evictions Movements, cooperatives, to name just a few. In some countries this activism has not just placed substantial pressure on traditional actors of representative democracy and governments, but has also opened up opportunities for structural changes in the policymaking context and procedures (García Marzá, 2012).

The concept of civil society is one of the most controversial in culturaland political circles in both of the Arab and African Worlds. Yet, it didnot receive the appropriate attention of both its advocates and itsdetractors, who consider it to be the product of an alien civilization.Furthermore, the concept of civil Society was misused for politicalpurposes, as, for example, some North African States reverted to it inorder to exclude the formations of political Islam. On the other hand,Arab movements of opposition and political dissent, resort to the sameconcept to entrench themselves against state oppression andauthoritarianism. Thus this study is based on the premise that theexistence of a real Civil Society, independent of both State and Family,and based on the concepts of civilization and tolerance, will lead tofull integration on all national, regional and continental levels.

The concept of civil society is one of the most controversial in culturaland political circles in both of the Arab and African Worlds. Yet, it didnot receive the appropriate attention of both its advocates and itsdetractors, who consider it to be the product of an alien civilization.Furthermore, the concept of civil Society was misused for politicalpurposes, as, for example, some North African States reverted to it inorder to exclude the formations of political Islam. On the other hand,Arab movements of opposition and political dissent, resort to the sameconcept to entrench themselves against state oppression andauthoritarianism. Thus this study is based on the premise that theexistence of a real Civil Society, independent of both State and Family,and based on the concepts of civilization and tolerance, will lead tofull integration on all national, regional and continental levels.