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Intro -- Global Capitalism, Democracy, and Civil-Military Relations in Colombia -- Contents -- List of Tables and Figures -- Acknowledgments -- Introduction -- 1. Globalization, State Theory,and Civil-Military Relations -- 2. Counterinsurgency, Civil-Military Relations, and Low-Intensity Democracy: A Historical Context -- 3. Civil-Military Relations and the Reform of Low-Intensity Democracy -- 4. The Preservation of Civilian Authority in the Samper Administration -- 5. Military Impunity and Symbolic Reform -- 6. Parastate Repression and Civilian Tolerance -- 7. The Continuation of Low-Intensity Democracy: The Pastrana and Uribe Administrations -- Conclusion -- Notes -- References -- Index -- A -- B -- C -- D -- E -- F -- G -- H -- I -- J -- L -- M -- N -- O -- P -- R -- S -- T -- U -- W -- Z.

Colombia and Peru made significant progress in reducing the institutional prerogatives of their respective militaries in the 1990s and 2000s while reforming their economies in a neoliberal direction. They accomplished this despite internal armed threats to state authority and stability. The end of the Cold War, U.S. promotion of "market democracies," and the international centrality of free markets and formal democratic governance coincided with the rise to power in Peru and Colombia of "neoliberal policy coalitions." The internal insurgency mitigated the emergence of antiglobalization or antidemocratic reform factions in the military and civil society. The armed forces unified behind their counterinsurgency mission, and opposition in civil society was weakened, creating greater space for neoliberal elites to reform their economies and reduce military prerogatives. Adapted from the source document.

Military coups and coup attempts, as well as the establishment, or continuation, of economic/social development roles for the military far outside traditional security missions have been a part of civil-military relations in Ecuador and Venezuela since 1990. The military's greater role in Ecuador and Venezuela has in part been a consequence of the failure of neoliberal and globalist policy coalitions to establish and maintain a hegemonic consensus over political power and national policy. This failure has undermined progress in orienting the military in a 'democratic' direction that prioritises traditional security roles under the ultimate command of civilian authorities. It has also allowed for competing models of civil-military relations to emerge that draw upon nationalist or socialist models of military power and democracy. Adapted from the source document.

In the late 1980s & early 1990s political liberalisation, including the reduction of the military's institutional prerogatives, occurred in Colombia despite the increasing strength of an internal insurgency. Why would Colombia's national political elite weaken the institutional role of the armed forces in the context of an escalating internal war? What was the role of paramilitary groups, which were responsible for the vast majority of massacres & political violence against suspected unarmed civilians, during the 1990s? This paper argues that the elite civilian politicians who dominated the Colombian state promoted formal institutional changes, but tolerated paramilitary repression in order to counteract a strengthening guerrilla insurgency. These civilian leaders represented a modernising elite focused upon co-opting political opposition & establishing neoliberal economic reforms, thus constructing a Low-Intensity Democracy. Tables. Adapted from the source document.

Discusses US interventions in Colombia & Venezuela for insight to the applicability of the democratic-peace thesis. The political crisis in Colombia under Ernesto Samper (1994-98) due to campaign contributions from the Cali drug cartel & the ensuing US intervention, including the decertifications, demonstrate a weakening of democracy in the country. The actions of transnational corporations within the US & economic organizations in Colombia reveal their influence over the political situation. The electoral victory & social reforms of Hugo Chavez in Venezuela & the ensuing coup attempts that involved the US are analyzed. The events in Colombia & Venezuela are at odds with the democratic-peace thesis since diplomatic solutions were subordinated to strategies for weakening or replacing democratic governments. 80 References. L. Collins Leigh

Examines military policy in Colombia over the last 15 years to consider how Colombia has managed to retain control over the military, maintain a system of competitive elections, & broaden its democracy, in spite of increasing social & political violence. It is argued that Columbia's power structure & its relationship with the US are central to understanding its military policies. Institutional & societal approaches to analyzing military/security policies are discussed, along with the historical linkage between Colombia's economic elites & the two major political parties. It is maintained that these linkages have had a significant impact on government policies & that they are reflected in the actions of the armed forces. Specific examples are given of how these liaisons affected policy decisions during President Ernesto Samper's (1994-1998) administration, which exhibited increased levels of social/political violence. It is contended that little has changed in state-society relations under President Andres Pastrana, & the influence of business, landowning elites, & international actors on policy decisions suggests that institutional approaches are not adequate for fully explaining the continuities or shifts in Colombian military/security policies. 64 References. J. Lindroth

Since the early 1990s, North Americans have participated in a large
political-economic experiment in a regional trade bloc called the North
American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). With NAFTA now over 10 years old,
the non-NAFTA countries have been debating the merits and shortcomings of
creating an expanded version of the trade agreement that would encompass
virtually every state in the Americas. The Free Trade Area of the Americas
(FTAA) would encompass 34 western hemisphere countries, over 800 million
consumers, and a total economy of over $12 trillion. The debate over the
FTAA raises a long list of important practical questions for each of the
potential member states and their citizens. The debate also raises a host
of pedagogical questions for students of the entire region and beyond.
This paper describes a student-based simulation that taps into those
practical and pedagogical questions. As in other simulations, such as the
Model United Nations, students role-play while vicariously experiencing
the opportunities and constraints facing each country as they negotiate
for policy preferences.