DESPITE CHANGES MADE IN LOCAL GOVERNMENT SINCE THE GOLPE, ADMINISTRATIVE CENTRALIZATION AND INADEQUATE LOCAL FINANCIAL AUTONOMY CONSTRAIN ELECTED OFFICIALS IN SUCH A WAY THAT POLICY MAKING SCARCELY EXISTS AT THE LOCAL LEVEL. THE ARTICLE ARGUES THAT THE POLITICIZATION OF THE CITIZENRY SINCE THE GOLPE HAS BEEN MORE APPARENT THAN REAL, WITH NO SIGNIFICANT SHIFT TOWARD PARTICIPATORY DEMOCRACY.
Two basic processes--industrialization and the emergence of the nation-state--have marked the evolution of many modern societies, particularly in Western Europe. Industrialization broadened the class structure of societies. With the new classes came demands for political power and influence, demands that were vigorously resisted by the ruling monarchies and landowning aristocracies. And with these demands came upheaval and, eventually, new forms of democratic social and political organization. In Portugal's transition from absolutist monarchy to pluralist democracy can be found an example of these transformative processes at work. Yet the experience of this nation has been largely neglected in discussions of Western European politics. With Portugal: From Monarchy to Pluralist Democracy, Walter C. Opello, Jr., brings the transformation of Portugal into sharp focus and, in doing so, offers interesting insights into the problems of forming a democratic regime. This profile traces Portugal's transition to democracy within the broader context of its historical development as a nation-state, documenting the effects of absolutism, imperialism, centralization, class and regional cleavages, and late industrialization on the Portuguese people, their polity, economy, and society. Exploring the themes that have shaped the development of Portugal's democratic structures, Professor Opello also assesses the future viability of these structures in light of the country's nondemocratic legacies.
Portugal's early developmental experience created a highly centralized administrative state that continues to have a powerful influence on the nature and style of the country's government and politics. Emphasizing this theme, Dr. Opello shows that, contrary to the conclusions of scholars who have analyzed Portugal from Latin American or Third World perspectives, Portuguese political development is more comparable to the pattern of development of West European countries, especially France. He compares Portugal's political experience with that of other West European countries and concludes by speculating about the future of Portugal's fledgling democracy.
Chapter 1: Introduction: War, State Formation, and Transformation. - Chapter 2: Private War and the Feudal "State" . - Chapter 3: Disciplined War and the Centralized Kingly State . - Chapter 4: People's War and the National State . - Chapter 5: Industrial War and the Managerial Welfare State . - Chapter 6: Air-Atomic War and the National Security State . - Chapter 7: Unmanned War and the Neoliberal State . - Chapter 8: Internal War and the Weak State. - Chapter 9: Conclusion: War and State Deformation
Enthält Rezensionen von: Transitions from authoritarian rule: Southern Europe / O'Donnell, Guillermo ; Schmitter, Philippe C. ; Whitehead, Laurence (Eds.). - Baltimore/Md. : Johns Hopkins University Press, 1986, 212 S. + Opello, Walter C.: Portugal's political development: a comparative approach. - Boulder/Colo. : Westview Press, 1985, 235 S. + Gunther, Richard ; Sani, Giacomo ; Shabad, Goldie: Spain after Franco: the making of a competitive party system. - Berkeley/Cal. : University of California Press, 1986, 516 S
