Political Science 278
Seminar in Latin American Politics
Winter Quarter 2003
Professor Pion-Berlin
Tuesdays. 2:10-5 pm.
Tel 787-4606
David.pion@ucr.edu
This course is intended as an introduction to the field of Latin American Politics. Like any introduction, this one cannot or should not explore all the issues with sufficient depth. However, neither will the course be a superficial survey of the field where we sample readings for every country on every conceivable topic. Instead it will focus on three related themes: regimes, democracies, and militaries.
The military has been a part of state building for centuries. It helped shape and was shaped by the perennial efforts of rulers to secure territory, resources and sovereign control over their nations. In Latin America, some standing armies were formed and strengthened before nations and constitutions themselves came into being. Others formed later, and with different consequences for those polities. By the twentieth century, militaries would become formidable and persistent power contenders, often acting as unruly interest groups, evading civilian authority and undermining democratic practices and regimes via the coup d’etat. At the same time, military power is not monolithic and has varied considerably across time and across nations. This course will examine the conditions under which the armed forces do or do not challenge civilians for political power and political office.
There are five required books, four of which are available at the bookstore. The Everything else that appears on the syllabus has been placed on reserve at Rivera Library. Ask for these materials according to call numbers which you can find by going online to scotty.ucr.edu, clicking on course reserves by instructor, and bring up the call number. The books to be purchased, in order of use, are as follows:
Fernando López-Alves, State Formation and Democracy in Latin America: 1810-1900. Duke University Press, 2000.
Craig Arceneaux, Bounded Missions: Military Regimes and Democratization in the Southern Cone and Brazil. Penn State University Press, 2001.
Requirements
Each student will be placed in charge of one class session. Where he/she will make a short presentation followed by a series of questions and points intended to generate an intellectual exchange in the class. The student will be graded based on his/her understanding of the material, ability to organize the presentation, stimulate discussion and in general take charge of the class for that day. Some background readings should be consulted to gain greater familiarity with the topic. This assignment will comprise 30 % of your grade. Then there will be take home midterm and final exams worth 25% each . These exams will be passed out in class in week five, and finals week, and will be due back in three days. The remaining 20% will be based on class participation.
Syllabus
Week One
Armies, Regimes, and Democracy in 19th Century Latin America
F. Lopez-Alves, State Formation and Democracy.
Week Two
Armies,
Regimes, and Democracy in 20th Century Latin American
Brian Loveman, “Foreign Military Missions and La Patria,” in For La Patria; S. Huntington, Political Order in Changing Societies read chapter "Praetorianism and Political Decay; " Lowenthal and Fitch, Armies and Politics in Latin America (Holmes and Meier, 1986): read Introduction by Fitch, and Section II (4 chapters, pp. 59-166).
Week three-
Authoritarian Rule and Transitions to Democracy- Who has the influence?
C. Arceneaux, Bounded Missions
Week Four
Democratic
Transitions and the Military
G. O'Donnell and P. Schmitter, Tentative Conclusions About Uncertain Democracies: Chapters 1,2,3; A. Stepan, Rethinking Military Politics, Chapters 6 and 7; F. Agüero, "Institutions, Transitions, and Bargaining," in Pion-Berlin, ed. Civil-Military Relations: New Analytical Perspectives; W. Hunter, "Politicians Against Soldiers: Contesting the Military in Post-authoritarian Brazil," Comparative Politics 27 (1995).
Week
Five
Transitional
Democracies and the Human Rights Question: the case of
Chile D. Pion-Berlin and C. Arceneaux, Tipping the Civil-Military
Balance: Institutions and Human Rights Policy
in Argentina and Chile,” Comparative
Political Studies 31 (October 1998): 633-661; Nibaldo Galleguillos,
“From Confrontation to Friendly Persuasion: An Analysis of Judicial Reform and
Democratization in Post-Pinochet Chile,”
Canadian Journal of Latin American and Caribbean Studies
23 (September 1998):161-192; Jose Zalaquett, “The Pinochet Case: Why
Chile moved further than expected;” Susan
Waltz, “Prosecuting Dictators: International Law and the Pinochet Case,” World
Policy Journal 18 (2001):101-112; Jorge Correa Sutil,
“The Judiciary and the Political System in Chile,” in
Stotzky, ed. Transition to Democracy: The Role of the Judiciary, pp.
89-106;
Felipe Agüero, "Conflicting Assessments of Democratization;" Larry Diamond, "Introduction: in Search of Consolidation;" L. Diamond, "Is the Third Wave Over?"; G. O'Donnell, "Illusions About Consolidation" Journal of Democracy 7 (April 1996):34-51; Karen Remmer, "The Sustainability of Political Democracy: Lessons from South America," Comparative Political Studies 29 (December 1996). 611-634; A. Przeworski, et al. “What Makes Democracies Endure? Journal of Democracy 7 (January 1996):39-55.
A case study of democracy: Brazil.
P. Kingstone and T. Power, Democratic Brazil: Actors, Institutions and Processes.
Week Eight
Civil-Military
Relations in Democratic Latin
American Societies: the Theory
Pion-Berlin, Civil-Military Relations in Latin America: New Analytical Perspectives
Week Nine
Civil-Military
Relations and Democracy in Argentina
Pion-Berlin, Through Corridors of Power: Institutions
and Civil-Military Relations in Argentina
Week Ten (Finals Week)
Civil-Military
Relations and Democracy in Venezuela
Daniel Levine and Brian Crisp, "Legitimacy, Governability and Reform in Venezuela," in Goodman et al. Lessons of the Venezuelan Experience; Moisés Naím, " The Real Story Behind Venezuela's Woes," Journal of Democracy 12 (April 2001): 17-31; Winfield Burggraaff and Richard Millett, The Crisis in Venezuelan Civil-Military Relations" in Goodman et al.; Felipe Agüero, "Debilitating Democracy: Political Elites and Military Rebels," in Goodman et al;" Deborah Norden, "Democracy and Military Control in Venezuela," Latin American Research Review 33 (2):143-165, 1998. Harold Trinkunas, The Crisis in Venezuelan Civil-Military Relations: From Punto Fijo to the Fifth Republic,” Latin American Research Review 37 (2002):41-76.