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12. DECOLONIZATION IN THE CONSTITUTIONAL SYSTEM: INDIGENOUS RIGHTS AND LEGAL PLURALISM, A COMPARATIVE STUDY BETWEEN BOLIVIA, COLOMBIA, AND ECUADOR
- Author:
- Sergio Miranda Hayes
- Publication Date:
- 05-2017
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- The New School Graduate Program in International Affairs
- Abstract:
- In the academic world, scientific literature comes mainly from the western part of the globe. Ramón Grossfoguel believes that knowledge is determined by power relations in the "post-colonial" era (Grossfoguel, 2002: 16). This means that Western powers dominate the academic world. In constitutional law, this is not the exception. However, while we can accept that it is true that many constitutional provisions, doctrine, jurisprudence and theories of Western constitutional law have influenced Latin American countries, most of these countries have also developed their own constitutional systems that have specific and new features, whose unique identity differentiates them from other systems in the world. In this paper, I will try to study the special features that Bolivia, Ecuador, and Colombia have in the recognition of indigenous rights and legal pluralism, whose discursive axis entails a “decolonizing” spirit which is the retrieval of their own institutions against the trends of hegemonic governance of the western culture as I will explain later. Latin America has faced numerous problems concerning social differentiation. In the opinion of one of the most cited authors in Latin American constitutional law, Raquel Yrigoyen, the disadvantaged were left behind from the social, economic and political issues through legal measures created by people of a favored minority, in order to maintain privileges (Yrigoyen, 2011: 139). In the case of Latin America, many of the disadvantaged match to be those survivors of the brutal Spanish conquest; the native Indians. I have chosen these three countries since they have a significant indigenous population; more than 36.6 million indigenous people in the region. In Bolivia, the number rises to 4,115,222 natives, in Ecuador 1018176,and in Colombia 1392623. (World Bank, 2014: 24-25) The Constitutions of Colombia (1991), Ecuador (2008) and Bolivia (2009) reflect the new “decolonizing” ideology; Colombia through its jurisprudence, on the one hand, and Bolivia and Ecuador, proclaiming themselves "Plurinational”countries on the other. All made great strides in recognizing indigenous rights and, consequently, in gaining their social inclusion. (Gargarella, 2014: 175) Constitutional systems are a product of history and the struggle of peoples. In these cases, the effort to include indigenous peoples in the economic, political and social spheres resulted in these new constitutional models which can be understood through a comparative study.By understanding this, advantages and disadvantages of each country to improve social inclusion of indigenous peoples in all the mentioned spheres can be found. In the first title, I will talk about the meaning of legal pluralism. In the second, I will discussthe new models of statewhich are conditioned by legal pluralism and indigenous rights. In the third, I will address indigenous autonomies and jurisdictions that are the subject of our study. And in the remaining two titles, I will discuss the most distinctive features, and rights arising from the recognition of this unique legal pluralism. All this with the purpose of exposing the new constitutional spirit of "decolonization" of these countries.
- Topic:
- Human Rights, Post Colonialism, Legal Theory, Colonialism, Decolonization, and Economic Inequality
- Political Geography:
- United States, Colombia, South America, Latin America, North America, Ecuador, and Bolivia
13. The Culture of Political Instability and the Rapprochement of South America and United States
- Author:
- Henrique Carlos de Oliveira De Castro
- Publication Date:
- 06-2016
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Postgraduate Program in International Strategic Studies, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul
- Abstract:
- The article deals with the recent foreign policy of the Andean countries, Venezuela, Ecuador and Bolivia, considering the relationship with the United States and the situation of political crises in these countries. We discuss the national context of each country and the consequences for external relations and international politics of each and of the region. We address United States interests in the effects of the current crisis in the three countries and highlight the importance of political culture for understanding reality.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, Diplomacy, Regional Cooperation, and Crisis Management
- Political Geography:
- United States, South America, Venezuela, North America, Ecuador, and Bolivia
14. An Analysis of Firm Characteristics as Earnings Determinants: The Urban Bolivia Case
- Author:
- Beatriz Muriel Hernández
- Publication Date:
- 12-2016
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Institute for Advanced Development Studies (INESAD)
- Abstract:
- This article analyzes the importance of firm characteristics to explain earnings in urban Bolivia. Initially I propose a new simple theoretical model of segmented labor market where, in equilibrium, individual and firm variables jointly determine earnings at the worker level. The key for achieving this equilibrium is that workers have both specific preferences and heterogonous skills provided by years of schooling, which are in turn associated to certain firms. Given the household surveys information, I estimate two alternative earnings functions from this model, one for unsalaried workers, for which there is detailed firm data and one for salaried workers, in which sector, size and formality are used as firm proxies. I find not only that firm characteristics are fundamental determinants of earnings but that regressions that include only individual characteristics present highly overestimated coefficients.
- Topic:
- Development, Economics, Labor Issues, Urban, Microeconomics, and Private Sector
- Political Geography:
- Latin America and Bolivia
15. Rock Glaciers and Climate Change in the Bolivian Andes: Mapping new water resources
- Author:
- Sally Rangecroft
- Publication Date:
- 04-2015
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Oxfam Publishing
- Abstract:
- Reduced water security is projected for the Bolivian Andes due to both an expected increase in demand and a decline in the supply of water. This will result in negative impacts on water availability, and therefore on food security, power generation and livelihoods. Rising temperatures due to climate change are associated with glacier retreat across the Andes, which is one factor affecting the supply of water. Therefore it is important to gather information about other sources of high altitude water in the Bolivian Andes and other similarly arid high mountain regions facing similar stresses. Rock glaciers are masses of ice that are covered by a thick layer of rock. Because of their ice content, they are potentially important water sources, especially in arid regions. However, little is known about their spatial distribution and nature. They are smaller, occur at lower altitudes and are less obvious than regular ice glaciers. With the purpose of better informing future water management in Bolivia, this research, which was conducted with the assistance of Oxfam and Agua Sustentable, has created the first rock glacier inventory for the country (15–22°S) and has established the number, size and distribution of these rock glaciers. In total, 94 rock glaciers were discovered in the Bolivian Andes, of which 54 are estimated to contain ice and are therefore active sources of water. It was possible to make an estimation of their importance as water stores for local communities, in comparison with regular glaciers. Climate change impacts on glaciers and other water resources are occurring at a rapid rate in the Bolivian Andes and Bolivia can be used as an early warning indicator of problems in arid regions worldwide. The rock cover on rock glaciers will insulate them to some extent and as temperatures rise, will make them more resilient to melting than ice glaciers. In highlighting the presence of rock glaciers and in setting out methods for identifying them, this research seeks to contribute to improving the knowledge of water resources in the Bolivian Andes and to make a contribution to similar studies elsewhere. It also highlights the need to prioritize the preservation of areas where rock glaciers are located in the interests of water security for vulnerable populations. The rock glacier inventory resulting from this research is held by Agua Sustentable, see http://www.aguasustentable.org
- Political Geography:
- Bolivia
16. Fighting for Aboriginal women — Promoting literature for social change — Defending undocumented immigrants — Connecting investors to social impact.
- Publication Date:
- 04-2014
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Americas Quarterly
- Institution:
- Council of the Americas
- Abstract:
- Some of our hemisphere's emerging leaders in politics, business, civil society, and the arts. In this issue: Politics Innovator: Michèle Audette, Canada Arts Innovator: Mauricio Díaz Calderón, Colombia Civic Innovator: Tania Mattos, Bolivia/United States Business Innovator: Instiglio, United States
- Topic:
- Government and Politics
- Political Geography:
- United States, Canada, and Bolivia
17. Dispatches from the field: el alto, Bolivia
- Author:
- Jorge Derpic and Sara Shahriari
- Publication Date:
- 04-2014
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal:
- Americas Quarterly
- Institution:
- Council of the Americas
- Abstract:
- Dispatches: El Alto, Bolivia BY JORGE DERPIC AND SARA SHAHRIARI The former settlement on a plateau above La Paz is becoming a city unto itself, due in no small part to onetime protest leader and now favorite son, President Evo Morales. Blazing sun, freezing nights, roads clogged with traffic, and a vast maze of adobe houses populated by nearly a million people. This is the Bolivian city of El Alto. Once an outlying neighborhood on the high plains above La Paz, El Alto has today surpassed its population. Matching El Alto's growing profile, the city is also about to host some major public projects. President Evo Morales has promised a multi-million dollar soccer stadium and—perhaps most important—the government is installing natural gas connections to tens of thousands of homes. El Alto's new look also underlines its newfound political influence. Just a decade ago, in October 2003, demonstrators filled the streets to protest the Bolivian government's plans to export natural gas through Chile, turning the city into a battlefield. Those bloody days of conflict—known as the “gas war”—left more than 60 civilians dead in clashes with police and soldiers. The conflict set the stage for the rise of Morales, who in 2006 became Bolivia's first Indigenous president.
- Topic:
- Development and Government
- Political Geography:
- Chile and Bolivia
18. The Politics of Polarization: Governance and Party System Change in Latin America, 1990–2010
- Author:
- Sam Handlin
- Publication Date:
- 11-2014
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Kellogg Institute for International Studies
- Abstract:
- What are the causes and implications of polarization in new democracies? During Latin America's “Left Turn” period, highly polarized party systems emerged in some countries–Venezuela, Bolivia, Ecuador, Nicaragua, and El Salvador–but not the rest of the region. This paper proposes a theory to explain variation, centered on the presence of electorally relevant parties of the left in the pre-Left Turn period and, most critically, the quality of governance in that period. Poor governance created opportunities for partisan actors on the left to politicize a second dimension of political contestation, anti - systemic versus systemic positions on the design and operation of the state, and thus chart alternative paths to electoral viability that required little left - right programmatic moderation. This dynamic empowered radical party factions and drove polarizing dynamics in party systems. High quality governance, in contrast, gave left parties little choice but to moderate their programs in search of electoral viability. This dynamic empowered moderate party factions and drove centripetal dynamics in party systems. Empirically, the paper tests these arguments through a broad overview of the case universe and in - depth case studies of Venezuela and Brazil.
- Topic:
- Geopolitics
- Political Geography:
- America, Brazil, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Bolivia, and El Salvador
19. Amérique latine -- L’année politique 2014
- Author:
- Olivier Dabène, Gaspard Estrada, Guillaume Fleury, Andrés Gómez, Erica Guevara, Damien Larrouqué, Frédéric Louault, Antoine Maillet, Frédéric Massé, Kevin Parthenay, David Recondo, Eduardo Rios, and Sebastián Urioste
- Publication Date:
- 12-2014
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Centre d'Etudes et de Recherches Internationales
- Abstract:
- Amérique latine - L’Année politique is a publication by CERI-Sciences Po’s Political Observatory of Latin America and the Caribbean (OPALC). The study extends the work presented on the Observatory’s website (www.sciencespo.fr/opalc) by offering tools for understanding a continent that is in the grip of deep transformations.
- Topic:
- Conflict Resolution, International Trade and Finance, Treaties and Agreements, History, Elections, Sports, Political Science, Regional Integration, and Memory
- Political Geography:
- Colombia, South America, Uruguay, Latin America, Central America, Venezuela, North America, Mexico, Guatemala, and Bolivia
20. Contestations over Indigenous Participation in Bolivia's Extractive Industry: Ideology, Practices, and Legal Norms
- Author:
- Almut Schilling-Vacaflor
- Publication Date:
- 09-2014
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- German Institute of Global and Area Studies
- Abstract:
- The participatory rights of indigenous peoples have been at the center of conflicts over resource extraction, which have recently increased in number and intensity across Latin America. Using comprehensive empirical data about the Guaraníes' participation in Bolivia's gas sector, this study finds that competing claims regarding territory, property, participation, and decision making provide important explanations for contestations over consultation practices and legal norms in the country. It argues that the main conflicts can be explained by (1) the Bolivian state's focus on directly affected communities and those with formally recognized land titles, something that clashes with the Guaraníes' principle of "territorial integrity"; (2) the state's conviction that it holds a monopoly over subsoil resources, and the limited rights to participation that it is willing to grant as a consequence, which the Guaraníes reject; and (3) the dissonance between state customs and regulations and Guaraní uses and customs.
- Topic:
- Energy Policy and Industrial Policy
- Political Geography:
- Latin America and Bolivia