LIBERAL AND ILLIBERAL DEMOCRACY
READINGS Smith, Democracy, chs Modern Latin America, ch. 4 (Central America) NB: Optional paper due May 30
DETECTING ILLIBERAL DEMOCRACY
The Rise of Electoral Democracy,
THE CONCEPT OF ILLIBERAL DEMOCRACY Distinct Dimensions of Democracy: Free and Fair Elections Citizen Rights Systematic Curtailment of Citizen Rights
Journalists Killed in Latin America, Country___ __ N Killings__ Colombia 36 Peru12 Mexico10 Brazil 8 Haiti 4 Argentina 3 Guatemala 3 Venezuela 2 Chile 1 Dominican Republic 1 Honduras 1 Paraguay 1 Total82 Source: Committee to Protect Journalists, Attacks on the Press in 1999 (New York: CPJ, 2000), 23.
Table Electoral Regimes and Freedom of the Press, 1990s _________________Regime____________________ Press____AutocracySemi-Democracy Democracy Not Free Partly Free Free Totals
FH scores of 1-2 = Extensive FH scores of 3-4 = Partial FH scores of 5-7 = Minimal CLASSIFYING CITIZEN RIGHTS (Freedom House scales for “Civil Liberties”)
Table 1. Democracy, Elections, and Citizen Rights: A Typology Citizen RightsCharacter of Elections Free and FairFree not FairNone ExpansiveLiberal DemocracyLiberal/Permissive Semidemocracy (Null) LimitedIlliberal Democracy Illiberal/Restrictive Semidemocracy Moderate Dictablanda Minimal(Null)Repressive Semidemocracy Hard-Line Dictadura
________________Regime___________________ Civil Liberties___AutocracySemi-DemocracyDemocracy Minimal Partial Extensive Totals
_________________Regime_________________ Civil Liberties___AutocracySemi-DemocracyDemocracy Minimal Partial Extensive Totals
Political Regimes in 1999: Countries and Population N % Regime Type_____Countries__ __Population__ Liberal Democracy 3<5 Illiberal Democracy Illiberal Semi-Democracy 5 33 Autocracy 1 2
Liberal and Illiberal Democracy,
Why Illiberal Democracy? Protection of elite interests Control of popular masses Under rubric of free and fair elections
SO WHAT? CYCLES OF MASS POLITICS –Unfettered and “dangerous” democracy (e.g., reformists + Allende) [1950s-] –Military coups and authoritarian regimes [1960s-] –Democracy contained [1980s-]: Neoliberal economics, Washington consensus Institutional constraints (e.g. MRO) Illiberal democracy –Rise of the “new Left” [1990s-]
The End