Drugs, Thugs, and the Diablos Rojos: Perils and Progress in Panama
In many ways, Panama has come into its own. Its running of the Panama Canal is indisputably successful, its post-Noriega elections appear to be relatively corruption free, the multibillion dollar expansion of the Canal and the modernization of its transportation system are in full swing—all ostensibly signs of a developed country, but appearances can be deceiving. Dig deeper, and perils emerge: an increase in gangs and drug trafficking, a huge disparity between the wealthy and the poor, and an emerging threat to democracy. Examining these perils and progress demonstrates that Panamanians do not yet enjoy full citizenship; instead, “client-ship” still dominates.
Civil Society, Social Capital and Economic Development
In recent decades, debates over the determinants of economic development have routinely turned on disagreements over the proper boundaries between the state and the market. Statists argue that the imperfect and immature markets of most developing countries require the guidance of a strong, autonomous, Weberian state. Neo-liberals champion the ef® ciency of free markets in allocating resources toward their most productive uses and decry the distortions accompanying many forms of state intervention. Neither perspective places primary emphasis on the role of civil society‐ those intermediate forms of social organisation that stand between, and partially independent of, both state and market. When statistsand neo-liberals do sometimes focus on the role that civil society plays in economic development, they ® nd common ground around a negative assessment of the economic impact of associationalism. Statists fear that a vigorous civil society will press multiplied demands upon the state. These external pressures undermine the bureaucratic autonomy that serves as the central prerequisite to neutral, technocratic management of the development process. At the extreme, a constantly agitated civil society threatens to overwhelm fragile political institutions and lead to ungovernability in the face of fractious and contradictory demands from below. 1 Neo-liberals see matters in similar terms. Societal mobilisation usually entails collusion among rent-seeking agents who seek to transfer income from other segments of society by manipulating markets or state policies. These distributive coalitions reward the organised at the expense of the unorganised in a zero-sum game. Widespread rent seeking adds nothing to overall economic development and in fact interferes with the growth process by distorting incentives and impeding innovation. 2 In the last decade, a growing number of sociologists, economists and political scientists has sought to overturn this negative portrayal of the economic consequences of associationalism. The notion of social capital has served as the driving wedge of this effort to de® ne a ``third way’’ along the path to development. Social capital consists of the economic potential embodied in social organisations and the norms of trust and reciprocity that animate them. In this view, the self-organisation of civil society is a necessary element of successful
The Limitations of Ideology in the Early Argentine Labour Movement: Anarchism in the Trade Unions, 1890—1920
The origins of the labour movement in Argentina, which date from a period when the country was developing rapidly and had an important place in the world economy, have received little close attention from historians. Generally, the years before 1930 have been neglected in favour of the study of developments associated with Perón and Peronism. Such secondary literature as does exist consists largely of personal memoirs, whose authors were, understandably, parti pris. The more general studies tend to underestimate the extent, variety and sophistication of trade unionism before 1930, and also to contrast the style and ideology of the unions with that of the Peronist labour movement. Most notably, Argentina is widely quoted, along with Spain, as one of the countries where anarchist and/or anarcho-syndicalist ideology and practice dominated the labour movement.