Abstract

GARCIA ONORO, Jairo. Latin America: Between Democracy and Authoritarianism. Estud. Polit. [online]. 2012, n.41, pp.15-35. ISSN 0121-5167.

The current democratic systems in Latin America would be part of what Samuel Huntington called the third wave of democratization. However it is undeniable that in recent years new political dynamics have emerged that have transformed the political map of the region and pose challenges, for some of an authoritarian kind, to democracy in the continent. This work aims to contribute to the understanding of those dynamics, first, addressing the problem of conceptual definitions for democracy and authoritarianism, second, reviewing some historical background of the region and finally proposing that what Guillermo O'Donnell preliminarily called delegative democracy would be an expression of the new warlordism, which in turn is the expression of a new type of democracy that is democratic in that it relies on the support of majorities, but not a democracy on the sense that it undermines individuals rights, weakens institutions of control, and decreases the mechanisms of political accountability. The methodology used was to make a comparison between the main theoretical references on democracy and authoritarianism and, historical evidence and current actions of governments in various nations of the region in recent years.

Keywords : Authoritarianism; Democracy; Waves of Democratization; Delegative Democracy; Warlordism; Latin America.

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