Neoliberalism,Authoritarian Politics and Social Policy in China

This article explores the relationships among neoliberalism, social policy expansion and authoritarian politics in contemporary China. It argues that in the era of neoliberalism, rising new right and authoritarian governments, the Chinese Communist Party has sought to retain power by shifting politically to the right and promoting neoliberal-looking economic policies. These policies have raised average living standards but also increased insecurity for most of the Chinese population, while new social policies have facilitated marketization. Social policy expansion includes minimal cash transfers as well as social old-age and health insurance for hitherto excluded sections of the population. These policies have begun to erode long-standing urban–rural segregation, but they have added new, underfunded, social programmes rather than widening participation in existing ones, re-segregating provision so that urban elites and formal sector workers enjoy much more generous provisions than many people working informally and those without work. These social policies’ most significant dark sides thus include compounded income inequalities and the segmentation and stigmatization of the poorest. Authoritarian controls have enabled the Communist Party to avoid redistributive policies that would undermine its urban support, so that politics in China differ from the right-wing populism of new, anti-establishment authoritarian regimes.     

Democratization and State Feminism: Gender Politics in Africa and Latin America

This article addresses the link between state feminism and democratization in the global South. The authors use the contrasting cases of Chile and Nigeria to show some of the factors that encourage women to exploit the opportunities presented by transitions to democracy, and link the outcome of state feminism to the strategies and discourses available to women during democratization. Based on evidence from the cases analysed, the authors propose that the strategic options available to women are shaped by at least three factors: (1) the existence of a unified women’s movement capable of making political demands; (2) existing patterns of gender relations, which influence women’s access to arenas of political influence and power; and (3) the content of existing gender ideologies, and whether women can creatively deploy them to further their own interests. State feminism emerged in Chile out of the demands of a broad–based women’s movement in a context of democratic transition that provided feminists with access to political institutions. In Nigeria, attempts at creating state feminism have consistently failed due to a political transition from military to civilian rule that has not provided feminists with access to political arenas of influence, and the absence of a powerful women’s movement.     

拉美军人与政治：理论与范式的演进

本文介绍与分析了西方学术界在拉美军人参政这一课题的研究中曾出现的几个有重要影响的理论、范式——自由主义、新现实主义、普力夺主义理论、中产阶级军队理论、官僚权威主义理论、国家安全学说。应当说,尽管这些理论存在着很多不足之处,但是,他们在揭示拉美军人政权产生的根源、军政权的政策特点等诸多问题上提出了非常具有启发价值的观点,其观点与研究视角都值得我们借鉴。     

Security in Latin America

This article provides an overview of recent trends in Latin American security and examines three common assumptions that underpin both academic analysis and policy debate—assumptions about the links between political democracy, economic integration and regional stability, and about the need to broaden the agenda of regional security. In contrast to the liberal orthodoxy, there is little reason to believe that the promotion of political democracy and economic liberalization and integration will automatically tend towards regional stability, especially given the weakness of regional institutions, the fragility of many states, the inequality of power among states, and the lack of consensus over the meaning and implications of the 'new security agenda'.     

拉丁美洲军人干政国家的军人与民主

拉丁美洲军人干政国家中的军人是影响国家民主和民主化的重要因素之一。短期来看,拉丁美洲军人干政国家中军人对民主化的作用是不确定的：军人有时安邦定国为民主化奠定基础,有时践踏宪政成为民主化的障碍。军人干政不代表堵死民主化之路;军人返回军营也不代表通向民主化坦途。长远来看,军人干政不具备终极合法性,民主巩固的结果将是文人领军和宪政。在民主转型中的拉丁美洲军人干政国家,一方面民主转型是大势所趋,另一方面军人干政并未销声匿迹。民主的推行需要合理利用军人的积极作用,以形成独特的民主模式。     

Fighting Inflation in Latin America

Inflation has been a chronic problem for Latin American economies since the Second World War. In the 1980s, inflation ran out of control in many countries. This article analyses the causes of these high inflation rates and discusses the experiences of Latin American countries in fighting (hyper-) inflation in the 1980s and 1990s. Particular attention is given to the relative merits of orthodox versus heterodox approaches, and to the use of the exchange rate as an inflation stabilizer. The article concludes, among other things, that achieving fiscal balance is crucial, whatever method is used, and that a fixed exchange rate can help to stabilize inflation but contains many risks, in particular with open capital accounts.     

行走拉美

正在遥远的太平洋彼岸,静卧着从诞生伊始就在苦难中艰难前行的拉丁美洲,那里开拓了最初的玛雅文明,印证了殖民主义的丑恶,缔造了光辉的印加文化;那里有漫长的安第斯山脉,有举世无双的伊瓜苏瀑布,有浩浩荡荡的亚马孙河……那一片静谧而广袤的土地,就如热带雨林一般,充满诱惑,令人心驰神往。     

Ethics and Archaeological Tourism in Latin America

Archaeological tourism and ethics are two fields that, with exceptions, scholars have been reluctant to combine. There is, however, an increasing concern on the general subject of tourism and ethics and this article will draw examples from Latin America to explore the intersection between both. An overview of the history of archaeological tourism in Latin America will be provided. A growing number of archaeologists all over Latin America are becoming active in promoting or assisting the conversion of sites into tourist attractions. For some, it is a way of protecting sites in the face of the dangers brought about by uncontrolled tourism and for others helping locals to earn a living is a humanitarian question. Yet, archaeological remains are not neutral, but powerful means of creating historical memory and identity. Tourism becomes a means of advertising and even of legitimizing the existence of groups and that politicizes archaeologists’ engagement with tourism. This politicization represents an ethical challenge for the profession. Also, the conversion of archaeological ruins into tourist attractions can only be made through the commodification of culture. This has been denounced by some scholars as another postcolonial appropriation and neoliberal method of controlling indigenous groups, but hailed by others as a good thing for indigenous communities as it provides them with a living.