CH 4 SECT. 4 & 5Subnational & Supranational orgs.

&Economic/Social Conditions

Subnational Organizations

Groups that represent areas or people within a particular nation-state.

Supranational organizations

Organizations that includes a membership representing several nation-states;

SUBNATIONAL ORGS. IN L.A.

Shining Path – Peru (Communist Party of Peru) FARC & ELN – Colombia. FARC is a Communist

insurgent group that has successfully challenged the legitimate gov’t.’s ability to rule & actually controls several geographic areas within that nation.

Zapatistas – anti-globalization group heavily supported by indigenous people of Mexico.

Cartels – until its leader Pablo Escobar was killed in 1993, the Medellin cartel was Colombia’s most powerful & wealthy organized crime group that made enormous profits from the drug trade.

Supranational organizations

Organization of American States: (OAS) chartered in 1948 this supranational organization was established to achieve among its member states, as stated in Article 1 of its Charter, “an order of peace and justice, to promote their solidarity, to strengthen their collaboration, and to defend their sovereignty, their territorial integrity, and their independence

SUPRANATIONAL ORGS. IN L.A. Free Trade Area of the Americas – (FTAA) The Heads of State and Government of the 34

democracies in the region agreed to construct a Free Trade Area of the Americas, or FTAA, in which barriers to trade and investment will be progressively eliminated (proposed hemispheric trade agreement)

MERCOSUR – Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay & Uruguay formed this trade agreement in 1991(Bolivia & Chile are assoc. members). MOST SUCCESSFUL TRADE BLOC IN REGION.

GOAL - primary objective is the integration of the four member nations through the free movement of goods, services and factors of production; the establishment of a Common External Tariff (CET); and the adoption of a common commercial policy coordinating and harmonizing legislation in trade related areas.

SUPRANATIONAL ORGS. IN L.A.

NAFTA: has increased trade in the region, but has been criticized for favoring the US and for the negative effects that the increased trade has had on the environment.

MOST SUPRANATIONAL ORGS. IN THIS REGION HAVE FOCUSED ON TRADE AND ECONOMIC ISSUES; the SUBNATIONAL organizations have been more politically motivated. Overall, in Latin America, the impact of SUPRANATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS has been more beneficial than SUBNATIONAL ones.

INSURGENT GROUPS & THE DRUG TRADE IN LA…

Insurgent groups are groups that seek to replace/take power away from the existing government that is in place.

In this region FARC & ELN are insurgent group examples. Both have controlled large territories of their countries through extortion, kidnapping & violence.

In Latin America, many insurgent groups are funded by money generated from the trafficking of illegal drugs.

Illegal Drugs in the region…

As you are aware (from summer reading & your text) this region is a major supplier of cocaine to the rest of the world. The US is a major destination for drugs leaving Latin America.

Plan Colombia is one attempt to stop the flow of illegal drugs from leaving this region. It has been very expensive & highly criticized for focusing only on the SUPPLY part of the problem, while ignoring the DEMAND piece.

News report - war on drugs UN on legalization Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA link)

Geopolitical dev. Section 4 Guided Reading Questions…

#1: Treaty of Tordesillas was brokered by the Pope (head of Catholic church) in 1494 & was a line of demarcation drawn across a map of the region (north to south) that awarded to Spain all lands west of the line & to Portugal control of all lands east of the line (basically present day Brazil). Spain got more land overall. It was intended to eliminate the possibility of war between Spain & Portugal over control of the “New World.”

4-4 guided reading Q

Portugal was slower than Spain in developing their New World colony of Brazil. Initially they didn’t think they had much to profit from due to a lack of spices for trade & no major indigenous peoples, however, the accessibility of Brazil’s coast (for trade), the forest products (Amazon Rain Forest) & the fact that several cash crops grew extremely well in the soil & climate (sugar, cotton, coffee) all peaked their interest in developing the colony. Gold & diamonds were discovered in the Brazilian Highlands thousands flocked to the colony. *Approximately 3.5 million Africans were forced to Brazil (through slavery) to work on the large plantations the Portuguese had established.

Ch 4-4 Guided Reading Question

The Spanish & Portuguese divided the New World into Administrative Units to make it easier to govern their vast colonies. The divisions they used became the basis for the emergence of the modern nations of Latin America. In other words…the borders & boundaries between modern LA nations were drawn by Imperial powers for THEIR convenience…not for the benefit of the nations of the region. These arbitrarily drawn boundaries were the basis of numerous border wars in the region in the early 20th century.

Ch 4-4 Guided Reading Q#4

GRAN COLOMBIA: Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador & Panama were united into one political unit. Latin American freedom fighter Simon Bolivar (“the Liberator” was a key figure in the establishment of GC. It only lasted 8 years but it helped member nations gain freedom from Imperial rule.

UNITED PROVINCES OF CENTRAL AMERICA:This was a similar entity that was formed to avoid being

annexed by Mexico. Member nations included Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua & Costa Rica.

**Today the former Spanish colonies include 16 states + 3 island nations with a total population of >340 million.

Inspiration?? **If the Spanish colonial territory had formed 1 independent

nation today it would be the 3rd largest nation in the world (following China & India).

Ch 4-4 Guided Reading q’s 4 & 5

BORDER WARS/BOUNDARY DISPUTES IN LA: simply put – the borders drawn by Europeans during Imperialism were not considerate of the people in the region but were the basis for the borders/boundaries of the modern independent countries.

IMPACT OF POLITICAL YOUTHFULNESS: most of the 17 countries in this region are just turning 200 yrs. old. Yet, political stability is lacking even though most nations are democratic; also economic & political reform have been slow. There have been several dictators & other leaders who have misused their political power for their own benefit. Political experts call this “growing pains.”

p. 158 – The Trend toward Democracy…

Common political & economic problems in LA: Even though by 1990’s each country in LA had a democratically elected leader (except Cuba) --

Military coups are too frequent; Poverty is not disappearing quickly

enough (ie middle class development is slow);

Falling incomes, rising violence & chronic underemployment all contribute to political instability throughout the region.

Ch 4 section 5 notes…

Many of the countries of this region fall between “developing” and “developed” categories. Generally, the southern nations are the richest, with Argentina leading the pack. The poorest countries in the region are in Central America and the Andes Mts.

**NEARLY 1/3 OF THE PEOPLE IN THIS REGION LIVE ON LESS THAN $2 PER DAY! (that is the international “poverty line”)

Ch 4 section 5…

Import Substitution has been used to try to improve economies in LA. It involves placing high tariffs on all imports to encourage people to buy (or substitute) less expensive domestic goods instead of the more expensive imported goods. (ie – to buy the goods produced within the country); (Q #2)

Since the 1960’s many LA nations have emphasized manufacturing in their efforts to improve their economies. Growth Poles are planned industrial centers placed in underdeveloped areas that try to attract businesses and provide jobs. (Q#3) Sao Paolo, Brazil is the regions’ most productive manufacturing center. Overall, the focus on manufacturing in this region has not successfully employed a big percentage of workers in the available labor pool.

Ch 4 section 5…

Mexico is in a unique situation because of its competitive advantage (meaning its location along the US border and its membership in NAFTA). For many years Mexican workers & foreign corporations focused on the border zone creating towns & cities; some of which have growing middle & upper classes – but most also contain slums that are home to the lowest paid workers in border manufacturing plants. In recent years other Mexican cities located further from the US border have offered tax incentives & low labor costs as incentives to US manufacturers to try to lure them away from border town & spread economic development inward. (Q #5)

Ch 4 section 5…

Maquiladoras are Mexican manufacturing plants (over 4,000 exist) along the US border that employ over 1 million people and account for nearly half of that countries exports. Despite that, Mexico still does not lead the region in terms of economic development, largely due to its huge population. (Q#4)

Informal sector is still estimated to be providing around 60% of jobs in some areas (remember, some jobs in informal sector are legal & some illegal. The term refers to the fact that the activities done here are not being regulated by the governments). (Q#6)

Primary Export Dependency…

Simply put – the regions’ wealth has always been its abundance of natural resources. Throughout 300 yrs. Of European Imperialism, LA resources were exported bringing great wealth to the Imperial powers. Unfortunately after independence, many LA countries continued to rely on exporting resource goods, specializing in 1 or 2 items around which the success or failure of their entire economy was dependent. Although some countries have done this with great success, many LA nations continue to be underdeveloped & still rely on trade with the west for their success. (thus making them “dependent” on a few primary exports) Q#7

Ch 4 section 5…

SOCIAL CONDITIONS: Major improvements have occurred in life

expectancy, child survival rate and literacy: in comparison to LDC’s however, LA’s quality of life still leaves a lot to be desired for millions. Q#1

NGO’s (non-governmental organizations) are fundamental in the social well being of many in the region due to the inability of governments to meet all of the needs of the poorest people. Q#2

Improvements in social conditions are NOT evenly spread throughout the population of LA nations. (Examples: Chile, Costa Rica, Mexico, Brazil – all of these nations have seen good overall economic growth while large segments of their populations are excluded from any benefits of that growth) Q#3

Ch 4 section 5…

RACE RELATIONS: Q#4 Racially very diverse & very few ethnic conflicts; Native LA’s & black LA’s are disproportionately among the regions’ poorest.

The status of women is difficult to assess because it varies. The old gender stereotypes of machismo & marianismo seem to be breaking down. Generally urban women seem to be more educated, healthy & are more likely to be employed than rural women. Q#5

Social Indicators Updated… http://www.indexmundi.com/map/?v=30&r=sa&l=en life expectancy http://www.childinfo.org/mortality_underfive.php under age 5 mortality http://latinostories.com/Latin_America_Resources/Latin_American_Literacy_Rate.htm illit. http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/COUNTRIES/LACEXT/0,,contentMDK:23032240~pagePK:146736

~piPK:146830~theSitePK:258554,00.html women

http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/2/8260e3ae-f65d-11df-846a-00144feab49a.html#axzz2ElLZTtwG economy

Women in Politics in LA :

Women are increasingly playing a role in politics in this region.

http://www.alternet.org/story/155740/latin_american_countries_have_elected_a_wave_of_women_leaders--why_hasn't_equality_followed

http://www.remezcla.com/2011/latin/women-presidents-government-officials-latin-america/

CHAPTER 5 IN BRIEF: CUBA: From the Miami Herald on 10-21-12…”A Venezuelan doctor says former Cuban leader Fidel Castro has suffered a

stroke, leaving him in"very close to a nuerovegetative state,“Castro, whose revolution seized power in Cuba in 1959, left office in 2006 due to a life-threatening intestinal condition. His younger brother Raul now serves as president.

From ECONOMIST magazine in March 2012…”Raúl Castro, who formally took over as Cuba's president in February 2008 and as first secretary of the Communist Party in April 2011, is trying to revive the island's economy by transferring a substantial chunk of it from state to private hands, with profound social and political implications. He has abolished a few of the many petty restrictions that pervade Cubans' lives. He has also freed around 130 political prisoners. His government has signed the UN covenants on human rights, something his brother had jibbed at for three decades. Repression has become less brutal, though two prisoners have died on hunger strikes. Cubans grumble far more openly than they used to, and academic debate has become a bit freer. But calls for democracy and free elections are still silenced. The Communist Party remains the only legal political party in Cuba. And Raúl Castro has repeatedly dashed the hopes of many Cubans that the hated exit visa, which makes it hard (and for some, impossible) to leave the country, will be scrapped.”

CHAPTER 5 IN BRIEF:

HAITI: Economy Profile 2012

http://www.indexmundi.com/haiti/economy_profile.html

Cholera Outbreak:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-20024400