Radical Democracy in the Andes

By - Van Cott, Donna Lee;

Floor - Floor 1

Published - Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2008

ISBN 10 - 0521734177

ISBN 13 - 9780521734172

Book Status - 1 Qnty Available with us.

Subject - Andes Region Politics and government

Shelf No - 15

Call Number - 320.984 VAN

Physical Description - xv, 261 pages ; 24 cm

Notes - Includes Reference and Index

Book Information

After a decade in local office, are indigenous peoples' governments in the Andes fulfilling their promise to provide a more participatory, accountable, and deliberative form of democracy? Using current debates in democratic theory as a framework, Donna Lee Van Cott examines 10 examples of institutional innovation by indigenous-party-controlled municipalities in Bolivia and Ecuador. In contrast to studies emphasizing the role of individuals and civil society, the findings underscore the contributions of leadership and political parties to promoting participation and deliberation -- even at the local level. Democratic quality is more likely to improve where local actors initiate and design institutions. Van Cott concludes that indigenous parties' innovations have improved democratic quality in some respects, but that authoritarian tendencies endemic to Andean cultures and political organizations have limited their positive impact.

Open Book