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Cuadernos del CEDLA, No. 24 Legal pluralism and interlegality in Ecuador The La Cocha murder case Marc Simon Thomas CEDLA, November 2009, 110 pp. ISBN 90 70280 07 9 - € 10. To Order

With its Constitution of 1998, Ecuador legally acknowledged its pluri-cultural and multi-ethnic character. As a feature, it recognized customary law along with state law, through which a situation of formal legal pluralism came into being. Despite several attempts to develop a coordinating law and jurisprudence, no so-called conflict rules have yet been developed. Consequently, it is still unclear how to deal with conflicts over jurisdiction. That is why a homicide in La Cocha could be adjudicated by indigenous authorities in the first place, but a couple of months later the verdict overruled by the national legal system. A judge recognized the indigenous administration, but subsequently the Court of Justice referred the case back to a national criminal court.

The La Cocha murder case illustrates what may happen to the process of interlegality – that is, the interaction between two different normative orders – in a situation of formal legal pluralism when conflict rules are lacking, providing a supplement to existing elaborations on interlegality.

With an epilogue by Professor André Hoekema.

Cuadernos del CEDLA, No. 23 Policía, seguridad y transición política Acercamientos al estado del México contemporáneo José Carlos G. Aguiar y María Eugenia Suárez, eds. CEDLA, JULIO 2008, 101 PP. ISBN 90 70280 49 3, rústica € 10. To Order

El disparo de los índices delictivos en las ciudades y el surgimiento de industrias criminales transnacionales, en particular el narcotráfico, van a la mano del proceso de democratización de las instituciones políticas en México a partir de la década de 1980. La seguridad se ha convertido en el tema angular del debate social, y está al centro de las preocupaciones ciudadanas; en respuesta, los gobiernos democráticos formulan políticas para la reducción de la criminalidad y violencia. La seguridad en México es un indicador del funcionamiento del estado de derecho, de las instituciones públicas y también un revelador de los miedos públicos y confianza de los ciudadanos en su gobierno.
Mientras el sistema político del país transita de un partido de Estado a un modelo multipartidista, es primordial estudiar las respuestas de estos gobiernos sobre la cuestión de la seguridad. ¿Cuál ha sido el impacto de la transición política sobre la reducción del crimen y la agenda de seguridad en México? ¿Cómo funcionan y son utilizadas las instituciones policiales y judiciales en este contexto?

JOSÉ CARLOS G. AGUIAR es investigador del CEDLA y profesor titular en el centro de Lenguas y Culturas de América Latina, Universidad Leiden.
MARÍA EUGENIA SUÁREZ, es profesora titular del Centro de Estudios de Género, Universidad de Guadalajara.
Quienes también contribuyeron a esta publicación son: Wil Pansters, Marcos Pablo Moloeznik y Arturo Villarreal Palos.

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Mexico committed to liberalizing its trade under the terms set by NAFTA and the WTO, yet it is also obliged to protect its exceptional biodiversity. This is especially delicate as it is closely linked to cultural diversity and the survival of poor campesino and indigenous groups.
The unfortunate introduction of GMOS into the country occurred through imported maize, a product that appears to be the apple of discord in the discussion on biotechnology. For Mexicans, non-economic factors make the origin and quality of maize extremely important, even more so than costs and prices. If Mexico is unable to find new strategies of survival that are also environmentally sustainable for the countryside, the guardians of the genetic diversity of maize - the still numerous rural subsistence farmers - will end up as undocumented immigrants in the USA.
This study discusses the possibility to have one sole food policy that responds to the interests of the sectors linked to technological knowledge as well as those linked to traditional knowledge. In the complex Mexican context, it is possible to promote efficiently the adoption of biotechnology and at the same time preserve bio-divesity, and who should pay the costs?

Este estudio analiza la contribución potencial de asociaciones público-privadas (apps) en la innovadora y ambiciosa Iniciativa para la Integración de la Infraestructura Regional Sudamericana, iirsa. Como un amplio plan regional, iirsa es única en su tamaño y concepto como apoyo a una integración económica más profunda y la inserción de la región en los mercados mundiales. El Impacto potencial de iirsa en la geografia económica regional puede ser significativo a través de su estímulo para la inversión, producción y comercio. Al mismo tiempo, la infraestructura vial puede amenazar ecosistemas y los bienes públicos que éstos proveen para la comunidad local y global.

Entre las características distintivas de iirsa está su ambición de hacer que mecanismos financieros innovadores tales como las apps contribuyan a su implementación y financiamiento. Hasta aquí, la experiencia es limitada. Hay lecciones que aprender de grandes proyectos app en Brasil, como el Programa Vial en Mato Grosso y el programa para pavimentar la vía br-163 Cuiabá-Santarém. Como se muestra, una app es no es ciertamente una misión sin problemas y los riesgos financieros, regulatorios y ambientales pueden ser substanciales. Sin embargo, con los riesgos financieros distribuidos más adecuadamente, el uso de análisis costo-beneficio más realistas, evaluaciones ambientales completas y procedimientos de implementación relacionados, apps pueden producir recompensas substanciales para la sociedad en general.

This study analyses the potential contribution of public-private partnerships (PPPs) in the innovative and ambitious Initiative for Regional Infrastructure Integration in South America, IIRSA. As a region-wide plan, IIRSA is unique in its size and concept in support of the deepening of economic integration and the insertion of the region in world markets. The potential impact of IIRSA on the region's economic geography may be significant through its stimulus to investment, production and trade. At the same time, road infrastructure may threaten ecosystems and the public goods they provide for the local and world community.

Among the distinctive features of IIRSA is its ambition to make innovative financial mechanisms such as PPPs contribute to its implementation and financing. So far, experience is limited. Lessons are to be learned from sizeable PPP projects in Brazil, such as the Programa Estradeiro in Mato Grosso and the programme for paving the BR-163 Cuiabá-Santarém highway. As shown, a PPP is certainly not a trouble-free mission, and financial, regulatory and environmental risks may be substantial. Nevertheless, with financial risks distributed more adequately, the use of more realistic cost-benefit analyses and comprehensive environmental assessments and related implementation procedures, PPPs may produce substantial rewards for society at large.

Pitou van Dijck is Associate Professor of Economics at C edla, Amsterdam. Simon den Haak has received a masters degree with distinction of Cedla, and works as a policy officer at the Dutch Lower House of Parliament.

In 1993, the official report of the Truth Commission confirmed the extent of human rights violations during El Salvador’s civil war (1980-92). The military and state officials proved to have been complicit in large-scale and premeditated atrocities. On a notably lesser scale, FMLN insurgents were also responsible for human rights abuses.

Days after the Truth Commission’s report was published, a sweeping amnesty law effectively buried expectations for justice. So strong and vocal before and during the war, the human rights movement was unable to reverse this process, partly due to its historical ties with the FMLN. This became problematic in the postwar context, as the prosecution of crimes might also have legal implications for the FMLN leadership. In the end, the human rights movement was paralysed through an implicit pact of impunity between the government and the FMLN.

This study, by documenting the shift in political identities on a grassroots level as a result of a difficult, painful and disempowering transition process, contrasts with most contemporary scholars on social movements, which tend to be optimistic about the transformational potential of the social movement.

Ralph Sprenkels received a masters degree with distinction of Cedla, and works as a Democra-tization Policy Officer at the Interchurch Organization for Development Cooperation (ICCO).

Colombia is Latin America's linchpin. Located between Central and South America, it is a crucial geopolitical region. Unfortunately, today its strategic hemispheric position has turned from an asset into a serious liability. Civil war and an increasing narcotics industry have led to a fragmented political system, an uncontrollable economy and a vulnerable international position. The volume, with contributions from seven eminent Colombian scholars, centres on this complex and often contradictory society, which has been dogged by violence, international controversy and uncontrolled military strife for decades. The text is largely based on a seminar on the Colombian Conflict in International Perspective, held at the third Congreso Europeo de Latinoamericanistas (CEISAL), in Amsterdam, and a meeting organized at the Nether-lands' Ministry of Foreign Affairs in The Hague, in 2002. During these events, Colombian scholars gave their views on the complex situation of their country. The principal aim of their analysis was to present a vision from within and share their views on the current dynamics of conflict – particularly in the context of North American anti-terrorist and anti-drugs measures – with international academics and policy makers.

The contributors are: Alvaro Camacho (University of the Andes, Bogota), Francisco Leal (University of the Andes, Bogota), Alfredo Molano (political analyst and writer), Alfredo Rangel (Foundation for Security and Democracy, Bogota), Mauricio Romero (Rosario University, Bogota), Gonzalo Sanchez (National University of Colombia, Bogota) and Ricardo Vargas (Transnational Institute and Andean Action Platform).

Far too long put in second place by scholars, the academic interest in the Latin American right has markedly increased in recent years. One can say that it finally has received the attention it deserves because of the central role it played in and the profound influence it had on the development of the subcontinent's nations during the twentieth century. The growing number of publications on, for example, traditional conservatives, fascists, and the New Right, attests to this trend.

The volume reflects this frowing interest in the Latin American right, and more specifically the extreme right. It investigates the story and reconstructs the history of the Acção Integralista Brasileira, the dominant fascist movement in Brazil in the 1930s. Covering the period between its establishement in October 1932 and its demist in early 1938, it discusses the continuity and discontinuity of the integralista discourse as presented by its leading members; deals with its political strategies and explains how and why they were adapted over time; and looks into the Acção Integralista Brasileira's changing relationships with other political and social protagonists, namely Getúlio Vargas, the armed forces, the Catholic Church, and the German-Brazilian communities and the Third Reich.

Luso-Brazilian Review Klein

Cruzando Fronteras en América Latina fue el tema central del Tercer  Congreso Europeo de Latinoamericanistas, que tuvo lugar en  Amsterdam el 3-6 de julio de 2002. El tema de fronteras e identidades  constituye un pilar fundamental en todo intento dirigido a la  comprensión de los procesos políticos contemporáneos, ya sea en  Latinoamérica o en Europa. Las fronteras representan construcciones  políticas e institucionales que repercuten fuertemente en el orden social, cultural y económico de las naciones. Las fronteras nos  permiten detectar las muchas contradicciones que se dan entre lo  institucional y lo individual, lo internacional y lo local, entre lo semejante y lo diferente, entre lo nuestro y lo ajeno.

En este Cuaderno tenemos el placer de reproducir los textos de las  tres charlas magistrales que se presentaron durante el Congreso. Trata de las ponencias de los profesores Guillermo O'Donnell, Cynthia Hewitt de Alcántara y Arturo Escobar. Se trata de académicos de renombre mundial, no sólo en el ámbito de los estudios latinoamericanos sino que además de los estudios del desarrollo en general.

During the 1990s, Nicaragua saw microfinance activities gaining strength as an answer to the void that the public banking sector had left in vast sectors of the economy. Neither had the private banking sector been able to satisfy the demand of financial services.

Today, it is estimated that 20 per cent of the population are served by non-governmental organizations, savings and credit cooperations, public corporations, or financing houses. Microfinance institutions have gained significant presence in terms of outreach, impact, and institutional strength, and organized themselves at the national level.

The volume contains five studies on: the market dimensions of the microfinance activities, how well these activities have taken root in rural communities, the paradigms and strategies used when it comes to women, the socioeconomic impact on the end users, and the dilemmas in relation to the new legal framework the sector is waiting for.

Pitou van Dijck is Associate Professor of Economics at Cedla, Amsterdam. Hans Nusselder and Arie Sanders are Research Consultants at Cdr-Ula, San José, Costa Rica.
Other contributors are: Miguel Alemán, Johan Bastiaensen, Michelle Deugd and Ben d’Exelle.

Las microfinanzas tomaron fuerza en Nicaragua en el transcurso de los  años noventa, como respuesta al vacío que dejó la banca estatal frente  a amplios sectores de la economía. La banca privada tampoco pudo  satisfacer la demanda de servicios financieros. Actualmente se estima  que un 20 por ciento de la población recibe atención de organizaciones  no gubernamentales, cooperativas de ahorro y crédito, sociedades  anónimas y sociedades financieras. Numerosas instituciones  microfinancieras (IMFs), en algo más de una década, han logrado una  presencia significativa en términos de alcance, desempeño y solidez  institucional, también al haberse organizado en el nivel nacional.

Este volumen consta de cinco estudios sobre las dimensiones del  mercado de las microfinanzas, el arraigo del microcrédito en comunidades rurales, los paradigmas y estrategias con un enfoque de género, el impacto socioeconómico causado a los usuarios finales y los dilemas con respecto al nuevo marco legal que se espera para el sector. Estos estudios son el resultado de labores realizadas en el transcurso de 2002, en atención directa a las inquietudes de agencias de cooperación y proyectos de investigación académica.

Pitou van Dijck es Profesor Asociado del CEDLA, Ámsterdam, Países Bajos. Hans Nusselder y Arie Sanders son Consultor-investigadores del CDR-ULA, con sede en San José, Costa Rica. Quienes también contribuyeron a esta publicación son: Miguel Aleman, Johan Bastiaensen, Michelle Deugd y Ben d'Exelle.

This Cuaderno looks into the rise and development of Mexican  environmental NGOs and their cross-border relations with US  organizations. Barbara Hogenboom focuses on the role of national NGOs, and Miriam Alfie Cohen and Edit Antal present several cases of local environmental activism along the Mexico-US border. Their  analyses show that while environmental groups are at the forefront of establishing modern transnational relations, these relations have also  been heavily affected by regional asymmetries, local political traditions, and the neo-liberal style of economic integration.

Bargara Hogenboom is Assistant Professor of Political Science at  CEDLA, Amsterdam. Miriam Alfie Cohen is Researcher at the Department of Sociology of the Autonomous Metropolitan University, Azcapotzalco (UAM-A). Edit Antal is Researcher at the Centre for Research on North America (CISAN) of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM).

Este Cuaderno se centra en los intentos de los intelectuales tanto de dentro como de fuera de América Latina por entender el carácter de las sociedades latinoamericanas. Se pasa revista a intelectuales latinoamericanos como José María Arguedas o Mario Vargas Llosa, a académicos extranjeros como Henri Favre o David Stoll y a intelectuales indígenas como Rigoberta Menchú. Se analiza el indigenismo como una ideología que estuvo buscando términos e ideas que podrían definir una nueva realidad latinoamericana.

El Cuaderno hace hincapié en la discusión intelectual urgente y a menudo desesperada entre los intelectuales latinoamericanos sobre la organización de su propia sociedad.

Michiel Baud es catedrático de Estudios Latinoamericanos en la Universidad de Amsterdam y director del CEDLA, Amsterdam.

Under the influence of globalization and new communication  technologies, the Andean population is dispersing themselves around  the globe. It is increasingly clear that an array of external influences is operating in the most remote Andean villages, whereas the volume of long-distance international migration has been expanding rapidly during the last decade. The Andean population is increasingly scattered over the world; nowadays, large numbers of Bolivians are to be found in the metropolitan area of Buenos Aires, Israel, and the US. Ecuadorians roam over the world in small groups, exporting cultural commodities, or find temporary jobs in places such as New York. Transnational  migrants from Peru are found as sheepherders in California, factory workers in Japan, or as nannies and cleaners in Spain or other European countries.

This volume contains five case studies on transnational migration from the Andes, analysing the Andean exodus and the implications for processes of identity formation and livelihood change in Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru. The contributors are Karsten Paerregaard, David Kyle, Geneviève Cortes, Alfonso Hinojosa and Susana Sassone, who - on the basis of empirical research - analyse how transnational migration is shaped; what happens to the identity and livelihood of peasants (and their children) in the case of temporary or long-term migration across international borders. Traditionally, Andean identities have been rooted to places of origin and territorial belonging; and modes of life have long been analysed as localized, ingrained, stable and socially bounded connections between people and the land. Should the idea of 'sedentary-ness' be replaced by 'flows', and what are the implications?

Dawn at New Year 1994 was a tantalizing moment in Mexican history  when hundreds of ski-masked rebels of the EZLN, or Zapatista  National Liberation Army, took their nation by surprise. To explain for  their ski-masked presence, their Maya leadership wrote the following words:

The time has come to speak for our hearts, for the hearts of others, from the night and from the earth our dead should come, the faceless  ones, those who are jungle, who dress with war so their voice will be heard, that their word later falls silent and they return once again to the night and to the earth, that other men and women may speak, who walk other lands, whose words carry the truth, who do not become lost in lies.

The narrative that is offered here is based on a hypothesis of how the rebellious Maya read the signs of history, economy, and politics that came to them from the outside. Next to a series of clearly identifiable political and economic factors, and through the unconscious psychological processing of sign language, the adoption of 'new' messages with their 'old' mythology became the major factor that ultimately made mobilization inevitable.

Arij Ouweneel is Associate Professor of History at CEDLA, Amsterdam, and holds a Chair in Ethnohistory at Utrecht University (1999-2004).

On 26 March, 1991, the Presidents of Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay signed the Treaty of Asunción, which started the  processs of establishing a common market in the Southern Cone of the Americas. Notwithstanding major obstacles and recurrent policy  inconsistencies, Mercosur/1 has contributed fairly rapidly to the  integration of its four members, particularly through the liberalization of trade in manufactures and the introduction of a common external  tariff. This process has clearly advanced the potential significance of  Mercosur member countries in the negotiations on a future Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) as well as in the World Trade  Organization (WTO), and hence in shaping Latin America's future.

The volume contains nine studies on the economic, political and social dimensions of Mercosur's achievements so far, and its challenges ahead. Among the central themes are: the deepening and widening of Mercosur; currency volatility and policy coordination; strategic aspects of intra- and interregional cooperation; Mercosur and the formation of SAFTA and the FTAA; transatlantic cooperation; Mercosur as an agent of discipline; and the role of civil society

The contributors are: Paul Cammack, Pitou van Dijck, Janette Habel, Marcelo de A.Medeiros, Kurt Morais, Vivianne Ventura Dias, Paulo Vizentini, Rob Vos, and Marianne Wiesebron.

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