En Route to a Failed State: Paraguayan Legal System

In this release...

En Route to a Failed State: Corruption in the Paraguayan Legal System, the Illicit Market, and Transnational Security

Corruption runs deep in the Paraguayan legal and political systems. The courts fail to prosecute those involved with patron-client networks, the police fail to arrest drug smugglers and criminals, and the ingrained politicians fail to draft reform measures. This corruption supports the largest illicit market in the Western Hemisphere with ties to criminal organizations and terrorist groups throughout the region. Because of the ingrained system, the Paraguayan people trust neither social institutions nor the government. This trend threatens external relations, suggests deep security concerns, and reveals Asunción’s inability to protect and care for its citizens.

This report was prepared by Eric Stadius, Research Associate at the Council on Hemispheric Affairs.
To read the full analysis, click here.

Mexican Election: Recall of Mexico's Electoral "Democracy" Status

Mexico's federal electoral institute initiated a partial recount in the days following its presidential elections the first of this month. The accusations of instances of vote buying and unregulated campaign spending far beyond the permitted levels represent a further tainting of Mexico's sole democratic institution.

This report was prepared by Elise Dunn, Research Associate at the Council on Hemispheric Affairs.
To read the full analysis, click here.

Paraguay's Presidential Change and the Region's Current Democratic Picture

By quickly ushering Paraguay out of and Venezuela into the Mercosur trade bloc, Argentina and Brazil failed to promote democratic institutions in the region. This action calls into question both countries’ leadership tactics in the region and whether their foreign policy has truly evolved past one based solely on economic necessity.

This report was prepared by Sean Burges, COHA Senior Research Fellow and Senior Associate at the Australian National University's Australian National Centre for Latin American Studies, with contributions from Eric Stadius, COHA Research Associate.
To read the full analysis, click here.

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Tuesday, July 10th, 2012 | Research Memorandum 12.47

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The Council on Hemispheric Affairs, founded in 1975, is an independent, non-profit, non-partisan, tax-exempt research and information organization. It has been described on the Senate floor as being "one of the nation's most respected bodies of scholars and policy makers." For more information, please see our web page at www.coha.org

ENDS

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