Post legal positivism: new paradigm of legal science (jurisprudence) and practice in Brazil

The relation between law, moral, society and science is shifting in Brazil as it is changing in democratic contemporary societies. This paper proposes to reflect about this change in the Brazilian legal and social context. Jurisprudence and legal practice have been transformed intensively after the Brazilian redemocratization that began in 1985 and Federal Constitution of 1988. In the field of Jurisprudence (Legal Theory), a new legal theory called post-positivism progressively has been overcoming legal critical studies and legal positivism. In recent years, ideas as any moral values can be improved by law (positivism) or law is one of many oppressive institutions in capitalist society (legal critical studies – Marxism) have been losing place in legal theory. Nowadays, when Brazilian Constitution implements just society and legal system, different from the authoritarian military regime (1964 – 1985), it is difficult to work with a complete relativistic idea of law (positivism) or difficult to accept that law is necessarily oppressive in capitalistic societies. Otherwise the idea of science in law at post-positivistic point of view try to overcome in a dialectic way a pure science methodology (normativistic positivism) and the complete political and economic studies of law (critical legal studies – Marxism). After that, the text will show that Brazilian legal practice have changed intensively after post positivistic methodology of law and will reflect about same dilemmas of post-positivism in Brazil in the legal theory and practice

The constraining role of political culture in the deepening of new democracies: the case of Chile

A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Bachelor of Arts in Political Science with Honors.This paper examines the role of political culture in the development of Chilean democracy as a case study for other third-wave democracies in the Latin American region. The prioritization of political stability during the years of democratic transition - seen as essential by the political elite to prevent the political polarization that led to the 1973 coup d’etat - resulted in limited social reform and the dissatisfaction of the average Chilean with his political parties. Differences in the political culture of the political elite and at the mass level resulted in a delegitimization of democracy for the average citizen. The Chilean case highlights a growing issue of representation in Latin America and a general loss of faith in the democratic project

Descontinuidades na Política Externa de Direitos Humanos brasileira pós-redemocratização

Este trabalho apresenta o desenvolvimento da matéria de Direitos Humanos na Política Externa Brasileira no período da pós-redemocratização. Observa-se que o processo de redemocratização, legitimado com a adoção da Constituição Federal de 1988, consagra a República Federativa do Brasil enquanto Estado democrático de direito, conferindo aos Direitos Humanos a condição de princípios que regem a diplomacia brasileira em suas Relações Internacionais. Em conformidade com o texto constitucional, o Brasil, nos últimos anos, ganhou posição de destaque no desenvolvimento de ações políticas que reafirmam o seu compromisso com os Direitos Humanos para com a sua população e em suas relações exteriores. Verifica-se, por outro lado, que o protagonismo da política externa brasileira na promoção e proteção dos Direitos Humanos no sistema internacional consagrou-se a partir do desenvolvimento do Programa Nacional de Direitos Humanos (PNDH), formulado em 1996, ainda durante o governo Fernando Henrique Cardoso, tendo continuidade e ampliação durante os governos Lula e Dilma. Este trabalho tem como foco a descrição em torno das transformações, com base em compromissos relacionados aos Direitos Humanos (DH), na Política Externa brasileira (PEB) pós-redemocratização, marcada pela posse de José Sarney até o governo de Dilma Rousseff.This work presents the development of the matter of Human Rights in the Brazilian Foreign policy in the period of the post-redemocratization. It is observed that the redemocratization process, legitimated with the adoption of the Federal Constitution of 1988, consecrates the Federative Republic of Brazil as a democratic State of law, granting to Human Rights the condition of principles that govern Brazilian diplomacy in its International Relations. In accordance with the constitutional text, Brazil has, in recent years, gained a prominent position in the development of political actions that reaffirm its commitment to Human Rights towards its population and in its foreign relations. It is verified, on the other hand, that the protagonism of the Brazilian foreign policy in the promotion and protection of the Human Rights in the international system was consecrated starting from the development of the National Program of Human Rights (PNDH), formulated in 1996, still during the government Fernando Henrique Cardoso, with continuity and enlargement during the governments Lula and Dilma. This work has as focus the description around the transformations, with base in commitments related to the Human Rights (HR), in the Brazilian Foreign Policy post-redemocratization (PEB), marked by José Sarney ownership to Dilma Rousseff's governmen

“Nation State” or “State Nation”?: Conceptual Reflections and Some Spanish, Belgian and Indian Data

human development, culture

Two-ballot versus plurality rule: an empirical investigation on the number of candidates

Duverger claimed more than 50 years ago that the number of candidates in elections should be a function of electoral rules. Both his “law” and “hypothesis” suggest the number of candidates vying for seats in elections to be tightly linked to characteristics of the electoral process such as its degree of proportionality and the presence of runoffs. Here we test the validity of Duverger’s claim using data from municipal elections in Brazil. Our study differs from others in the field in two important dimensions. First, by using municipal data we avoid the usual problems that plague statistical analysis using cross-country data. Secondly, we have a truly exogenous source of variation due to a change in electoral legislation introduced by the constitutional reform of 1988: simple plurality remained the rule only in municipalities with less than 200,000 voters, and a second-ballot became mandatory for the others above that threshold. This allows for a neat identification strategy using panel data. Our main finding is that elections with runoffs lure greater numbers of candidates in municipalities with sufficiently high levels of heterogeneity.Duverger's law, runoff, heterogeneity

Theatre of the Oppressed and Teatro de Arena: In and Out of Context

Theatre of the Oppressed and Teatro de Arena: In and Out of Contex

New Configuration of the Brazilian State: Liberty and Development in the Evolution of Government in Brazil

The recent events in the global economy have revitalized the debate about the size and functions of the State. The neoliberal discourse was put in check, reopening the discussions concerning Market Liberty and the importance of the State. Since the proclamation of the Republic, the Brazilian government has undergone numerous reforms, sometimes assuming a liberal, external market dependent orientation, while at other times assuming an authoritarian, developmental state-driven orientation. The aim of this article is to develop insights into the evolution of the governmental organization and reflect on the assumptions that lie behind the various reforms that have taken place since the beginning of the Republic. The theoretical framework is divided into three parts: Development and Liberty based on the perspectives of Friedrich Hayek and Amartya Sen; the role of the State and its impact on the economy and; the formats assumed by the Brazilian State throughout the history of the Republic. The latter part of the work returns to the theoretical framework, summarizing all that has been discussed in order to fulfil the aims of the study

「弱い」国家の民主的指導下での政策刷新 : フィリピンにおける貿易自由化とASEAN 自由貿易地域合意の実施

安全保障・国際問題プログラム / Security and International Studies Program政策研究大学院大学 / National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies論文審査委員: 恒川 惠市（主査）, 白石 隆, 大島 正太郎, 細江 宣裕, 美甘 信吾（信州大学経法学部 教授

The Lessons of a Successful Military Occupation; Strategic Insights, v. 2 issue 5 (May 2003)

This article appeared in Strategic Insights, v.2 issue 5 (May 2003)Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited

The Media Activism of Latin America’s Leftist Governments: Does Ideology Matter?

Has Latin America’s left turn mattered in media politics? Does ideology impact governments’ practices and policies regarding media and journalistic institutions? Through an empirical assessment of discourses on the media, of direct-communication practices, and of media regulation policies on the part of the recent leftist governments of Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Uruguay, and Venezuela, this paper stresses the existence of a specific media activism on the part of leftist governments in Latin America. While showing that the current binary distinctions that stress the existence of two lefts—“populist” and “nonpopulist”—obscure important commonalities and continuities, the author also demonstrates that it is the existence of certain institutional and structural constraints that best accounts for the differ-ences among the various leftist governments in Latin America. In sum, the paper challenges the prevailing neglect of ideology as a relevant factor in explaining developments in gov-ernment–media relationships in the region.media, journalism, Latin America, government, ideology, leftism