El gobierno de Rafael Correa: posneoliberalismo, confrontación con los movimientos sociales y democracia plebiscitaria

Este trabajo analiza las ambigüedades del proyecto de refundación del gobierno de Rafael Correa para mejorar la calidad de la democracia en Ecuador. Correa prometió una revolución ciudadana que mejore los déficit de la democracia representativa. Al igual que en otros gobiernos de izquierda se hizo una asamblea refundacional. La nueva constitución amplió los derechos. Pero ya que el Presidente se ve como la encarnación de la revolución ciudadana y de la futura redención de la nación, no respeta el derecho al disenso ni el pluralismo. Su visión de democracia mayoritaria lo ha llevado a concentrar el poder en el ejecutivo y a subordinar a los diferentes poderes del Estado a éste. A la vez que el Gobierno ha incrementado el gasto social utiliza estrategias populistas para cooptar y desradicalizar a los movimientos sociales.This paper studies the ambiguous effects of Rafael Correa’s project to refound the nation on the quality of democracy in Ecuador. In order to correct the deficits of representative institutions Correa promised a citizen’s revolution. He convened a national assembly to write a new constitution. Even though the new constitution expanded citizens and collective rights the president does not respect pluralism or the right to dissent. The government majoritarian view of democracy has led to a concentration of power in the presidency. The government has simultaneously increased social expending and use populist strategies to coopt and deradicalize social movements.Fil: de la Torre, Carlos. Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales (FLACSO); Ecuador

The Streets as Examples of “True” Democracy? The South-American Experience

Building on the existing literature this paper analyzes how – at the turn of the century and into the 21st century – activists in Ecuador, Venezuela and Bolivia constructed narratives that focused on “the people in action”. Advocates of the insurrections framed myths of the pure and oppressed people revolting against the tyranny of economic and political elites. Elites responded by differentiating the authentic people from the mob. Indigenous and other poor and non-white protestors were portrayed by elites as the rabble, as uncivilized, and in general, as a danger to democracy

Digital Music Sampling and Copyright Law

Copyright law governing digital music sampling is faced with two competing interests: first, the owners of recording and composition copyrights need to be reasonably compensated when their creative works are reused by sampling artists, but secondly, sampling artists should have a reasonable degree of freedom to rework fragments of existing recordings at a reasonable cost. A system needs to balance these interests and reduce the degree of uncertainty that arises when the use of a sample infringes a copyright. This Article will discuss the current state of the law as it relates to digital sampling and will then articulate five goals that should be taken into account by any proposed solution to the sampling problem. It will also discuss the various proposals, evaluating each of their strengths and weaknesses with respect to the five goals. Ultimately, it will conclude that compulsory license schemes are best suited to solving, or at least minimizing, the problem

Derecho e interpretación en Ronald Dworkin

En el Postscript a la segunda edición de The Concept of Law, Herbert Hart afirma que su propósito en este libro fue ofrecer una teoría del Derecho de carácter “general y descriptivo” 1 . “General” en el sentido de que se trata de una teoría que, al margen de cualquier sistema jurídico concreto, pretende dar cuenta del Derecho como aquella institución política y social de carácter normativo cuyos rasgos más sobresalientes pertenecen al común conocimiento de cualquier hombre educado. “Descriptivo” en el sentido de que se trata de una teoría moralmente neutral que no pretende ningún fin justificatorio..

Capital market development : whither Latin America ?

Over the past decades, many countries have implemented significant reforms to foster capital market development. Latin American countries were at the forefront of this process. The authors analyze where Latin American capital markets stand after these reforms. They find that despite the intense reform effort, capital markets in Latin America remain underdeveloped relative to markets in other regions. Furthermore, stock markets are below what can be expected, given Latin America's economic and institutional fundamentals. The authors discuss alternative ways of interpreting this evidence. They argue that it is difficult to pinpoint which policies Latin American countries should pursue to overcome their poor capital market development. Moreover, they argue that expectations about the outcome of the reform process may need to be revisited to take into account intrinsic characteristics of emerging economies. The latter may limit the scope for developing deep domestic capital markets in a context of international financial integration.Markets and Market Access,Economic Theory&Research,Access to Markets,Financial Economics,Financial Intermediation

Innovative experiences in access to finance : market friendly roles for the visible hand ?

Interest in access to finance has increased significantly in recent years, as growing evidence suggests that lack of access to credit prevents lower-income households and small firms from financing high return investment projects, having an adverse effect on growth and poverty alleviation. This study describes some recent innovative experiences to broaden access to credit. These experiences are consistent with an emerging new view that recognizes a limited role for the public sector in financial markets, but contends that there might be room for well-designed, restricted interventions in collaboration with the private sector to foster financial development and broaden access. The authors illustrate this view with several recent experiences inLatin America and then discuss some open policy questions about the role of the public and private sectors in driving these financial innovations.Debt Markets,Banks&Banking Reform,,Emerging Markets,Bankruptcy and Resolution of Financial Distress

The Cinema, an Educational Resource. 18 Years of Research by GIAD Group

Tras una referencia a los antecedentes históricos del cine en el ámbito educativo, se reflexiona sobre el papel del cine en la escuela y como instrumento de transmisión de valores. El cine es un instrumento moldeable de forma que puede ser utilizado tanto para el adoctrinamiento político como para la formación ciudadana. Se analiza la experiencia del cine formativo a lo largo de 18 años en la universidad de Barcelona, conducido por el grupo GIAD. El mensaje central del trabajo se centra en el cine como trasmisor de valores y como recurso dinámico y escénico acorde con planteamientos propios del pensamiento complejo y mirada transdisciplinar. Proporciona una formación en contenidos y estrategias para aprender del medio. El cine permite educar en valores, siendo al tiempo un escenario didáctico polivalente.A review of the cinema in the educational field shows the importance of cinema in the school for transmitting values. The educational cinema experience during 18 years at the University of Barcelona, driven by the GIAD group, is analysed. The central message of this work focuses on the cinema to transmit moral values, and as a dynamic resource that generates complex thoughts and transdisciplinary point of views. The cinema provides singular educational content and strategies to learn from the environment. In addition, the cinema allows moral values transmission and a polyvalent didactic scenario

Stock market development under globalization : whither the gains from reforms ?

Over the past decades, many countries have implemented significant reforms to foster domestic capital market development. These reforms included stock market liberalization, privatization programs, and the establishment of regulatory and supervisory frameworks. Despite the intense reform efforts, the performance of capital markets in several countries has been disappointing. To study whether reforms have had the intended effects on capital markets, the authors analyze the impact of six capital market reforms on domestic stock market development and internationalization using event studies. They find that reforms tend to be followed by significant increases in domestic market capitalization, trading, and capital raising. Reforms are also followed by an increase in the share of activity in international equity markets, with potential negative spillover effects on domestic markets.Markets and Market Access,Economic Theory&Research,Access to Markets,Privatization,Corporate Law