Democratic transition in Guatemala: Toward a consolidated democracy or a failed state?

In: Polonia estudios latinoamericanos, Volume 32, p. 5-30

Abstract

Since the late 1970s almost all Latin American and Caribbean countries have been experimenting with democracy. Some of them have succeeded in transitioning to a more democratic political regime, like Uruguay and Chile, while others are still trying to consolidate their democratic systems, such as Brazil and Mexico whereas others are encountering serious difficulties, like Bolivia and Ecuador. There are also states that have failed totally to build democratic systems, function confidently and accomplish basic assignments. In the most extreme cases, the failure of the democratization process has led to the total dysfunctioning of a state or even its collapse. The most significant example of this kind in the Western Hemisphere is Haiti. However, there are many more countries in the Latin American and Caribbean region that have serious problems with the proper adoption of democratic systems. This article is an attempt to analyze the problems with building a stable democratic system in Guatemala.