Introduction

Latin America is a region in constant flux, often in opposing and contradictory directions. After the so-called third wave of democratization that began in the late 1970s and put an end to the authoritarian regimes that held sway in most countries in the region, democracy (understood as a system in which citizens have a real opportunity to change their government through fair, regular, and competitive elections) has gradually become consolidated. However, economic and political crises continue to return to the region and have at times led to institutional breakdown.

A total of fourteen presidents in the region have been unable to complete their presidential mandates since 1980, some as a result of legal proceedings being taken against them over matters such as the violation of human rights (Alberto Fujimori in Peru, in 2000) or over corruption scandals (Fernando Collor de Mello in Brazil, in 1992). Presidents have been impeached by parliament (Abdalá Bucaram in Ecuador, in 1997) or even deposed in a classic military coup (Manuel Zelaya en Honduras, in 2009). There have been presidents who have dismissed their own parliaments (Alberto Fujimori's autogolpe in Peru in 1992 and that of Jorge Serrano Elías in 1993 in Guatemala), as well as failed attempts by the opposition to stage a coup (Venezuela, in 2002). These events are not merely machinations by political elites – civil society has been actively involved on many occasions. To cite just a few examples, the Painted Faces (caras pintadas) student movement was prominent in Brazil shortly before the resignation of Collor de Mello; a wave of protests known as El Caracazo that began in 1989 and eventually put an end to the government of Andrés Perez in Venezuela (1993); the cacerolazos or “pot-banging protests” led to the fall of the presidency of Fernando de la Rúa in Argentina (2001); the Paraguayan March precipitated the downfall of the government of Raúl Cubas Grau in 1999; in Bolivia President Gonzalo Sánchez de Losada resigned in the midst of protests unleashed by the so-called gas war in 2003, which in 2005 also put an end to the government of his vice-president, Carlos Mesa; and finally, in 2000 President Jamil Mahuad was forced from office in Ecuador by a massive wave of demonstrations orchestrated by the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (Confederación de Nacionalidades Indígenas del Ecuador).