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The Latin American Spring is a series of Latin American protests, uprisings and rebellions that began in the mid-2010s.[1][2][3] The crises in the region occurred following the end of the 2000s commodities boom, with an economic downturn and slow growth occurring throughout the 2010s.[4] Both left and right-wing governments faced a recently-grown middle class produced from the boom that turned to protest as a result of corruption, economic hardship and increasing inequality.[5]

Background

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Pink tide and commodities boom

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Main article: Pink tide

The third wave of democratization in the 1980s, granted leftist parties to become electorally viable, with the United States reducing its opposition to such parties following the dissolution of the Soviet Union.[6] In the 1990s, neoliberal policies resulted in less social spending, unemployment, inflation and inequality.[7] Beginning in the 2000s, Latin Americans turned away from neoliberal policies and elected leftist leaders, who had recently turned toward more democratic processes instead of armed actions.[8]

Leftist leaders were elected throughout the region in a movement described as the "pink tide", with their governments relying on the 2000s commodities boom to initiate populist policies for support.[9][10] China, which was experiencing a growing economy simultaneously with Latin America, took advantage of strained relations between the United States and leftist governments in Latin America, partnering with regional governments.[11][12] South America in particular initially saw a drop in inequality and a growth in its economy as a result of Chinese commodity trade.[12] According to Daniel Lansberg, such policies resulted in "high public expectations in regard to continuing economic growth, subsidies, and social services".[10]

End of boom

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Commodity prices lowered into the 2010s and overspending by pink tide governments led to unsustainable policies, with supporters becoming disenchanted, eventually leading to the rejection of leftist governments.[13][14] By the mid-2010s, Chinese investment in Latin America had also begun to decline.[15] Analysts state that such unsustainable policies were more apparent in Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador and Venezuela,[12][14] which received Chinese funds without any oversight.[12][16] As a result, some scholars have stated that rise and fall of regional governments were "a byproduct of the commodity cycle's acceleration and decadence".[17]

Timeline

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2014

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Dr. Noam Lupu, associate director of the Latin American Public Opinion Project states that a "pretty big decline" in democracy began in 2014 after a period of stability during the commodities boom.[4] A series of protests in Venezuela began with the 2014 Venezuelan protests; demonstrations that began

2015

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The Odebrecht scandal resulted in widespread ramifications for Latin America, with anti-corruption protests gaining momentum in the region during the investigations.[10] Beginning with the 2015 protests in Brazil,[10] millions of Brazilians protested against corruption.[18]

By September 2015, the Wilson Center outlined a scenario describing potential democratization mobilizations in Latin America, stating at the time that "[i]ncreased expectations of the rising middle classes generate impatience, dissatisfaction, and inability of citizens to identify themselves with politics. The 'Latin-American Spring' gains momentum as millions take to the streets, drawing on new technologies to organize".[19]

2016

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Millions of Brazilians demonstrated on 13 March 2016 demanding the departure of President Rousseff

Further dissatisfaction with governments related to the Odebrecht scandal intensified in 2016, with more Latin Americans becoming disillusioned with democracy at the time, especially in countries more affected by the scandal.[4] Millions of protesters continue to mobilize in Brazil[20] with many Brazilians surveyed by the Latin American Public Opinion Project at the time believing that the majority of politicians in the country were involved in corruption.[4] President Dilma Rousseff is ultimately impeached following graft investigations related to Operation Car Wash.[21]

2017

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The scandal also proved to be controversial in Peru, with President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski becoming iinvolved in an impeachment proceeding after being accused of accepting bribes from Odebrecht,[22] with Kuczynski later resigning following continued political pressure.

2019 Latin American protests

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Main article: 2019 Latin American protests

From late-2018 and throughout 2019, protests in the region intensified once more,[10] with the protests being motivated by various causes.[1]

Bolivia

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Bolivia saw declining trust in its government and electoral system in the years ahead of 2019.[4]

Chile

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Chileans had been discontent with inequality in the country leading up to the protests.[4] The repressive tactics used by authorities in Chile increased tensions within the country, leading to more protests.[4]

Characteristics

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According to Brian Winter, policy vice president of the Americas Society/Council of the Americas, main characteristics of the movement are economic dissatisfaction following the commodities boom and the reliance on military might, with Winter saying that Latin Americans perceive that strongman politics leads to change.[4] Dr. Lupu of the Latin American Public Opinion Project agreed that as corruption and socioeconomic issues increased in Latin America, citizens turn towards strongmen and distanced themselves from supporting democracy.[4] Winter expressed concern with his assessment of Latin America in 2019, stating "My fear is that we’ve gone back to the battle days of coups and protests and instability ... I think all of these things play a role and the takeaway could be that we’re returning to a period ... where uprisings and coups and civil unrest were the rule of the day".[4]

References

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  1. ^ a b Faiola, Anthony (14 November 2019). "How to make sense of the many protests raging across South America". The Washington Post. Retrieved 15 November 2019.
  2. ^ "With Juan Guaidó seizing the presidency, Venezuela's 'Latin Spring' is heating up". The Miami Herald. 23 January 2019. Retrieved 15 November 2019.
  3. ^ "How Latin America's uprisings could be good for copper and lithium". Stockhead. 28 October 2019. Retrieved 15 November 2019.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "BNamericas: Brian Winter on Unrest in Latin America". Americas Society. 15 November 2019. Retrieved 2019-11-22.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  5. ^ "Morales' Exit Stymies Comeback for Latin America's Left". The New York Times. 2019-11-12. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2019-11-22.
  6. ^ Levitsky, Steven; Roberts, Kenneth. "The Resurgence of the Latin American Left" (PDF). Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.
  7. ^ Rodriguez, Robert G. (2014). "Re-Assessing the Rise of the Latin American Left" (PDF). The Midsouth Political Science Review. Arkansas Political Science Association. 15 (1): 59. ISSN 2330-6882.
  8. ^ Reid, Michael (September–October 2015). "Obama and Latin America: A Promising Day in the Neighborhood". Foreign Affairs. 94 (5): 45–53. ... half a dozen countries, led by Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, formed a hard-left anti-American bloc with authoritarian tendencies...
  9. ^ Lopes, Dawisson Belém; de Faria, Carlos Aurélio Pimenta (Jan–Apr 2016). "When Foreign Policy Meets Social Demands in Latin America". Contexto Internacional (Literature review). 38 (1). Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro: 11–53. The fate of Latin America's left turn has been closely associated with the commodities boom (or supercycle) of the 2000s, largely due to rising demand from emerging markets, notably China.
  10. ^ a b c d e Lansberg-Rodríguez, Daniel (Fall 2016). "Life after Populism? Reforms in the Wake of the Receding Pink Tide". Georgetown Journal of International Affairs. 17 (2). Georgetown University Press: 56–65.
  11. ^ Lopes, Dawisson Belém; de Faria, Carlos Aurélio Pimenta (Jan–Apr 2016). "When Foreign Policy Meets Social Demands in Latin America". Contexto Internacional (Literature review). 38 (1). Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro: 11–53. The fate of Latin America's left turn has been closely associated with the commodities boom (or supercycle) of the 2000s, largely due to rising demand from emerging markets, notably China.
  12. ^ a b c d Reid, Michael (2015). "Obama and Latin America: A Promising Day in the Neighborhood". Foreign Affairs. 94 (5): 45–53. As China industrialized in the first decade of the century, its demand for raw materials rose, pushing up the prices of South American minerals, fuels, and oilseeds. From 2000 to 2013, Chinese trade with Latin America rocketed from $12 billion to over $275 billion. ... Its loans have helped sustain leftist governments pursuing otherwise unsustainable policies in Argentina, Ecuador, and Venezuela, whose leaders welcomed Chinese aid as an alternative to the strict conditions imposed by the International Monetary Fund or the financial markets. ... The Chinese-fueled commodity boom, which ended only recently, lifted Latin America to new heights. The region – and especially South America – enjoyed faster economic growth, a steep fall in poverty, a decline in extreme income inequality, and a swelling of the middle class.
  13. ^ Lansberg-Rodríguez, Daniel (Fall 2016). "Life after Populism? Reforms in the Wake of the Receding Pink Tide". Georgetown Journal of International Affairs. 17 (2). Georgetown University Press: 56–65.
  14. ^ a b "Americas Economy: Is the "Pink Tide" Turning?". The Economist Intelligence Unit Ltd. 8 December 2015. In 2004-13 many pink tide countries benefited from strong economic growth, with exceptionally high commodities prices driving exports, owing to robust demand from China. These conditions brought regional growth ... However, the negative impact of expansionary policy on inflation, fiscal deficits and non-commodity exports in many countries soon began to prove that this boom period was unsustainable, even before international oil prices plummeted alongside prices of other key commodities at the end of 2014. ... These challenging economic conditions have exposed the negative consequences of years of policy mismanagement in various countries, most notably in Argentina, Brazil and Venezuela.
  15. ^ Reid, Michael (2015). "Obama and Latin America: A Promising Day in the Neighborhood". Foreign Affairs. 94 (5): 45–53. As China industrialized in the first decade of the century, its demand for raw materials rose, pushing up the prices of South American minerals, fuels, and oilseeds. From 2000 to 2013, Chinese trade with Latin America rocketed from $12 billion to over $275 billion. ... Its loans have helped sustain leftist governments pursuing otherwise unsustainable policies in Argentina, Ecuador, and Venezuela, whose leaders welcomed Chinese aid as an alternative to the strict conditions imposed by the International Monetary Fund or the financial markets. ... The Chinese-fueled commodity boom, which ended only recently, lifted Latin America to new heights. The region – and especially South America – enjoyed faster economic growth, a steep fall in poverty, a decline in extreme income inequality, and a swelling of the middle class.
  16. ^ Piccone, Ted (November 2016). "The Geopolitics of China's Rise in Latin America". Geoeconomics and Global Issues. Brookings Institution: 5–6. [China] promised to impose no political conditions on its economic and technical assistance, in contrast to the usual strings-attached approach from Washington, Europe, and the international financial institutions, and committed to debt cancellation 'as China's ability permits.' ... As one South American diplomat put it, given the choice between the onerous conditions of the neoliberal Washington consensus and the no-strings-attached largesse of the Chinese, elevating relations with Beijing was a no-brainer.
  17. ^ Lopes, Dawisson Belém; de Faria, Carlos Aurélio Pimenta (Jan–Apr 2016). "When Foreign Policy Meets Social Demands in Latin America". Contexto Internacional (Literature review). 38 (1). Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro: 11–53. The fate of Latin America's left turn has been closely associated with the commodities boom (or supercycle) of the 2000s, largely due to rising demand from emerging markets, notably China.
  18. ^ Flynn, Daniel; Soto, Alonso (14 March 2016). "Record Brazil protests put Rousseff's future in doubt". Reuters. Retrieved 14 March 2016.
  19. ^ "Alerta Democrática: Four futures for democracy in Latin America 2030" (PDF). Wilson Center. 21 September 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  20. ^ "MAPA DAS MANIFESTAÇÕES CONTRA DILMA, 13/03". G1. 13 March 2016.
  21. ^ Shoichet, Catherine E.; McKirdy, Euan. "Brazil's Senate ousts Rousseff in impeachment vote". CNN. Retrieved 31 August 2016.
  22. ^ "Peru's leader faces impeachment". Bbc.com. 15 December 2017. Retrieved 28 December 2017.
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