Understanding Central America

by Booth, John A.; Walker, Thomas W.

• ISBN13: 9780813330709
• ISBN10: 081333070X
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1999-05-27
• Publisher: Westview Pr

Summary

Since the 1960s, political violence and war in Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Guatemala have taken 300,000 lives, displaced millions, and reversed decades of economic gains. Progress toward peace has been made since 1989 as the decade of war has changed the politics of conflict in the region and in Washington. In this new edition of a widely praised book, two of the most respected writers on Central American politics explore the origins and development of the region's political conflicts and efforts to resolve them. Highlights of the third edition include a new emphasis on regime change from the 1970s through the 1990s, the Salvadoran and Guatemalan peace accords of 1992 and 1996, recent elections (including Nicaragua's in 1996), evolving U.S.-Central American relations in the post-Cold War era, and an evaluation of the region's new civilian democratic regimes.John Booth and Thomas Walker trace the roots of underdevelopment and crisis in the region by examining the shared and individual histories of the Central American nations. They offer a theory about rebellion and political stability to account for the striking contrast between war-torn Guatemala, El Salvador, and Nicaragua and the stability of Costa Rica and Honduras. The authors examine the forces driving popular mobilizationeconomic change, liberation theology, and Marxismand evaluate the dramatic changes in U.S. policy toward Central America, from a containment-oriented policy dominated by intervention in Central America's revolutions in the 1980s to a policy emphasizing the promotion of economic development and trade, especially with Mexico.

Table of Contents

List of Tables and Illustrations	xi	(2)
Acknowledgments	xiii	(2)
Preface	xv
1 CRISIS AND TRANSFORMATION	1	(10)
2 POVERTY AND ITS CAUSES	11	(9)
Poverty	12	(2)
The Causes of Poverty	14	(6)
3 THE COMMON HISTORY	20	(11)
Conquest to 1838	20	(4)
1838 to the Present	24	(7)
4 INDIVIDUAL HISTORIES OF CENTRAL AMERICAN NATIONS	31	(25)
Costa Rica	31	(4)
Nicaragua	35	(4)
El Salvador	39	(5)
Guatemala	44	(7)
Honduras	51	(5)
5 REVOLUTION, REGIME CHANGE, AND DEMOCRATIZATION: A THEORY	56	(13)
An Overview of Regime Change in Central America	57	(2)
A Theory of Regime Change in Central America	59	(5)
Explaining Regime Change in Central America	64	(4)
Discussion	68	(1)
6 REVOLUTION, COUNTERREVOLUTION, AND DEMOCRATIC TRANSITION IN NICARAGUA	69	(32)
Roots of Class Conflict	69	(3)
Popular Mobilization	72	(1)
Government Repression and Its Effect on Opposition	73	(2)
Outcome of the Challenge to Sovereignty	75	(1)
The Revolution	76	(13)
The Conservative Restoration	89	(10)
Conclusions	99	(2)
7 INSURRECTION AND REGIME CHANGE IN EL SALVADOR	101	(17)
Roots of Class Conflict	101	(3)
Popular Mobilization	104	(1)
Government Repression and the Opposition	105	(5)
Outcome of the Challenge to Sovereignty	110	(4)
War and Peace	114	(3)
Conclusions	117	(1)
8 INSURRECTION AND REGIME CHANGE IN GUATEMALA	118	(13)
Roots of Class Conflict	118	(2)
Popular Mobilization	120	(1)
Repression and Opposition Under Reformist Military and Civilian Transitional Regimes	121	(5)
The Civilian Transitional Regime and the Civil War	126	(4)
Conclusions	130	(1)
9 MAINTAINING STABILITY IN COSTA RICA AND HONDURAS	131	(14)
Sources of Class Conflict	131	(4)
Popular Mobilization	135	(3)
Government Response to Popular Mobilization	138	(5)
Summary and Conclusions	143	(2)
10 POWER, DEMOCRACY, AND U.S. POLICY IN CENTRAL AMERICA	145	(28)
The Problem of Power	147	(1)
Democracy	148	(2)
Mobilization	150	(3)
The Roots of U.S Policy in Central America	153	(5)
Communism in Central America	158	(3)
Demobilization in Central America	161	(10)
The Cost of U.S. Cold War Policy in Central America	171	(1)
U.S. Policy in the Post-Cold War Period	171	(2)
11 REFLECTIONS AND PROJECTIONS	173	(12)
Reflections: Repression, Mobilization, and Democratic Transition	173	(5)
Projections: Prospects for Democratic Consolidation	178	(5)
Conclusion	183	(2)
Appendix: Tables	185	(14)
List of Acronyms	199	(4)
Notes	203	(26)
Bibliography	229	(20)
About the Book and Authors	249	(2)
Index	251