Corruption, abuse of power, gang violence endanger democracy in Central America.

AutorRodriguez, George

The 1987 signing of a regional peace agreement formally ended the internal wars between guerrillas and national armies that had raged throughout Central America, but the violence itself was replaced by a conflict between organized crime and security forces that is still alive today.

Along with pacifying the region, the accord, known as the Acuerdo de Esquipulas (Esquipulas Agreement), sought to strengthen democracy as a means to, among other goals, bring about development and facilitate regional integration (NotiCen, Aug. 10, 1988). But contrary to the expectations, democracy has not really consolidated itself in most of the countries in the region (NotiCen, July 30, 2015).

Democracy is the system favored by most Central Americans, although not as wholeheartedly as would be expected. Many express mixed feelings when it comes to democracy, seeing it is a suitable means to facilitate solutions, but at the same time saying they would not mind having non-democratic governments as long as they solve economic problems. The majority also say that curbing freedom as a means to have order does not sound all that bad, according to Latinobarometro's most recent survey, Informe 2016, released in August.

PEN-CONARE report

In its latest Central American report, the Costa Rican Programa Estado de la Nacion en Desarrollo Humano (State of the Nation in Human Development, PEN), issued by the Consejo Nacional de Rectores (National Council of Rectors, CONARE), warns that democracy is not strong enough in the region, and highlights corruption and abuse of power among the reasons.

"Although over the past years there has been progress regarding the administration of justice, transparency, and accountability, this was not sufficient to solve structural problems associated with the states' weaknesses, corruption in handling public resources, and difficulties in effectively shielding human rights," said the report, issued in June. "Although the isthmus is home to the oldest democracy in Latin America [Costa Rica], several nations have chosen to strengthen the capacities and prominence of armies to face up to increasing levels of violence, drug trafficking, and organized crime operations inside their territories."

The report also concluded that, despite recent improvements, human and financial resources assigned to support justice systems, transparency, and accountability are still not adequate. It noted that "most Central American nations have managed to strengthen...

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