Democracies and Dictatorships in Latin America

Latin America experienced a dramatic political change in the last quarter of the twentieth century. At the onset of the so-called “third wave” of democracy in 1978, the only democratic regimes were Costa Rica, Colombia and Venezuela. But by 1995, all the countries in the region, with the notable exception of Cuba, were democracies or semi-democracies. The breadth, speed and endurance of the transition marked a significant break with Latin America’s past. Nevertheless, in the post–third wave period, beginning in 1995 and continuing to the present, the region has experienced mixed processes...

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