Essay on Regionalism and Criminal Economy
The current problem question includes several “vague” terms that have to be brought into perspective before continuing, as this will no doubt cause much room for discussion in interpreting the analysis. The term regionalization here is understood as going beyond the classical integration theories and including social, political and cultural dimensions as well as the conventional economic features. The newly defined phenomenon no longer covers mere geographical territory but convergence between states and regions in general as well . Under this definition the role of the United States (among other countries) in Latin America can also be included seeing as they too influence regional policies as a whole with their bilateral and multilateral agreements. The second term that needs clarification is the term criminal economy. For the purpose of this paper, I will focus mainly on the role of the narcotics industry within the criminal economy, as this is believed to be the most influential in the region. The third and final word that needs further elaboration is the use of words Latin America. For the benefit of simplification I will focus on a case study, namely that of Bolivia, as it represents one of the core countries involved in both neo liberal regional cooperation (that is MERCOSUR) as well as a key participant in the cultivation and production of narcotics within the region. These terms will be explained in more detail throughout the paper.
This paper therefore aims to link the newly defined phenomenon of regionalization with trends in the narcotics industry in Bolivia. The correlation or relation (if any is identified) between these two variables will prove to be of great importance in identifying the consequences of developments in current policies on the criminal economy and hence determine their success. Read more…