Situation of democracy in Mexico (2009)
| Name of Organization | |
|---|---|
| Geographical Scope | |
| Purpose |
There has been an ongoing discussion on the actual existence of democracy in Mexico, and already in the 60’s, there was a consensus about Mexico being a formal, but not substantive, democracy. In this sense, the authors of this assessment argue that historically there have been at least six projects of democratisation in Mexico, of which the country, since the 1996 electoral reforms, is currently undertaking the latest version of this project. Even though during the 2000’s the general impression was that Mexico had become a true democracy thanks to continuous political reforms, the events after the 2006 presidential elections casted shadows over this notion and reactivated the discussion. In order to answer this question, a local research team conducted a democratic audit of Mexico using the International IDEA Assessment Framework. |
| Area of Governance |
Civil Society Corruption Democracy Electoral Systems Governance and Gender Human Rights Justice Local Governance and Decentralization Media Parliament Political Parties Public Administration
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| Keywords |
Mexico, democracy, situation of democracy, democratic audit, democracy assessment |
| Website of initiative | |
| Publications |
1. Full report in Spanish: Gustavo Ernesto Emmerich, Situacion de la democracia en Mexico, Universidad Autonoma Metropolitana, Mexico, 2009. Available at: http://www.idea.int/sod/upload/SituaciondelademocraciaenMexico.pdf 2. Abridged report in English:Gustavo Ernesto Emmerich et alii, The State of Democracy in Mexico, to be published by Norteamerica, Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico, year 5, number 2, 2010. Available at: http://www.idea.int/sod/upload/The_state_of_democracy_in_Mexico.pdf 3. Abridged report in Spanish: Gustavo Ernesto Emmerich,"Informe sobre la democracia en México, 2009", en Araucaria, Universidad de Sevilla, number 21, 2009. Available at:http://www-en.us.es/araucaria/nro21/monogr21_5.pdf |
| Cost (specify currency) |
350,000 Mexican pesos
|
| Funding sources |
Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnologia (Mexico)
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| Source of Data |
Initiative focusing on analysis not based on data
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| Type of Data Collection |
Focus groups Panel of experts Performance assessment / Desk studies Secondary sources
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| specifications of type of data collection |
The assessment was conducted by a group of professors and graduate students based at the Department of Sociology, in Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, Unidad Iztapalapa, with funding from Mexico’s National Council for Science and Technology. The research team followed the International IDEA framework thoroughly to ensure comparability, and guarantee methodological rigour. The team, divided into thematic groups, assessed the different dimensions included in the framework, and then subjected their assessment both to internal (the other thematic groups) and external (under- and graduate students; external surveys; focus groups) evaluation. . |
| Measurement Methods / Tools Generated or Used |
The researchers converted the qualitative evaluation scale proposed by International IDEA in its assessment framework to ordinal values (from 1=very low to 5=very high): this allows easier comprehension and comparability |
| List of Indicators |
Following the International IDEA methodology, the initiative involved assessing fourteen thematic areas, grouped in for dimensions or pillars, as follows: A. Citizen, Law and Rights: 1) Nationhood and citizenship, 2) Rule of law and access to justice, 3) Civil and political rights, 4) Economic and social rights. B. Representative and Accountable Government: 5) Free and fair elections, 6) Democratic role of political parties, 7) Government effectiveness and accountability, 8) Civilian control of the military and police, 9) Minimising corruption. C. Civil Society and Popular Participation: 10) The media in a democratic society, 11) Political participation, 12) Government responsiveness, 13) Decentralisation. D. Democracy Beyond the State: 14) International dimensions of democracy. |
| Main Outcomes (Products) |
The report shows that Mexico has given significant steps towards free elections and political liberties; however, it also sheds light over many of the challenges faced by the Mexican citizens. Social and economical inequality; high levels of corruption and insufficient governmental responsiveness; insecurity and crime; concentration of media ownership; and low popular participation, amongst others, are some of the issues that must be effectively dealt with in order to further democracy in Mexico. Its key recommendations: Ensure effective collective and individual rights for Indigenous peoples. Introduce procedures for redress in case of administrative, police, and judicial error or maladministration. Democratise unions and integrate labour law into court jurisdiction and judicial branch. Introduce semi-direct democracy mechanisms in the Federal level. Allow and fund the presentation of independent candidates. Professionalise police forces and end corruption. Improve the entire prosecution system. Allow public scrutiny of armed forces and reduce its size. Strengthen anti-corruption and oversight agencies. Reduce concentration of mass media property. Reduce the gap between public office wages. Strengthen and expand professionalised civil service in every level of the Federation. Strengthen Federalism and improve funding and availability of resources in State and local levels. |
| Main Users |
Civil society Media Policy makers Researchers
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