Maxwell A. Cameron - Böcker

The separation of powers is an idea with ancient origins, but nowadays it is largely relegated to legal doctrine, public philosophy, or the history of ideas. Yet the concept is often evoked in debates on the 'war' on terrorism, the use of emergency powers, or constitutional reform. Strong Constitutions boldly places the separation of powers on a social scientific footing, arguing that it emerged with the spread of literacy, became central to constitutional thought after the Gutenberg revolution, and faces unprecedented challenges in our current era of electronic communication. Constitutional states use texts to coordinate collective action, and they do so by creating governmental agencies with specific jurisdiction and competence over distinct types of power. Among them are the power to make decisions backed by legally sanctioned coercion; the deliberative power to make procedurally legitimate laws; and the judicial power to interpret and apply laws in particular circumstances. The division of government into three such branches enables state officials and citizens to use written texts-legal codes and documents, including constitutions-along with unwritten rules and conventions to coordinate their activities on larger scales and over longer time horizons. Cameron argues that constitutional states are not weaker because their powers are separated. They are generally stronger because they solve collective action problems rooted in speech and communication. The book is a must read for anyone interested in the separation of powers, its origin, evolution, and consequences.

Societies create rules that govern our practices. Such rules can only be effective, however, if the intermediaries between rules and practices--institutions--harness the skill, knowledge, and motivation of practitioners. Yet, everywhere institutions seem to be failing. Over-reliance on rules and incentives has not only corrupted the intrinsic motivations that arise from practice, it has also promoted the spread of competitive utility maximizing and thereby discouraged the kind of moral agency necessary for institutions to work well. In Political Institutions and Practical Wisdom, Maxwell Cameron takes this basic insight as his starting point to argue that the rapid spread of the tenets of a neoliberal political-economic philosophy in our era has contributed to the erosion of institutional capacity. The book contributes to an emerging field of social science research grounded in the Aristotelian idea of phronesis, or practical wisdom. Drawing on a wide range of examples, Cameron not only shows how good institutions depend on wise practitioners, he argues that contemporary democratic institutions are being assaulted by excessive partisanship and the hollowing-out of democratic deliberation, by the corrupting effects of money in politics, and by the use of neoliberal techniques of governance that are designed to foster competition rather than the pursuit of common goods.At once a valuable guide to designing effective institutions and a trenchant critique of contemporary institutional failure, Political Institutions and Practical Wisdom promises to reshape our understanding of one of the most basic building blocks of contemporary social and political life.

A comprehensive and authoritative account of the global movement to ban landmines. This text brings together leading academics, senior policy makers, and prominent leaders of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to examine and draw lessons from the "Ottawa Process" that culminated in December 1997 when over 120 states signed a convention to ban the use, sale, and production of landmines. An essay by Nobel laureate Jody Williams and Steve Goose, of the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL), describes how a global coalition of NGOs led the world toward a ban on landmines, while a chapter by the Canadian diplomats who orchestrated the "Ottawa Process" takes the reader behind the scenes into the diplomatic arm-wrestling that resulted in Canada's leadership role. The book resulted from an unusual collaboration between universities, governments, and nongovernmental organizations which developed in tandem with the negotiation process itself.Chapters were developed through a series of policy workshops, a seminar series, intensive focus-group discussions with government officials and NGO members, and a "lessons learned" exercise that brought together over 200 NGO and government participants immediately after the signing of the convention. As a result, this book provides a source of information and analyses. It should be both timely and useful to policy makers interested in drawing lessons from the Ottawa Process, to non-governmental organizations interested in replicating its results in other areas, to academic specialists and students interested in foreign policy and international affairs, and to the general public seeking an accessible account of one of the most significant global movements in recent years.

A country perceived as having unusually complex political, economic, and social problems, Peru has long fascinated social scientists. The Peruvian Labyrinth brings together a new generation of scholars to explore the multifaceted Peruvian "experiment" as it has evolved further, in often dramatic ways, in the 1980s and 1990s.The volume focuses special attention on the administration of Albert Fujimori, who suspended the constitution in 1992, two years after he first became president, but then was reelected in 1995. The experience of Peru under his regime raises important questions about the nature of democracy in Latin America, the challenges of economic and political reform, and the prospects for combining stable democratic governance and sustained development.Topics covered in the volume include the legacies of democratic transitions, human rights and political violence, the decline of the Shining Path, the Fujimori "autogolpe," the changing roles of business and organized labor, the political impact of the informal sector, changes in the agrarian sector, and the shift in economic strategies from developmentalism and toward neoliberalism.

Can the experience of the 1980s in Latin America be analyzed and evaluated to shed light on prospects for the 1990s? The central objective of this volume is to survey the development experience of the Latin American region in the 1980s and explore prospects for the coming decade. In this context, themes of crucial importance for the region are examined, including democratic consolidation, income distribution, the environment, hyperinflation, and the debt problem. Although socioeconomic and political aspects are emphasized, issues of equity and the environment are of special importance. Case studies of Peru, Chile, Mexico, Argentina, and Cuba provide fresh information on these issues in specific countries. The book focuses on the problem of development at a critical juncture in the evolution of the region. Not surprisingly, the contributors express differing points of view, but have in common the sense of the urgency of development problems that face Latin America.Central issues concerning the region's economy are the focus in the first part of the book. In the second part, key issue areas for the future are discussed. Of central concern in an exploration of the prospects for Latin America is the sustainability and improvement of democratization which proceeded in the 1980s. On the whole, the authors are not optimistic. The immense economic difficulties faced by the region--the debt overhang, the large and continuing overflow of financial and real resources, hyperinflation in some countries--will not be easy to manage. Although there are no guarantees that income distribution will be improved, among the positive developments foreseen for the 1990s are improved economic management, the addressing of environmental issues, and greater attention to issues of women's rights. This book should serve as a useful and timely guide to a complex region for both students and policymakers.

Under what conditions is democracy stable? Democracy and Authoritarianism in Peru stresses how recent changes in the class structure - particularly the informalization of the economy - created social conditions unfavorable to stable political coalitions in Peru.

How exactly do countries negotiate major international agreements? Until now, reliably impartial accounts of how deals are made have been rare and usually describe only one side of a multiparty process. Here, Maxwell Cameron and Brian Tomlin provide the first full, three-country account of the negotiations surrounding the controversial North American Free Trade Agreement, which went into effect on January 1, 1994. Through extensive interviews with participants from all sides, Cameron and Tomlin develop a detailed picture of the process by which the United States, Mexico, and Canada pursued closer economic relations and of the political realities that influenced the politicians and policymakers in each country. Written in an engaging and accessible style, The Making of NAFTA is a faithful account, built on insider views, of how the representatives of the three countries prepared for, negotiated, and implemented the agreement. Cameron and Tomlin show how NAFTA was influenced by the personalities and the multiple, sometimes conflicting objectives of the individuals involved. They also explore what the negotiations can reveal more generally about the making of public policy and the importance of international negotiations.

How exactly do countries negotiate major international agreements? Until now, reliably impartial accounts of how deals are made have been rare and usually describe only one side of a multiparty process. Here, Maxwell Cameron and Brian Tomlin provide the first full, three-country account of the negotiations surrounding the controversial North American Free Trade Agreement, which went into effect on January 1, 1994. Through extensive interviews with participants from all sides, Cameron and Tomlin develop a detailed picture of the process by which the United States, Mexico, and Canada pursued closer economic relations and of the political realities that influenced the politicians and policymakers in each country. Written in an engaging and accessible style, The Making of NAFTA is a faithful account, built on insider views, of how the representatives of the three countries prepared for, negotiated, and implemented the agreement. Cameron and Tomlin show how NAFTA was influenced by the personalities and the multiple, sometimes conflicting objectives of the individuals involved. They also explore what the negotiations can reveal more generally about the making of public policy and the importance of international negotiations.

Analyzes the economic, social, political and environmental implications of NAFTA from a range of critical perspectives. The chapters, unified by a sceptical view of the management of economic integration in North America cover the economic strategy of Mexico, Canada-US trade agreement and more.

In an era of significant geopolitical shifts, unrelenting violent confrontation, nationalism and identity politics, the institutions in which Canada and its allies have invested significant capital such as trade, political, and security organisations are being tested and stretched to the limit. This edition will look back on Canada’s approach to encouraging democracy abroad, it will consider ways to enhance middle power democracy statecraft in an era of growing international and domestic insecurity, backsliding and populism, and discern patterns and recurring themes in Canadian support for rights and democracy, as well as efforts to grapple with novel trends like digital threats to democracy.