Drug trafficking, border violence, immigration, and other issues with U.S./Mexico ties never stand alone as isolated incidences. There are inevitable sources of imbalance causing sociopolitical conflict evidenced by interpretations of democracy and faulty leadership hierarchies between military and civilian powers.

Have you ever muddled over the differences between U.S. democracy and that of Latin America? Then, don't miss out on this insightful, yet clear discussion regarding the current state of Latin American democracy in light of current events! 

Excerpt from, "Honduras crisis shows Latin America's weaknesses" by Juan Tamayo-

The weekend ouster of Honduran President Manuel Zelaya showed just how easily Latin American countries can plunge into crises when their institutions prove too weak to resolve stand-offs between government branches, analysts say.

''The larger set of problems highlighted by the Honduras case is that in some Latin American countries the rule of law is fragile, and the institutional framework for resolution of conflicts is very fragile,'' said Bruce Bagley, a Latin America specialist at the University of Miami.

Zelaya's ouster and expulsion to Costa Rica by the military early Sunday capped a long-simmering crisis that pitted the president against virtually every other branch of government over his plan for a nonbinding referendum that could have opened the door to constitutional reforms -- including allowing presidential reelection. The constitution prohibits any change in its ban on reelection [...]

''We are abiding by the Constitution,'' said Roberto Micheletti, elevated from head of the congress to interim president after Zelaya's ouster, arguing the president was removed legitimately -- an argument rejected by Washington and most other countries.

''Both sides committed errors,'' Bagley said. ``But the military conducted a coup. There are procedures for removing a president. Impeach him. That's the way these things should happen.But you should not get the military involved. In fact, no one has been abiding by the rules in the Zelaya dispute,'' added Bagley, ``which in any case is not unusual for Honduras and other Latin American countries where the institutions of government are weak.''

''Institutional weaknesses are a very serious problem in some parts of Latin America, and are at the root of many of the problems in those countries,'' said José Miguel Vivanco, director of Human Rights Watch-Americas, in a telephone interview.

As in Honduras, he noted, the armed forces in some Latin American countries have never been totally subordinated to civilian power. ''Even in the best of cases, the civilian governments are often forced to negotiate with the military,'' he said.

POLARIZATION

Several Latin American countries also are currently going through a period of ''strong political polarization'' in which both leaders and opponents have adopted ''inflexible positions'' that make it difficult to find compromise without authoritarian dictats or violent street protests, Vivanco added [...]

Combine those troubling factors with Latin America's traditional bent toward caudillismo -- strong one-man rule, usually by a charismatic leader -- and it's no surprise some countries in the region find it difficult to resolve conflicts that pit one part of the government against another, Vivanco added.

PUSH FOR CHANGE

The human rights activists also argued -- as have several other U.S. and Latin American academics in recent years -- that the region should abandon its generally strong presidential systems and move toward parliamentary systems where the legislative majority controls the executive branch, and early elections can be held when the ruling party suffers a significant defeat [...]

''The parliamentary system is more sensitive to the oscillations of people amid a crisis,'' he added. ``It's an option that allows you to resolve conflicts, without having to count how many generals you have in your favor, or how many street protests you can organize.''

Photo courtesy of: ESTEBAN FELIX/AP