Traces the history of the civil war in El Salvador and examines the impact of political and economic conditions on the development of the conflict

The Long War: Dictatorship and Revolution in El Salvador

Dunkerley; James

Verso Books

“Bolivia is a country with a reputation,” writes James Dunkerley. “Not so long ago it was for Che Guevara, for whose death its citizens are on occasions held to be collectively responsible. More recently it has been for cocaine. But in general it is for political disorder.”Rebellion in the Veins demonstrates that behind the succession of coups lies an exceptional and coherent record of political struggle. The country’s location at the heart of Latin America has not, however, guaranteed it the attention it deserves. Dunkerley here redresses the balance in a masterly survey of Bolivian society since the early 1950s. The revolution of 1952 was, with the Cuban revolution, the most radical attempt in the western hemisphere since the Second World War to break the cycle of capitalist underdevelopment. It was channeled into a more familiar pattern of repression and dictatorship only after bitter struggles, and Dunkerley analyses the pressures that compromised it, providing lucid accounts of the country’s economy, political history and class structure, as well as its relations with the United States.The succession of military dictatorships from 1964 to 1982 are described, but this period was by no means one of unrelieved quietude. There was an extraordinarily vital popular resistance, and the unusual sophistication of working-class politics forms a stirring narrative. The tragic death of Che, after a doomed rural guerrilla campaign in eastern Bolivia, had a profound effect on the country’s politics. The fate of his imitators, and the eventual resurgence of more classical forms of mass struggle, has provided valuable lessons for what Dunkerley predicts will be a second Bolivian revolution. The story is carried through to the restoration of parliamentary democracy in 1982, presided over by Hernán Siles Zuazo, who first came to power in the revolution thirty years earlier.

Rebellion in the Veins: Political Struggle in Bolivia, 1952-1982

Politics & Social Sciences

Politics & Government

Power in the Isthmus: A Political History of Modern Central America

Over recent years James Dunkerley has established a reputation as one of the most thoughtful and eloquent writers on Latin America. In his latest book he investigates the high incidence of political suicide in the subcontinent. A sensitive and revealing essay details a number of case studies: the still disputed death of Chilean President Salvador Allende during Pinochet's storming of the Moneda Palace in 1973; the case of the Salvadorean guerrilla leader Salvador Cayetano Carpio who shot himself in the heart in April 1983; the death of Brazilian President Getulio Vargas, who declared in April 1954 that he would only leave the presidential palace dead--and a few days later did so; Bolivian President German Busch, who died at his own hand aged thirty-five in 1939; and the dramatic end of Eduardo Chibas, founder of the Cuban People's Party, who shot himself live on Havana radio in 1951. In the pieces which follow, Dunkerley employs his customary acuity to range over the implications of the Sandinista defeat in Nicaragua, the plight of El Salvador, the modern history of Bolivia, the experience of postwar Guatemala and, in a coruscating broadside, the politics of the Peruvian novelist and presidential candidate Mario Vargas Llosa.

Political Suicide in Latin America and Other Essays

This reference combines commentary and explanation with a detailed chronology to illuminate the period of 1987 to 1993 in Central America. It offers a succinct overview of pacification and democracy in the region, including criticism of the structuralist approaches like those of Chomsky and Petras. A series of appendices set out statistical profiles of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua for the decade since 1982; they document US aid to the region, dates and results of regional elections and information concerning refugees and displaced persons.

The Pacification of Central America: Political Change in the Isthmus, 1987-1993

History

Americas

Verso

Over recent years James Dunkerley has established a reputation as one of the most thoughtful and eloquent writers on Latin America. In his latest book he investigates the high incidence of political suicide in the subcontinent. A sensitive and revealing essay details a number of case studies: the still disputed death of Chilean President Salvador Allende during Pinochet’s storming of the Moneda Palace in 1973; the case of the Salvadorean guerrilla leader Salvador Cayetano Carpio who shot himself in the heart in April 1983; the death of Brazilian President Getulio Vargas, who declared in April 1954 that he would only leave the presidential palace dead—and a few days later did so; Bolivian President German Busch, who died at his own hand aged thirty-five in 1939; and the dramatic end of Eduardo Chibas, founder of the Cuban People’s Party, who shot himself live on Havana radio in 1951. in the pieces which follow, Dunkerley employs his customary acuity to range over the implications of the Sandinista defeat in Nicaragua, the plight of El Salvador, the modern history of Bolivia, the experience of postwar Guatemala and, in a coruscating broadside, the politics of the Peruvian novelist and the presidential candidate Mario Vargas Llosa.

Political Suicide in Latin America

This unique guide to the politics and recent history of Central America by one of its most distinguished commentators opens with a succinct overview of pacification and democracy in the region. Dunkerley focuses on the causes and consequences of the ending of civil war in El Salvador, Guatemala and Nicaragua. Drawing on a wide range of local and international sources, he stresses the variety of means by which peace has been sought and achieved. He also analyses economic performance, relations with the US, refugee and human rights problems, narcotics and corruption, and the issue of war crimes. The second section of the book comprises a detailed chronology covering all key developments between 1987 and 1993. the book concludes with indispensable appendices which clearly set out statistical profiles of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua for the decade since 1982. they document US economic and military aid to Central America, the dates and results of regional elections, and provide statistics on refugees and displaced persons. The Pacification of Central America is a valuable tool of reference for anyone with an interest in the complicated and often confusing politics of the region.

The Pacification of Central America: Political Change in the Isthmus, 1987-1993 (Critical Studies in Latin American Culture)

“Bolivia is a country with a reputation,” writes James Dunkerley. “Not so long ago it was for Che Guevara, for whose death its citizens are on occasions held to be collectively responsible. More recently it has been for cocaine. But in general it is for political disorder.” Rebellion in the Veins demonstrates that behind the succession of coups lies an exceptional and coherent record of political struggle. The country’s location at the heart of Latin America has not, however, guaranteed it the attention it deserves. Dunkerley here redresses the balance in a masterly survey of Bolivian society since the early 1950s. The revolution of 1952 was, with the Cuban revolution, the most radical attempt in the western hemisphere since the Second World War to break the cycle of capitalist underdevelopment. It was channeled into a more familiar pattern of repression and dictatorship only after bitter struggles, and Dunkerley analyses the pressures that compromised it, providing lucid accounts of the country’s economy, political history and class structure, as well as its relations with the United States. The succession of military dictatorships from 1964 to 1982 are described, but this period was by no means one of unrelieved quietude. There was an extraordinarily vital popular resistance, and the unusual sophistication of working-class politics forms a stirring narrative. The tragic death of Che, after a doomed rural guerrilla campaign in eastern Bolivia, had a profound effect on the country’s politics. The fate of his imitators, and the eventual resurgence of more classical forms of mass struggle, has provided valuable lessons for what Dunkerley predicts will be a second Bolivian revolution. The story is carried through to the restoration of parliamentary democracy in 1982, presided over by Hernán Siles Zuazo, who first came to power in the revolution thirty years earlier.

Rebellion in the Veins: Political Struggle in Bolivia, 1952-82

The Long War is a serious, radical critique of the poltical economy and recent history of El Salvador, set in the context of the troubled history of the entire Central Amercan region and detailing in full the extent of US intervention and its importancce as a destabilising factor. With the addition of a postscript, this new edition brings the narrative fully up to date.

In this book, the most comprehensive analysis of Central America ever to be published, James Dunkerley provides a detailed account of the history of Nicaragua, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and Costa Rica and a series of authoritative studies of their national political systems. Written in a fluent and accessible style, the text is supported by a wealth of charts and statistical data making Power in the Isthmus an essential work of reference.

Power in the Isthmus

Business & Money

Economics

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Books by Dunkerley; James

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Dunkerley; James. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

The Long War: Dictatorship and Revolution in El Salvador

Rebellion in the Veins: Political Struggle in Bolivia, 1952-1982

Power in the Isthmus: A Political History of Modern Central America

Political Suicide in Latin America and Other Essays

The Pacification of Central America: Political Change in the Isthmus, 1987-1993

Political Suicide in Latin America

The Pacification of Central America: Political Change in the Isthmus, 1987-1993 (Critical Studies in Latin American Culture)

Rebellion in the Veins: Political Struggle in Bolivia, 1952-82

The Long War: Dictatorship and Revolution in El Salvador

Power in the Isthmus