Paraguay Politics

Article Review – Duarte-Ricalde, L. R. (2017). Democracy and Representation
in Paraguay. Open Journal of Sociopolitical Studies, 10(1), 65-88.
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Article Review – Democracy and Representation in Paraguay
What is the premise of the article? The article is concerned with how the Paraguayan Government facilitates democratic governance, focusing on the period from the early 1990s to the present, during which time democracy has emerged from the preceding military regime (Duarte-Ricalde, 2017). The author analyses the extent to which true democracy exists as opposed to a 'polyarchy' characterised by corruption (Duarte-Ricalde, 2017)
What evidence does the author use to support his / her conclusion? Throughout the article, a structure is followed which sees indicators of democratic practice identified, and their implementation in Paraguay interrogated with the support of evidence. One example of this cites government regulation on the inclusion of women in Paraguayan politics, and a combination of statistics and arguments from other authors are used to reveal how the regulation works in practice, which in this case is not very well (Duarte-Ricalde, 2017)
What is his / her conclusion? It is concluded that whilst key procedures associated with democracy such as the right to vote, and the resistance to presidential re-election have been in place since the late 1990s (Duarte-Ricalde, 2017), informal practice and the knowledge of loopholes on the part of those in power, prevent the system from being truly inclusive and responsive to society (Duarte-Ricalde, 2017).

Of all the failings, particular importance is placed on the exclusion of women, rural communities, and indigenous people (Duarte-Ricalde, 2017).
What is your impression of the article, did you find it convincing? The article is well written and cites a wide range of sources, including peer reviewed articles and government statistics, all of which add to the credibility of the views presented. The use of tables (Duarte-Ricalde, 2017) is of particular value in conveying the argument effectively, allowing the reader to cross reference the text with raw data.

References
Duarte-Ricalde, L. R. (2017). Democracy and Representation in Paraguay. Open Journal of Sociopolitical Studies, 10(1), 65-88.