week11

Focusing on Latin America (L/A) during the 1970’s through to the end of the 1990’s there emerges a pattern of new wars. Two examples that come to light in the 1980’s is the 1) the proxy war occurring in Guatemala between US and USSR with China and 2) Peru’s dirty war as a part of their civil war. The contrast between these two conflicts coincide with their attempts to differently create “prosperous peasantry” (Max Cameron); to change the rural structure during this time period. Where Guatemala suffered from a largely external conflict conducted within the agricultural and political infrastructure of the state, Peru’s conflict stemmed largely from a “collapse of rural production” (Max Cameron) following the land reform enacted. Despite these differences in quasi core issues, the effects parallel on another. The use of right wing Death Squads used by the governments upon rural dissidents who were largely Indigenous, black or impoverished communities in rural areas.
Although systemically these issues are obviously heavily influenced by colonialism and their attempts to advance naturally being repeatedly interrupted through intervention from the USA (proxy wars and further colonialism) and other nations.