Inequality and marginalisation as boosters of violence

Abstract

The origin and persistence of violence in the less developed regions have been a highly debated topic, in which the case of Latin America is yet to be resolved. This region is one of the most violent ones in the world even though there are no ongoing armed conflicts between states. In this context, the question of what the main drivers of violence in Latin America are arises. The complexity of this phenomenon requires explanations that consider both political and economic factors to provide a deeper understanding of the situation. This paper addresses this question by following the neo-institutionalist approach of North, Wallis and Weingast, who argue that there is a so-called “limited access order” in which participation in organisations and benefits is restricted, triggering violence and social unrest. The study analyses two main boosters of violence in Latin America: limited access to land ownership as the main expression of inequality, and the prevalence of clientelism and corruption as typical operating schemes of the dominant coalitions in the region. It gives rise to a complex assessment of the so-called limited access order and its particular characteristics in Latin America, in which both inequality and marginalisation have had an impact on the development of violence in the region. The research contributes to the study of violence from a neo-institutionalist perspective and implies ways to better understand other limited access order regions in the world.