Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Vicente Oieni
Introduction
The major period for democracy's breakthrough in Latin America was, without a doubt,
that of the 80's. The fragility of this process, however, is undeniable. But even those
countries that didn't suffered dictatorial rule, e.g. Colombia governed by parliamentary
rule, shared the same problems of lame institutions, human rights violations and lack of
citizens' participation. In this country, a stable formal democracy coexists today with an
annual toll of thirty thousand assassinations. The official discourse is based upon the
principles of a liberal and pluralistic democracy; corruption, however, penetrates the
most subtle functions of the entire political system.
In Colombia, young citizens, who grow up knowing the official discourse by
heart, are confronted daily with distinct discourses which sometimes strengthen
democratic principles, but more often than not, weaken it.
Background
Very little research has been conducted on the theme of citizenship in the different fields
of social science. The works of Kning (1984, 1987, 1994), Anrup (1991, 1993,1995 a,
1995 b), Mrner (1993), Vogel (1991) and Chiaramonte (1989) are exceptions. All of
these were conducted from a historical perspective and studied different aspects on the
issue. It is with the same perspective in mind that I include a first tentative of
comparative analysis between Citizenship and National Identity. I am writing this work
in collaboration with Roland Anrup. The results of this research will be published during
the current year.
In the field of political sciences, the works of Lechner (1988, 1991, 1992, 1996);
Menendez-Carrin (1991) open new and promising perspectives. However, on the
relation between citizenship and education, and political socialisation, very little has been
done in Latin America and Colombia is not an exception.
This is the reason why we find this field of studies particularly interesting. We
happen to be convinced of the fact that neither stable institutions nor respect for Human
Rights will ever exist without the citizens' active participation in political processes.
General objectives
The objective of the present project is to analyse the role played, in Colombia, by the
formal education of children and young people in promoting their sense of citizenship.
Our choice to focus on education resulted from the fact that education, as a rule,
reflects the main projects prevailing in society.
We began by submitting the obvious fact that, not only the public realm
represented by the school, but also that of the family and of various civil institutions,
played equally important parts in promoting the sense of citizenship. Official discourse
sometimes meets support, sometimes opposition. Our main objective will be to pinpoint
this interplay of forces and tensions, as well as to describe the process by which they
permeate formal education as a whole.
Proposed issues and perspectives of analysis
The importance of citizenship as an institution
Our study will deal with the historical roots of the institution of citizenship. We are
convinced that this is an indispensable aspect inasmuch as it provides us with an insight
into the gradual formation of the concept of citizenship from the very beginning of the
nation's existence.
discourses. A rough classification of the empirical field will be two "sided". One
represented by the official texts and the other by the actors or organisations that doesn't
belong to the "state", but which make their voices heard by their action at the school.
a) the official texts
The constitutional text as symbolic foundation
Every constitution aspires to become the symbol of "the public's general will". This can
be achieved by more or less democratic methods. All political forces revolve round the
established constitution, either because the latter provides them with legitimity, or
because it denies them or limits, this same legitimity. Thus, the constitutional text is at
the very centre of our study.
Other texts
Hereby, we refer to any text which can be classified somewhere between the
constitutional text and the school text, e.g.: laws, decrees, orders, directives,
communications between presidential and ministerial levels and instances responsible
for planning the curriculum.
School text
The expression "school text", within the frame of this research, qualifies any type of
communication whose recipient is a youth attending school and it is within the frames of
the curriculum. The bearers of this communication may be books of Citizenship
Education, History or Literature. Fiction and poetry, music, graphic arts, leaflets and
assignments will also be considered as such.
b) Other actors
Under the heading other actors I include any relevant actor who is a carrier of a
discourse which content are independent, or differ in some way in relation to the official.
It could be the case of discourses that deliberately try to be an alternative to the official,
in other words, to operate as a contra-discourse, or simply to give the official discourse a
radical interpretation, or simply to promote a more active and engage citizen. The only
discourses that will be considered, are those that directly and indirectly reach the school.
Examples of this kind of organisations are
i. CINEP (Centro de Informacin y Educacin Popular): The CINEP plays a
very significant role in Colombia, because they combine research projects with education
of teachers. They organise workshops and programmes of information about human
rights and political rights. It is also there where teacher's unions have a place to discuss
their activities and experiences. The CINEP, without doubts, reunite some of the main
actors involved in the education of citizens.
ii. Ciudadanos en formacin: is an organisation for civic education leaded by the
Mayor of Bogot, Antanas Mockus. Himself a university professor, whom became a
politician, and as such he is promoting the development of the sense of civil
responsibility trough participation in the community. This type of action represents a very
important case, because the exemplary character of the initiatives that Mockus promote.
I suspect that his example, can hardly be ignored at the school level. An additional reason
for analysing Mockus work is that it deliberately tend to break the division between the
public and the private realms
In our research programme Citizenship and Political Culture , Amparo
Menendez-Carrin has already made a point of the Mockus' action relevance. (1996)
What I want to explore is the reception by teachers, students and policy makers within
the area of education, of the "Mockus effect".
will be expended in this first semester. The idea is to take contact with the institution that
support my project in Colombia and discuss with them the whole plan, and get their
advise in matters of sources, the chosen actors and the tentative timing for each step.
Second semester: The main concepts of the theoretical framework must be
finished. The study of the constitutional text, as well as the related material collected in
Colombia, will be central in this semester. A report, and eventually an article about this
matters will be written.
1998
First semester: I shall prepare the second field- study in Colombia. This will be
aimed to collect data about teaching of civic education and related subjects (history,
literature). Interviews will be made at different levels inside the school system and
outside it. I will devote the rest of the semester to data processing and the first
formulation of a general hypothesis of the project.
Second semester: The hypothesis of the project will be examined at the light of
the theoretical basis previously formulated, and the later at the light of the processed
data. The conclusions of this process will lay as the basis for refining the theoretical
framework, as well as the search of a more precise information to reinforce the general
hypothesis.
1999
First semester: In a new field-study, I will try to complete the planed interviews
and collect the remaining data. A general and in-deep discussion with Colombian
students, on subject of citizenship and education, will be done. During the rest of the
semester I shall process the collected data
Second semester: Writing of the final version.
Project feasibility
The successful accomplishment of this project is assured by the applicant's long working
experience lecturing on Latin America, and by the thesis supervisor's, Roland Anrup,
research experience in relation to Colombia. In addition, this project has the support a
research in-process on citizenship carried by the solicitor and his supervisor, Roland
Anrup, to be published
Not less important is the fact that this project has been carefully planed. To start
with, it is part of a mayor research programme that the Iberoamerikanska institutet is
submitted, together with FLACSO-Chile, to Sida/SAREC.
Besides, I have got the support of the following institutions:
1. Consejeria de la presidencia in relation to the provision of governmental information.
It is a channel that is already working succesfully. (See letter)
2. CINEP CINEP can provide me a working place, I can also participate in the
seminaries and get support in relation to the contacts and collection of data. (see letter)
3. IEPRI, (Instituto de Estudios Politicos y Relaciones Institucionales) of the
Universidad Nacional. A personal contact between my supervisor Roland Anrup and the
director of the institute Mr. Gonzalo Sanchez Gomez, guarantees me the support of the
most prestigious Colombian research centre of political studies.
4. Viva la Ciudadana, has offered me their support. (see letter)
5. Colciencias, can facilatate me contacts with researchers and institutions. (see letter)
5. Other important contacts are already been done, i.e. with Antana Mockus and the
teacher's trade unions.
REFERENCES
Anrup, Roland
Nationell identitet och merdborgarskap vid en sydamerikansk republiks fdelse,
Gteborg, 1993
Anrup, Roland
Ordet och svrdet. Maktsymbolik och diskursiv kamp i columbiansk politik och
historia, Historisk tidskrift, Stockholm, 1995:1
Anrup, Roland
El Estado ecuatoriano decimonnico y el proceso de integracin nacional.
Procesos, Revista Ecuatoriana de
Historia N7, Quito, 1995
Anrup, Roland; Oieni, Vicente
Estudio comparativo de la introduccin de la ciudadana en Amrica Latina, (en
preparacin)
Baker, Keith Michael, Inventing the French Revolution: essay on French Political Culture
in tthe eighteenth
century, p. 4, Cambridge University Press, New York,
1990
Chiaramonte, Jos Carlos
Formas de identidad en el Rio de la Plata luego de 1810.
Boletn del Instituto de Historia Argentina y Americana Tercera Serie Num. 1, 1er
emestre de 1989
De Los Ros, Hctor
Violencia y Estado en Colombia, Revista Universidad de Antioquia, vol. LVIII,
Nmero 218, octubre/diciembre, Medelln, 1989
Garca Villegas, Mauricio
La Constitucin y su eficacia simblica, Revista Universidad de Antioquia, vol.
LX, Nmero 225, julio/septiembre, Medelln, 1991
Hall, Stuart,
The cuestion of cultural identity, in Modernity and its futures, Hall, Stuart, Held,
David, and Mc Grew, Tony, Polity Press and Open University, 1992
Johnston Conover, Pamela and Searing, Donald D.
Democracy, Citizenship and the Study of Politica Socialization
in Developing Democracy, SAGE, London, 1994
Knig, Hans-Joachim
Smbolos Nacionales y retrica poltica de la Independencia: el caso de Nueva
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nacin en Hispanoamrica - Blau, Kln, 1984
Knig, Hans-Joachim
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(1810-1830),Amrica dello stato coloniale allo stato nazione , vol. II,(ed.)
Antonio Annino, Franco Angeli, Milano, 1987
Lechner, Norbert
Los patios interiores de la democracia, Subjetividad y Politica, Fondo de cultura
Econmica, Santiago, Chile, 1988
Lechner, Norbert
El Ciudadano y lo Pblico, Leviatn, N43-44, Madrid, 1991
Lechner, Norbert
Reflexiones sobre el Estado Democrtico, Leviatn, N49, Madrid, 1992
Lechner, Norbert
La problemtica de la invocacin de la sociedad civil, Revista Foro, N 28,
Bogot,1996
Mac Gregor, S.J., Felipe, E. (ed.),