The Venezuelan prison: from neoliberalism to the Bolivarian revolution
This paper aims to give an account of the main changes in the Venezuelan prison system in the last three decades. This period extends from the years of neoliberal hegemony to the period of the Bolivarian revolution, characterized by a strong commitment to redistributive policies, economic regulation...
| Authors: | ; ; ; ; |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
2016
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| In: |
Crime, law and social change
Year: 2016, Volume: 65, Issue: 3, Pages: 195-211 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Keywords: |
| Summary: | This paper aims to give an account of the main changes in the Venezuelan prison system in the last three decades. This period extends from the years of neoliberal hegemony to the period of the Bolivarian revolution, characterized by a strong commitment to redistributive policies, economic regulation and social inclusion strategies. We point out that while the Bolivarian government has adopted a social welfare model, it has continued to rely upon punitive policies that are most often associated with neoliberal governments. We map out this contradiction and discuss the impacts the current government’s penal policies have had on social relations within the prison system. Using ethnographic data we sketch out the social organization and distribution of power that develops when the state loses control of the prison. We show that prisons in Venezuela do not adhere to a disciplinary model, whereby prisoners must submit to an external administration’s intensive surveillance and control. Instead, what has developed is a form of internal governance administered by prisoners themselves. |
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| Item Description: | Literaturverzeichnis: Seite 210-211 |
| Physical Description: | Illustrationen |
| ISSN: | 1573-0751 |
| DOI: | 10.1007/s10611-015-9576-4 |