Citizenship and Governance in Mercosur: Arguments for a social agenda

Jean Grugel

doi:10.1080/01436590500235629

Citizenship and Governance in Mercosur: Arguments for a social agenda

Jean Grugel^*

^*Corresponding author for this work

Politics

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

This paper examines a neglected dimension of the debate about post-national citizenship by focusing on the articulation of citizenship demands at the level of the region. More specifically, it analyses the pressures for, and the constraints on, the project of social citizenship within Mercosur. Drawing on primary research in Argentina, the article identifies a number of initiatives that attempt to infuse Mercosur with a social agenda. I argue that the significance of these initiatives is that they represent the first coherent attempt to articulate a citizen-centred model of new regionalism in Mercosur. But I also suggest that a formidable combination of obstacles lies in the path of this alternative project of regional governance. Finally, I explore the consequences of excluding issues of citizenship, rights and welfare from the agenda of regionalism, highlighting in particular the possibility of societal rejection if region building remains empty of social meaning.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	1061-1076
Number of pages	16
Journal	Third World Quarterly
Volume	26
Issue number	7
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1080/01436590500235629
Publication status	Published - Oct 2005

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10.1080/01436590500235629

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Citizenship and Governance in Mercosur: Arguments for a social agenda

Abstract

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