Crime and Public Support for the Rule of Law in Latin America and Africa

Abstract

Crime poses a formidable obstacle to democratization in many parts of the developing world. New democracies in Central America and sub-Saharan Africa face some of the highest homicide rates in the world. Politicians, citizens, and policy-makers have raised the alarm about the growing tide of criminality. Public insecurity, coupled with inefficient and often corrupt justice systems, makes democratization uncertain. Even if new democracies do not revert to dictatorship, the quality of democracy may suffer if crime continues to rise. One particularly vulnerable component of democracy is the rule of law, as public insecurity may fuel support for extra-legal justice, and a willingness to disregard the law while aggressively pursuing suspected criminals. To test these relationships, we assess the ways in which criminal victimization, as well as fear of crime, affect citizen support for the rule of law. We utilize public opinion data collected in select countries in Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa through two widely used sources – the Latin American Public Opinion Project (LAPOP) and the Afrobarometer surveys.

Gangs, violence, and fear: punitive Darwinism in El Salvador

“…This situation is particularly evident among women, citizens with low-income and low education levels, and people living in small municipalities (Seligson et al, 2000 ). Smithey and Malone ( 2014 ) extend this claim to the aggregate level. According to their regression analysis, not only personal experiences with crime significantly reduce support for the rule of law in El Salvador but also fear of crime at the national level (Smithey & Malone, 2014 ).…”

“…Smithey and Malone ( 2014 ) extend this claim to the aggregate level. According to their regression analysis, not only personal experiences with crime significantly reduce support for the rule of law in El Salvador but also fear of crime at the national level (Smithey & Malone, 2014 ).…”

“…Various empirical studies have also shown that crime fears can also translate into non-democratic policy preferences among Latin American citizens. The evidence demonstrates that growing crime rates and associated fear decrease the likelihood of support for political institutions and democracy (Carreras, 2013 ; Cruz, 2003a ), erode the social capital necessary for democracy to work (Moser & McIlwaine, 2003 ; Caroline Moser & Holland, 1997 ), and favor authoritarian responses among the citizenry (Smithey & Malone, 2014 ; Bateson, 2012 ; Briceño-León & Zubillaga, 2002 ; Briceño-León et al, 1999 ; Pérez, 2003 ; Cruz, 2008 ).…”

Tempering the Taste for Vengeance: Information About Prisoners and Policy Choices in Chile

“…Just as crime concerns have driven trends in incarceration, they also appear to be associated with attitudes towards extra-legal measures in policing. For instance, research examining citizens’ attitudes in Mexico and Central America has found that fear of crime correlates with a greater acceptance of violations of the law by police (Smithey & Malone, 2014). Moreover, crime victimization appears to be associated with tolerance of police abuse in the region as a whole (Bateson, 2012).…”