From Sceptic to Analyst:

Uncovering the Dynamics of

Citizen Voices in Politics

Political Economy Perspectives on Development - 947M9

Autumn 2023
Word length: 1458
Candidate Number: 276636
 1. Introduction

Before taking the Political Economy Perspectives on Development module, my

understanding of how collective citizen action could affect political outcomes was limited.
I used to view noncompliance as a harmful act without legitimacy, and I did not have a
framework to understand citizen voices as a form of protest. I believed that the only
legitimate way for the government to make decisions was through formal rules and
horizontal accountability. However, after analysing the lecture Citizen Voice and
Resistance, I have a better understanding of constructive noncompliance concepts and
my perspective on protests and their role in making political changes has significantly
evolved.

Now, I understand that constructive noncompliance may have consequences on policy

formulation and their proclivity for future political involvement. Furthermore, I can now
analyse the political elements of protests and distinguish the types of resistance that have
the potential to be successful.

In the upcoming sections, I will delve into a case study from Peru that highlights the
mechanisms that enabled a protest to alter the political outcome and the shifts in
resistance that took place during the protest.

2. Peruvian case: political crisis and the power of protest

Peru has had a tumultuous political landscape in recent years, with seven presidents
taking office within six years (Foulkes & Norton, 2022). In 2016, Kuczynski became the
President of Peru, with the aim of completing his term by July 2021 (El Peruano, 2016).
However, he resigned in March 2018, following corruption allegations (Collyns, 2018). As
the constitution states (1993), the vice president, Vizcarra, became the President of Peru,
but he too faced similar accusations and was impeached by Congress in November 2020
(Aquino, Reuters, 2020). Merino, the head of Congress who was the leader of the
impeachment process, briefly served as the interim president of Peru after Vizcarra's
dismissal but was forced to resign within a week (Ryan, 2020).
It is crucial to note that the Peruvian population expressed their strong dissatisfaction with
the impeachment of Vizcarra from the presidency and the subsequent appointment of the
president of Congress in his place. According to a survey, 94% of respondents disagreed
with Merino's appointment as the president, and 83% of those surveyed believe Vizcarra
was removed for political or personal reasons (IPSOS, 2020).

This led to protests in various parts of the country, with thousands of Peruvians taking to
the streets for six consecutive days, demanding Merino's resignation (BBC News Mundo,
2022). According to the survey mentioned before, 13% of Peruvians participated in the
marches, and 73% supported them (IPSOS, 2020). Unfortunately, the protests in Lima
turned violent, leading to the loss of two lives. Following this tragic event, Merino stepped
down from his presidential position, and Congress voted in favour of Sagasti as the new
interim president of Peru (Aquino, 2020).

2.1. Mechanisms that initiated change in political agenda through street

demonstration

Van Stekelenburg (2015) analyses street demonstrations and argues that three
mechanisms could influence modifying political agendas. As seen in Figure 1, the
mechanisms are disruption, facilitation, and persuasion; the author also mentions that
three actors might play an essential role in shaping political outcomes in protest: political
allies, public opinion, and media (van Stekelenburg, 2015). This approach is
contextualized in the Peruvian case, as seen in Figure 2.
Figure 1. Three mechanisms to explain how a demonstration may affect the political
agenda.
Direct mechanism – disruption mechanism
Indirect mechanism – amplifying persuation mechanism
Indirect mechanism – amplifying facilitation mechanism

Political context

Facilitation
Disruption
Change in political
Street demostration Policy change
agenda
Persuation

Societal context

Adapted from Van Stekelenburg (2015).

According to some authors, protests have the power to influence political agendas. For
instance, Smith (1968) highlights that the rise of protest tactics has enabled significant
social action to address issues of poverty and race, which may not have been brought to
the attention of public policymakers otherwise. The case study of Merino's massive protest
serves as a strategic example of how the disruptive mechanism seen as the street
demonstrations can shape the political agenda. Citizens achieved their desired outcomes,
as seen in Merino's resignation (Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 2023).

Let me examine the first indirect mechanism, persuasion. According to Van Stekelenburg
(2015), four conditions will increase the likelihood of protest success. These are (1) having
a democratic government that (2) is open to the challenger's claims, (3) support from
political allies, and (4) a political system with a clear agenda (van Stekelenburg, 2015). I
believe three of these four conditions were partially met during the protest in Peru.

Firstly, Peru is considered a democratic government, which meets the first condition. The
second condition could be ambiguous. Before protests turned violent, the population's
demands were not well-received by Merino, but some of his cabinet members were
supportive and resigned in solidarity with the protests. In fact, 13 out of 18 of his ministers
resigned, indicating their disagreement with the Merino government (Fowks, 2020).
Concerning political allies, Vizcarra, the former President whom Merino ousted, was a
solid political ally. He encouraged the protest, and citizens trusted him at that time. In fact,
in November 2020, over 77% of Peruvians approved Vizcarra's performance as president
(Instituto de Estudios Peruanos, 2020).

The societal context is another indirect mechanism, wherein the media actively reports,
frames, and interprets protests, thereby amplifying their impact (van Stekelenburg, 2015).
A study on the role of media in protests has highlighted that the Peruvian and foreign
media reported the events minute by minute and in real-time, and the local media in Peru
reported the protest as one of the busiest in the last 20 years in the South American nation
(Anticona Alegre, 2021). Therefore, it can be argued that the media played significant role
in persuading people to focus on the importance of the protests.

Figure 2. Three mechanisms to explain how a demonstration may affect the political
agenda: Peruvian case study.
Direct mechanism – disruption mechanism
Indirect mechanism – amplifying persuation mechanism
Indirect mechanism – amplifying facilitation mechanism

Political context:
democratic
government,
receptive politicians,
political allies

Facilitation Change in political

Street demostration: Policy change: Merino
Disruption agenda: Merino made
large-scale resigned; Congress
the decision to step
demonstrations held a vote to elect a
down from their
against Merino new president
Persuation position.

Societal context:
Extensive media
coverage

Adapted from Van Stekelenburg (2015)

 2.2. Types of resistance

The protests against Merino in Peru cannot be situated in just one type of resistance
because it evolved during time. I believe those protest have some characteristics of
constructive noncompliance; however, they focus into the frame of Regime Challenging
Resistance.

Tsai (2015, p. 253) proposed the concept of constructive noncompliance, which involves
citizens publicly violating state laws and regulations to provide decision-makers with
accurate information about local conditions and constructive criticism of policies. In Peru,
citizens staged a six-day protest demanding the resignation of Merino, whom they
believed had taken power for political or personal reasons (IPSOS, 2020). Some
protesters used noncompliance to show their disagreement by confronting the police in a
non-peaceful protest. During the protests, protesters gave clear information to the
government to show decision-makers the citizens' dissatisfaction with the current
situation.

This case study also exhibits characteristics of Regime Challenging Resistance. The
expected outcome of the protest was the resignation of the Merino president, who
represented the political regime (Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 2023).
The protests started peacefully and remained controlled for three days so I can argue that,
at that time the protest could be framed in the concept of “civil resistance”. However, the
peaceful protests turned violent and became a “rebellion and revolution” as violent clashes
between the protesters and the security forces occurred during the massive
demonstrations in Lima (BBC News Mundo, 2022). In fact, the security forces used tear
gas and pellets to repress the protests, which resulted in 102 injured people treated in
hospitals and more than 63 people hospitalized in a single night of protests, as reported
by the Ministry of Health (BBC News Mundo, 2020).
 3. Conclusion

Public protests have been the subject of extensive analysis over the years, and the focus
of that analysis has changed. In 1900, street protests were considered deviant behaviour.
However, since then, various paradigms have been developed to study protests, including
analysing the organizational aspects of protests as a resource, examining the cognitive,
affective, and ideational roots of contention, and exploring shared grievances and
generalized beliefs (van Stekelenburg & Klandermans, 2008).

Through the Political Economy Perspectives on Development module, I have gained new
insights and frameworks regarding protests. I have learned that frameworks exist that
analyse the impact of street demonstrations on political agendas, highlighting political and
societal aspects. In the context of the recent massive protests in Peru against Merino, it
became evident that disruptive mechanisms effectively shape political agendas and can
lead to significant changes.

Second, I came to realize that protests are not a one-dimensional form of resistance, but
rather a complex and evolving phenomenon. The case study in Peru were a prime
example of this, as they started as citizens breaking the law to voice their political dissent
but at the same time it was a challenge against the political regime represented by Merino.
These dynamics of the protests displayed a mix of both constructive noncompliance and
Regime Challenging Resistance.
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