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Crimes of the Powerful in the Global South: ‘State Failure’ as Elite Success

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The Palgrave Handbook of Criminology and the Global South

Abstract

When interrogating regimes of corruption, state violence, and regulatory breakdown in the Global South, there is a risk we frame such activity through ‘deficit models’, which sees symptoms of state failure in state-corporate criminality. Moving away from idealized visions of what a post-colonial statehood ought to be, this chapter will advance empirical evidence which suggests the crimes of the powerful frequently evidence success. The challenge is determining who for and how do we define success. To explore these questions, case studies from the Ivory Coast and Papua New Guinea will be presented. Lax regulation, corruption, violence, and impunity signal a speculative elite who have succeeded in creating supportive conditions for illicit commercial repertoires that facilitate rapid wealth generation for key stakeholders.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    There is little in the way of robust monitoring to ensure deliverables are provided at cost and at a merchantable standard. Thus, even when services are provided, they are often of such a substandard quality that their value for the taxpayer is negligible.

  2. 2.

    In 1980, World Bank President Robert McNamara launched SALs. The main feature of both IMF and World Bank SALs during the 1980s and 1990s was fiscal adjustment, price setting, and trade liberalization.

  3. 3.

    Former leader of FESCI, interviewed by Human Rights Watch, October 2007 (HRW 2008: 1).

  4. 4.

    Interview, Abidjan, September 2010.

  5. 5.

    Interview, Abidjan, September 2010.

  6. 6.

    Interview, Abidjan, September 2010.

  7. 7.

    In 2006, Goudé was the head of the Young Patriots (an ultranationalist pro-government group).

  8. 8.

    A French-Canadian journalist.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Ulster University, Coleraine, Northern Ireland

    Kristian Lasslett

  2. School of Law, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK

    Thomas MacManus

Authors
  1. Kristian Lasslett
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  2. Thomas MacManus
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, QLD, Australia

    Kerry Carrington

  2. Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, QLD, Australia

    Russell Hogg

  3. Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, QLD, Australia

    John Scott

  4. National University of Litoral Santa Fe, Santa Fe, Argentina

    Máximo Sozzo

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Lasslett, K., MacManus, T. (2018). Crimes of the Powerful in the Global South: ‘State Failure’ as Elite Success. In: Carrington, K., Hogg, R., Scott, J., Sozzo, M. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of Criminology and the Global South. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-65021-0_31

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-65021-0_31

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  • Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-65020-3

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-65021-0

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