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This paper presents a critical analysis of the last 250 years of Cuban political history, from a perspective of its integration in the Spanish Caribbean. We discuss how the traditional Cuban political and ideological intolerance has contributed to the creation of an inefficient model of regime succession that has taken the country to its current stage. We present and examine several national and international conditions that we believe are necessary to achieve a peaceful transition toward an open and pluralistic system. We analyze and compare the transitions in Brazil, Mexico and Spain. And we draw several conclusions that may be applicable to the Cuban case. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana have traditionally been seen as isolated: from each other; from the Caribbean with which they are socially and culturally contiguous; and also from the South American continent in which they are geographically situated. Moreover, divided by language and relationships of varying intensity with their former colonisers, very little research exists which analyzes their development predicament collectively. This article seeks to overcome some of these deficiencies. It shows how similar processes of change internally, regionally and globally are provoking new patterns of development and engagement with the world in all three Guianas. The central conclusion of the paper points towards the need for a new research agenda which focuses on these unique territories as distinctive prisms through which to view various dimensions of contemporary globalisation. These include emerging Brazilian hegemony in South America, the ecological devastation wrought by extractive industries, the accompanying clandestine trade in humans and narcotics which flourishes in regions with fuzzy borders, limited state reach, and, in some cases, compromised- and potentially even partially criminalized-state institutions themselves, and the precarious position of indigenous Amerindian and Maroon communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]