O presente estudo tem como objetivo analisar a produção de imaginários políticos e culturais orientados pela Teologia da Libertação durante o governo sandinista na Nicarágua (1979 1990) procurando mostrar a mescla que aí se deu entre religião e revolução. Pretendemos investigar como se constituíram esses imaginários expressos em discursos de políticos e religiosos, jornais, livros, cartilhas, músicas, poemas, fontes visuais produzidas por membros das Comunidades Eclesiais de Base (CEBs) atuantes na Nicarágua, com a meta de ampliar a adesão de setores populares à Revolução Sandinista. Procuramos averiguar em que medida uma comunidade de fé atuou, através da cultura, da educação e das ações políticas, no sentido de colaborar com o projeto revolucionário da Frente Sandinista de Libertação Nacional (FSLN). Uma questão que aqui se coloca é a da identificação entre os ideais revolucionários no poder que se orientavam por concepções marxistas e os dos cristãos que, a partir do Concílio Vaticano II e das Conferências de Medellín e Puebla fizeram a opção preferencial pelos pobres, inserindo-se nas lutas sociais da América Latina. Pretendemos discutir as possibilidades e limites de uma proposta socialista cristã que se constrói a partir de pressupostos teóricos conflitantes como é o caso do materialismo marxista e a doutrina católica que o recusa. A relação entre imaginários sociais e práticas políticas constitui o eixo central desta análise que se propõe verificar como os imaginários se constituem a partir de conflitos diversos e se transformam em armas de luta que orientam as práticas dos agentes envolvidos nesse processo. / The present study has the objective to analyse the production of political and cultural imaginariness oriented by the Theology of Liberation during the sandinist government in Nicaragua (1979-1990) trying to demonstrate the mixture of religion and revolution. Our intention is to investigate how were constituted the imaginariness expressed on political and religious speeches, newspapers, books, spelling books, music, poems and visual materials produced by members of the Base Communities (CEBs) acting in Nicaragua, with the goal to increase the adherence of popular sectors to the Sandinist Revolution. We attempt inquiring in what extension a community of faith acted through the culture, the education and political actions, with the objective to collaborate with the revolucionary project of the Sandinist National Liberation Front (FSLN). One question here presented is the one of the identification between the revolucionay ideals in power that were oriented by marxist conceptions and the christian ones that, with the Vatican II Council and the Conferences of Medellin and Puebla, made a preferred option for the poor, inserting themselves in the social fights in Latin America. We intent to discuss the possibilities and limits of a christian socialist proposal built based on conflicting teorical purposes which is the case of the marxist materialism and the catolic doutrine that refuses it. The relationship between social imaginariness and political practices constitutes the main point of this analysis which has the purpose to verify how the imaginariness constitutes itself from different conflicts transforming itself in weapons of fight which orients the practices of the agents involved in this process.

A partir da Revolução Sandinista, ocorrida na Nicarágua em 19 de julho de 1979, esta pesquisa analisa a opção do Partido dos Trabalhadores (PT) por uma política internacionalista com foco na América Latina na década de 1980, quando da sua fase de formação e consolidação social. Também compila as ações de solidariedade e descreve a política externa do partido neste seu primeiro ciclo de existência, que coincide com o fim da Guerra Fria, a ascensão da era republicana nos Estados Unidos da América e o avanço do conservadorismo neoliberal. A pesquisa analisou documentos oficiais do partido e bibliografia especializada em arquivos públicos e privados, além de realizar entrevistas com dirigentes e militantes que participaram na definição e implementação dessa política. / Having the July 19th 1979 Sandinista Revolution in Nicarágua as its basis, this research analyses the option taken by the Worker´s Party (PT) for internationalistic policies focused on Latin America at the start of the 1980´s, when it underwent its creation and social consolidation. The study also actions of solidarity and this foreign policy adopted by the party, in its first cycle of existence, which coincided with the end of the Cold War, the ascension of the Republican Era in the U.S, and the advancement of neo-conservativism. The research analysed official party documents and biographies found in public and private archives, as well as interviewing party leaders and militants who participated in the implementation of these policies.

La notion de ville fragmentée, utilisée dans sa version descriptive pour qualifier les métropoles latino-américaines, convient aux territoires urbains de Managua. Ceux-ci se caractérisent par la juxtaposition d'espaces urbains circonscrits, séparés les uns des autres par de vastes terrains vagues arborés. Les Managuas expliquent cette discontinuité de l'urbanisation et de ses logiques par le séisme du 23 décembre 1972, qui a détruit une grande partie de la capitale nicaraguayenne. Si cet événement a joué un indéniable rôle d'accélérateur, d'autres témoignages indiquent que tous les endommagements, variés et récurrents, qui affectent Managua, contribuent depuis longtemps à ce processus, sans toutefois en être l'unique moteur. S'ensuit-il une accentuation de la polarisation sociale et une dissolution des pratiques citadines ? Les risques dits "naturels", qui résultent des interactions entre les processus physiques d'endommagement (aléas anthropisés) et les facteurs de peuplement (vulnérabilités), entrent effectivement en résonance avec le processus de fragmentation urbaine par l'intermédiaire des facteurs de peuplement dont ils partagent certaines composantes socio-spatiales.<br />La marque d'unité à l'origine de la construction de Managua au milieu du XIXe siècle est ainsi sans cesse remise en cause à la fois par les manifestations constatées des risques et par les interactions des composantes socio-spatiales qui préexistent à l'endommagement. Par exemple, on constate peu d'endommagements sur les territoires urbains construits par les habitants aisés. Grâce à leurs choix socio-économiques, culturels, institutionnels, ils s'en protègent, mais les répercutent sur les territoires moins fortunés. En incriminant la nature et en refusant le principe de solidarité envers des fragments urbains déjà fortement différenciés, les nantis renforcent le processus de fragmentation urbaine, c'est-à-dire la disparition de la ville en tant que système. Paradoxalement, les risques apparaissent parfois comme des éléments de contre-fragmentation : des habitants aisés acceptent la proximité spatiale avec un quartier précaire quand ce dernier, en échange d'avantages compensatoires, joue le rôle d'amortisseur des dommages, prouvant une certaine instrumentalisation des risques dans le processus de fragmentation urbaine.

While Andosols have a proven capacity to buffer acid inputs, their long-term chemical response to elevated acid deposition remains poorly known. In this respect, the high anion retention capacity of Andosols constitutes a key parameter. Yet, the mechanisms involved in anion retention, especially sulphate, are still a matter of scientific debate. In this study, we report on the impacts of volcanogenic S and acid depositions on (i) the sulphate distribution and (ii) the processes involved in the neutralisation of the acid inputs, in two distinct soil series located downwind from Masaya volcano (Nicaragua), one of the world's largest natural source of SO2. The first series corresponds to weathered Eutric Andosols rich in allophanic constituents and the second series to weakly developed Vitric Andosols rich in volcanic glass. Long-term acid gas emission by Masaya volcano has led to important changes in the chemistry of the Andosols downwind. Sustained acid inputs have decreased the pH and exchangeable base cations contents in both Vitric and Eutric soils. These soils also show substantial S enrichment (up to 5470 mg S kg-1). However, these changes do not affect the soil acid neutralising capacity of the solid phase (ANCs) in a significant way. Despite the larger ANCs of the Vitric comparatively to the Eutric Andosols, soil pH was less in the Vitric than in the Eutric Andosols. This is related to the naturally and kinetically different mechanisms involved in the regulation of the volcanogenic acid fluxes: mineral weathering (slow kinetics) is the dominant process in Vitric Andosols, whereas cation exchange and sulphate sorption (rapid kinetics) significantly contribute to regulate proton consumption in Eutric Andosols. Formation of basic aluminium sulphate (BAS) [(K,Na)nAlx(OH)y(SO4)z] minerals in soils exposed to volcanogenic S-rich acid inputs was inferred from the results of selective extraction experiments (NH4F, KH2PO4 and oxalate). Precipitation of BAS probably constitutes the most effective inorganic SO42- retention mechanism (9-51% of total S), SO42- adsorption onto soil constituents (1-36% of total S) and occlusion into short-range ordered minerals (0-22% of total S), probably governed by ferrihydrite, constituted additional effective inorganic SO42- retention processes. Using transmission electron microscopy coupled with energy-dispersive analysis, we provide the first direct evidence of BAS minerals in soils. BAS minerals can form in these Andosols, because of the large inputs of H+ and SO2 and the availability of readily weatherable volcanic glass, which acts as an effective source of Al. Surface precipitation, i.e. two-dimensional chemisorption followed by three-dimensional nucleation and precipitation, rather than direct precipitation from solution, is likely the formation pathway of BAS particles in these soils. / Malgré une capacité importante à neutraliser les apports acides, le fonctionnement à long terme des Andosols est aussi susceptible d'être affecté par les dépôts acides. A cet égard, la capacité de rétention anionique élevée des Andosols constitue un paramètre clef. Or, les mécanismes de rétention des anions, en particulier du sulfate, demeurent un sujet controversé.Nous étudions ici les effets de dépôts acides et soufrés d'origine volcanique sur (i) la distribution du sulfate et (ii) les processus impliqués dans la neutralisation des apports acides, dans deux séries d'Andosol contrastées exposées aux émissions du volcan Masaya (Nicaragua), une des principales sources naturelles de SO2 atmosphérique. La première série comprend des Andosols Vitriques possèdant une réserve importante de minéraux altérables de nature vitreuse et la seconde est constituée d'Andosols Eutriques, plus évolués, possèdant des teneurs élevées en minéraux secondaires à organisation cristalline à courte distance. Les émissions prolongées de gaz acides provenant du volcan Masaya modifient fortement la chimie des sols exposés à ces apports. Ainsi, le pH et les teneurs en cations échangeables des Andosols Vitriques et Eutriques diminuent alors que la concentration totale en S augmente (jusqu'à 5470 mg S kg-1) en réponse aux apports d'acides. Par contre, la capacité de la phase solide de ces sols à neutraliser l'acidité (ANCs) n'est pas significativement affectée. Malgré une ANCs plus élevée dans les Andosols Vitriques comparativement aux Andosols Eutriques, le pH de ces sols est plus faible parce que les mécanismes impliqués dans la régulation des flux de protons sont différents: ceux-ci s'opèrent principalement par des réactions lentes d'altération minérale dans les Andosols Vitriques et par des réactions rapides impliquant l'échange ionique et la sorption d'anions sulfates dans les Andosols Eutriques. Sur base d'extractions sélectives (NH4F, KH2PO4 et oxalate), l'immobilisation sous forme de minéraux hydroxy-alumino-sulfatés [(K,Na)nAlx(OH)y(SO4)z] apparaît comme le mécanisme de rétention du SO42- inorganique le plus important (9-51% du S total), l'adsorption du SO42- à la surface de constituants du sol (1-36% du S total) et le piégeage du SO42- (0-22% du S total), vraisemblablement au sein d'oxydes de fer mal cristallisés, constituent également des processus efficaces de rétention du sulfate inorganique. Nous mettons en évidence par observation directe, pour la première fois, la présence de minéraux hydroxy-alumino-sulfatés dans des sols par microscopie électronique à transmission couplée à une sonde analytique EDS. La formation de ces minéraux est elle-même favorisée par l'apport considérable de sulfate d'origine volcanique et l'hydrolyse intense des verres qui libère l'aluminium en solution. La précipitation à la surface des phases adsorbantes plutôt que la précipitation directe en solution semble être le mécanisme de formation des minéraux hydroxy-alumino-sulfatés dans ces sols.

The aim of this thesis was to explore the impact of physical, sexual and emotional violence against women of reproductive age and the level of controlling behaviour in marriage on child health and survival in two different cultural settings: Bangladesh and Nicaragua. Data were acquired from four quantitative community-based studies. In two studies, a cohort including a prospective two year follow-up of 3164 mother-infant pairs in rural Bangladesh was investigated. A third study was a case-referent study in Nicaragua including mothers of 110 cases of under-five deaths and 203 referents, and in a forth study an other cohort of 1048 rural Bangladeshi women and their 2691 children was followed until 5 years of age. Maternal exposure to any form of violence, including physical, sexual, emotional, and controlling behaviour was independently associated with lower body size at birth, increased risk of stunting and under-weight at 24 months of age, slower growth velocity during the first two years of life and a higher incidence of diarrhoeal episodes and respiratory tract infections. In the Nicaraguan setting, the children of women who experienced any history of physical violence had a two-fold increase in risk of death before the age of 5 years, and those whose mothers experienced both physical and sexual violence had a six-fold increase in risk of death. In Bangladesh, an association between violence against women and under-five mortality was found among daughters of educated mothers who were exposed to severe physical violence or a high level of controlling behaviour in marriage. In all four studies, lifetime violence experience among participating mothers was high (37-69%), and the timing was less relevant than the exposure to violence per se. In conclusion, this investigation revealed that violence against women severely affects child health and survival. The findings are especially relevant in a context of high level of child under-nutrition, morbidity and under-five mortality. Efforts for protecting women from all forms of violence are needed as part of the interventions for improved child health.

The objectives of the thesis was to explore partner violence during pregnancy in Nicaragua – its prevalence and characteristics, how women perceive, understand and cope with it, its association with specific child outcomes such as low birth weight (LBW), small for gestational age (SGA) and preterm birth, and possible pathways. A cross-sectional community-based study was conducted with 478 pregnant women and for a sub-sample of 147 salivary cortisol was measured. A case-referent hospital-based study was organized including 303 mothers immediately after delivery. In-depth interviews were conducted with women survivors to increase understanding of partner violence during pregnancy. The prevalence of emotional, physical and sexual partner abuse during pregnancy was 32.4%, 13.4% and 6.7% respectively. Seventeen percent of the victims suffered all three types of violence and in two thirds the abuse was severe and repeated. Half of the abused women had experienced punches and kicks directed to the abdomen; however, only 14% had sought health care and very few had disclosed the abuse or contacted police or authorities. Adolescent mothers, unwanted pregnancy and late registration for antenatal care or no check-ups were more likely among victims. The access to social resources facilitated the women’s ability to cope with the abuse, but the pregnancy itself was a barrier to receiving support from family, friends or society. The ability to confront abuse was determined by a complex interplay of factors such as economic independence, severity of abuse, access to social resources, implications for important others (i.e. children), socioeconomic group and a personal ability to cope with social norms. Low social resources, high levels of emotional distress and attempted suicide were associated with violence during pregnancy. Abuse during pregnancy was also found as an independent risk factor for LBW. Sixteen percent of LBW was attributed to physical abuse by a partner during pregnancy. A significant association between abuse during the index pregnancy and SGA was found. Partner violence during the pregnancy, low social resources and emotional distress were associated with higher levels of salivary cortisol. Pregnant women with high cortisol values were significantly more likely to give birth to SGA babies. A substantial decrease of birthweight, 142 grams, was estimated to be associated with increases in cortisol due to violence exposure. Partner violence during pregnancy is a serious social problem that impacts the rights, health and wellbeing of both the woman and her unborn child. The studies call for prioritization of intervention programmes for prevention and detection of violence, treatment and rehabilitation of the victims and the perpetrators, and change of the structural causes producing violence in society.

In processes of economic integration, neoliberal discourse and corresponding notions of development comprise some of the most readily available imaginaries of political and social interaction and change. However, these processes are always also locally produced and negotiated. Engaging with discourse theory, Marxism and postcolonial feminist theory, this dissertation brings together “macro” and “micro” aspects of globalization. The aim is to interrogate discursive reinforcements of and challenges to global orders of production and divisions of labor. With a focus on representations of Free Trade Zones (FTZs), which are tax-exempted enclaves for export production, the study explores competing meanings attributed to the operation of transnational capital in Nicaragua. Based on policy documents, political speeches, promotional videotapes and interviews, the political rhetoric of two governments with competing agendas is analyzed: the neoliberal/conservative government of the Liberal Constitutionalist Party (2002–2007), which framed the FTZs in terms of national progress, and the leftist government of the Sandinista National Liberation Front (2007– ), which attempts to reconnect to the country’s revolutionary past. In this way efforts to formulate legitimate political agendas in the context of shifting relations between states and markets are detailed, together with constructions of citizens and workers along differentiations of class and gender. Relying on interviews with FTZ workers, the study examines ways to interpret, inhabit or resist imperative subject positions at the intersections of contending projects of nation-building and transnational orders of production, in conjunction with a discussion of the uneasy distinction between representation and appropriation that troubles transnational feminist research projects.

In this work, I explain that the focus of criticism on the Central American poetry of the second half of the twentieth century has emphasized its political content. I argue, however, that such a limited view obscures the broader import of this poetry and its place in Latin American literature. By reading the work of Nicaraguan Daisy Zamora, Guatemalan Otto René Castillo, and Salvadoran Roque Dalton with an emphasis on affectivity rather than revolution, I suggest a different relationship between the poet and society, one that is not limited to the marginal figure of the mujer soldado, the poeta guerrillero or the poeta marxista in conflict with all societal norms. Rather, I argue that my study portrays the complex subjectivity of the speaker/poet not unlike that of non-revolutionary poets, as well as his or her multi-dimensional affective connections to family and society. At the same time, an analysis of affect in this poetry allows us to reconsider the nature of the revolutionary figure itself, no longer a myth or a romantic hero, but an individual inserted in society in a more complex way. In Chapter 1, “Daisy Zamora: De la mujer-soldado a la mujer-mujer”, I contend that an analysis of affectivity of her poetic work reveals how personal memory constructs an individualized subjectivity different from that of a woman-soldier. In the second chapter, “Otto René Castillo: De la lucha revolucionaria a la soledad del poema,” I argue that a negative connotation of romantic love is projected in his poems bringing about traces of existential solitude in the lyric subjectivity. Furthermore, Castillo’s poetry elicits a binary opposition between “the people” and the guerrillero in which the former is portrayed as lacking of agency. The third chapter, “Roque Dalton: y/o subjetividad en crisis,” reveals the ways in which the Salvadoran poet textualizes a poetic of disenchantment by way of projecting disdain and contempt to the “motherland.” In conclusion, my approach pinpoints how Zamora, Castillo and Dalton share the same preoccupations, affects and ways to conceive reality, which are also similar to the practices of those poets whose works are better-known given their national origin or because their poetic production has been widely studied by academia. This document has been written in Spanish. / text

Différents organismes internationaux se sont penchés sur l’école rurale des pays en émergence. La plupart de ces travaux de recherche montrent que ces écoles n’offrent pas une éducation adaptée au milieu dans lesquelles elles sont situées, du fait essentiellement qu’on y a implanté la structure administrative et pédagogique des écoles urbaines sans tenir compte des caractéristiques de la population infantile des zones rurales. Afin de tenter de remédier aux difficultés identifiées, ces organismes ont proposé diverses solutions ou préconisé des politiques adaptées à ce contexte particulier. Le but de cette recherche est d’étudier comment ces recommandations convergent-elles avec les politiques éducatives et dans le quotidien des écoles en milieu rural de deux pays de l’Amérique centrale, le Costa Rica et le Nicaragua. À cette fin, comme cadre d'analyse, nous avons établi six catégories : condition socio-économique, plan d'études et pédagogie, relation école et communauté, enseignants, technologie et finalement, gestion et gouvernance. Pour ce faire, nous analysons les recommandations globales formulées par diverses organisations internationales et d’autres organismes des pays développés à propos de l'éducation rurale. Nous comparons ensuite ces informations avec les décisions politiques prises ces dernières vingt années, dans les deux pays sélectionnés afin de favoriser le développement éducatif des zones rurales. Pour finir, nous observons sur le terrain le quotidien de quelques écoles rurales des deux pays retenus. En partant de l’hypothèse qu’il existe suffisamment d’information et de recommandations permettant l’élaboration des politiques éducatives appropriées pour améliorer les conditions des écoles rurales, le travail présente une analyse multiniveaux (recommandations globales, politiques nationales et pratiques scolaires) en établissant la convergence ou la divergence dans chacune des catégories. Les principaux résultats de la recherche démontrent qu'il existe une convergence entre les pratiques scolaires et les politiques éducatives émises par les pays étudiés, avec quelques exceptions. Quant à la convergence entre les recommandations globales et les politiques émises par ces pays, on ne peut pas parler de convergence de façon générale. La recherche propose l'élaboration de profil de politiques nationales pour chaque pays, en fonction de la manière par laquelle ils abordent la problématique de l'éducation rurale : soit par l’assignation des ressources pour étendre les services éducatifs normalisés pour tous les enfants, ou en produisant des politiques focalisées, créant des programmes spécifiques, faisant remarquer la différence du monde rural. / Various international organizations have studied rural schools in developing countries and the majority of the research shows that these schools do not offer an education adapted to the community in which they are located. This is primarily due to the fact that the schools are integrating administrative and teaching structures of urban schools without taking into consideration the characteristics of child populations in rural zones. In response to the identified difficulties, these organizations proposed various solutions or recommended policies adapted to this particular context. The goal of this research is to study how these recommendations translate into educational policies and their impact on daily life of rural schools in two Central American countries, Costa Rica and Nicaragua. For this purpose, we’ve created an analysis framework with six categories: socio-economic status, curriculum and pedagogy, school and community relationships, teachers, technology, and lastly, management and governance. With this intention, we’ve analyzed the recommendations made by various international organizations and other organizations from developed countries related to rural education. We’ve compared this information to the political decisions on educational development in rural communities made in the last twenty in these two countries. Lastly, we’ve completed the research with field observations, studying the day-to-day work in rural schools. Working from the hypothesis that there exists sufficient valid information and recommendations to issue appropriate policies that improve conditions in rural schools, this work presents a multi-level analysis (global recommendations, national policies and school practices) by determining convergences and divergences in each of these levels. The main results of the research show that there is a convergence between school practices and education policies created by the countries, with some minor exceptions. When it comes to convergence between global recommendations and the countries’ policies, we cannot speak of convergence in general. This research proposes the use of national policy profiles for each country, depending on how they deal with the challenges of rural education: assigning resources to extend standard educational services to all children, or generating targeted policies, creating specific programs that highlight the difference of the rural world.

This paper analyzes how female leaders affect the attitudes towards women in Nicaragua and Brazil. It discusses general and specific literature on the historical and current situations in each country. It analyzes the effects colonialism, culture, religion, traditions and the law have on the perceptions of women. The paper further analyzes and measures how past and current female leaders like President Violeta Barrios de Chamorro and President Dilma Rouseff affect people’s views towards women. The rates of violence against woman and domestic abuse in Nicaragua and Brazil are analyzed and compared to Latin America and the world. This paper argues that women in positions of leadership lead to changes in the general attitudes towards women, but it is not clear if women leaders decrease the rates of violence against women.