Latin America is facing a democratic backlash. Meanwhile, China is aggressively expanding its influence in the region through various economic, diplomatic, and technological initiatives, think tank Global Americans says in a new report. China’s growing presence is raising concerns about its correlation with the recession of democracy in the region, the report China’s Role in the Democratic Backlash in Latin America indicates.
The report details how Beijing uses its “double-edged influence” to strengthen and stabilize oppressive governments worldwide. The strategy, known as the “protection mechanism,” promotes the Chinese authoritarian model and seeks a new international order under Chinese absolutism.
This approach has a relevant impact on the region. China protects its allies, such as Cuba, Nicaragua, and Venezuela, from international pressures and sanctions related to corruption and human rights, in exchange for geopolitical support. Caracas receives the largest Chinese loans in the region.
“The destruction of democracy in Venezuela began in 1999. With Caracas at the forefront of this process, La Paz and Managua followed this trend,” Luis Fleischman, a professor of sociology and political sciences at Palm Beach State University in Florida, told Diálogo on July 10. “These countries have a significant deterioration of their political systems. In Latin America, the erosion of respect for essential values, freedom, and equality, is quite serious.”
Meanwhile, China expands its political influence through the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) to control governments of any orientation, Fleischman added. “Beijing prefers to support dictatorships, fearing that democracies will align with the United States and the West. Dictatorships have a mutual attraction and a very special connection.”
Undermining sovereignty
China uses its investments, foreign aid, and loans in the region to undermine political competition, win favors, and align countries such as Nicaragua, Cuba, Venezuela, and Bolivia in voting at the United Nations, thus consolidating the power of autocratic leaders in these nations, Global Americans indicated.
Chinese investments also increase corruption, violate human and environmental rights, and undermine sovereignty, negatively affecting democracies, all facilitated by the BRI, the report details.
Chinese firms often bribe local officials to win contracts, reduce oversight, and inflate prices, harming citizens and their ability to hold their governments accountable, the report states. “China’s priority in Latin America is to expand its influence, even as it misleadingly claims to be building infrastructure to ‘improve’ the lives of Latin Americans,” Fleischman said.
Some of these projects have serious structural flaws. One example is the Coca Codo Sinclair dam in Ecuador, which construction defects have led the country to file a lawsuit in 2023 before the International Court of Arbitration against Chinese construction company Sinohydro, Ecuadorian daily Primicias reported on May 14.
Exporting surveillance and censorship
China, a leader in mass surveillance and censorship, exports technologies such as facial recognition and surveillance cameras to Latin America. These tools are deceptively used to undermine democracy, consolidate political power, and restrict rights, warns Global Americans.
One example of this is Ecuador, where in 2010 China funded the installation of surveillance cameras in most cities, reports Expediente Abierto. The footage was used by former President Rafael Correa to spy on and attack political opponents, activists, journalists, and to track citizens, the think tank contends.
Similar Chinese surveillance systems are currently operating in Venezuela and Bolivia. In Venezuela, the Chinese telecommunications company ZTE collaborated in the creation of an identity card, which controls electoral activity and coerces support for the Maduro regime, details Global Americans.
Propaganda and disinformation
Beijing has been expanding its disinformation and propaganda campaigns, which promote its interests and force feed its Chinese Communist Party (CCP) doctrine, using tactics such as cyberbullying and manipulation to intimidate critical media and undermine freedom of expression, Global Americans adds.
In countries such as Argentina, Chile, and Peru, China uses state media to promote pro-CCP narratives. At times, this strategy includes the dissemination of disinformation, and insisting on the supposed benefits of cooperation with China, the study adds.
China seeks to transform information in the region to favor its worldview and ultimately undermine democratic principles. While there is resistance to this strategy, China’s growing influence and lack of oversight over press freedom in the hemisphere threaten to further generate democratic setbacks.
“The Chinese media operate in our continent to gain support for their agenda and to achieve neutrality in many countries on strategic issues. These countries provide impressive opportunities in the region for China,” Fleischman said. “Although we are in a changing continent, democracy is not yet completely lost.”
Global instability
According to Global Americans, China is driving a democratic backlash in Latin America by fueling global instability through various actions such as contributing to prolonging the Russia-Ukraine war, reaffirming its alliance with Iran in the wake of the Hamas attacks, and distracting international attention from abuses against democracy in the region.
An example of this can be found in the actions of Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro during the conflicts in Eastern Europe and the Middle East, who took the opportunity to threaten to invade Guyana’s Essequibo region, seeking legitimacy and popular support ahead of the 2024 presidential elections.
“Some expect solutions from the United States, but the responsibility lies with the countries of the region. Authoritarian and corrupt leaders without democratic counterweights perpetuate a tragic cycle. China and Russia are taking advantage of this situation to expand their influence in the Americas,” Fleischman concluded.
