DEMOCRATS AND TECHNOCRATS - PROFESSIONAL ECONOMISTS AND REGIME TRANSITIONS IN LATIN-AMERICA

The present moment sees the confluence of two dramatic trends: a wave of democratization unprecedented in world history and a virtually worl dwide pattern of appointment of professional economists to high politi cal office. Some observers of Latin America have questioned whether th e power of technocratic managers does not constitute a fundamental def ormation of democratic claims. We present an analysis of the Chilean c ase drawing on interviews with politicians and economists. Chile's exp erience suggests that there is no single, invariable relationship betw een the holding of power by technical experts and democratic practice. In Chile the technically trained economist-politicians have been inco rporated into the party system. In contrast, the reality of democracy in several other countries of the region is more profoundly threatened by the role played by technical experts.