The latest PRIF Report investigates provincial politics in Pampanga, an economically highly developed province in the Philippines. The local mode of domination closely resembles practices employed by the classical Mafia of Sicily and Calabria. "Mafia" in this Report does not refer to a criminal organization but to how a territory and its population is dominated politically, socially and economically.
In PRIF Report No. 114 "Mafia-style Domination: The Philippine Province of Pampanga", Peter Kreuzer analyzes the economic principles of this domination as well as the different roles of patronage, violence and illegal practices and thereby elaborates similarities of the Philippine case and the traditional "Mafia". The study explains why despite its democratic system there is still enough breeding ground for mafia-like structures in the Philippines.
The Report can be ordered at PRIF for EUR 10,- and is also available as free PDF download.