Mercosur

Abstract

This chapter examines the evolution of the parliamentary dimension in Mercosur, from its modest beginnings with the Joint Parliamentary Commission to the establishment of the consultative Mercosur Parliament (Parlasur) in 2005. The context for the establishment and empowerment of an international parliamentary institution was favourable in Mercosur. Specifically, the chapter argues that the organization’s initial parliamentarization reflects the combination of international diffusion from the EU and the democratization of member states, while the transition to Parlasur is best explained by a combination of diffusion from the European Union and the financial crisis in the region that occurred around the turn of the century.