Cidadania no Mercosul: entre a mobilidade interna e os limites da integração regional

Abstract

This dissertation investigates the possibility of MERCOSUR evolving from the mere circulation of people to full regional citizenship, with guaranteed rights and political participation. The study, delimited by the temporal landmark of the political-ideological shift in the bloc from 2016 onwards, analyzes the foundations and obstacles to this construction, situated within the context of weakening multilateralism, migration crises, and the rise of right-wing governments in Latin America. The qualitative research, employing a dialectical method, uses historical, comparative, and normative-descriptive procedures based on multidisciplinary bibliographic review and document analysis. The first chapter examines the theoretical frameworks of citizenship, from its dissociation from nationality to the inspiring model of the European Union. The second chapter is divided into three axes: the analysis of the constitutional treatment given to migrants and the internalization of MERCOSUR norms in member states; the study of intra-bloc migratory flows; and the evaluation of attempts to consolidate citizenship, using the Residence Agreement as a benchmark. The third chapter analyzes the fragilities that hinder the project, such as the post-Venezuela suspension migration crisis, the asymmetric response of states, the deficit of popular participation, the paralysis of UNASUR, and the implications of the "green clause" imposed by the European Union to enable the bi-regional agreement. It is concluded that the MERCOSUR citizenship project, still underway, lacks affectio societatis and faces structural obstacles such as socioeconomic asymmetries, strong presidentialism, absence of popular legitimacy, and the crisis of multilateralism, requiring constitutional and political advances for its realization.