More carrots than sticks: Antanas Mockus's civic culture policy in Bogotá

Abstract

The son of a Lithuanian artist, Antanas Mockus was the president of the National University in Colombia before he became mayor of Bogotá in 1995. As mayor, he transformed the city into a huge classroom, not only bringing to his administration a new view of governing but also transforming the way people exercised their citizenship. Mockus resorted to a creative communicative and pedagogical effort to change the citizens' hearts and minds in favor of peaceful coexistence and legal compliance. Symbols, metaphors, and humor became the language through which the administration would enforce its measures to deal with urban violence. Unconventional techniques, such as a symbolic vaccine against domestic violence and the use of mimes to control traffic circulation and create a sense of shame among those who committed infractions, helped to stop crime and develop a new sense of citizenship.