The Military in Politics
Max Cameron
Latin American Politics and Government
Poli 332, UBC
Sources of Military Intervention• Internal to FFAA - concept of guardianship
• External - civilian expectations of the military
• Historical patterns - need for strong government
• Institutional deficiencies in larger polity
The History of Coups
• 167 coups in 20th century
• 1.6 per year, or 8.8 per country
• Worst decades: 1910-19; 1930-39, 1960-69
• Best: since 1990
• Explanations: social question, depression, Cuban revolution
Types of Regimes
• Peronalistic or collegial?
• Institutional role?
• Ideological orientation?
• Type of civilian support?
Inclusionary or Exclusionary?
• Reformist/inclusionary– Peru 1968-1975
• Collegial, junior officers at first
• Institutional with tendency toward division
• Reformist, Third Worldist
• Workers, peasants, intellectuals
• Reactionary/exclusionary– Chile 1973-1990
• Collegial with strong personalism emerging
• Institutional, coherent and disciplined
• Reactionary, forerunner of neoliberalism
• Business elites, technocrats, US
Wars Against Subversion (1956-1990)
• Idea of “perception of threat”– Guatemala under Arbenz, Cuban
revolution, rise of BA states
• State of exception or “emergency”
• Logic of friends versus enemies
• Concept of total war: the Shining Path in Peru
Aftermath of Internal War: Truth, Justice, and Reconciliation
or Impunity and Amnesia?• Trade offs between truth and justice• Strategic logics and coalitions• Cases:
– Punto Final in Argentina– Rettig Commission in Chile– Peace Accords in Guatemala– Truth and Reconciliation Commission in Peru
Military in Politics Today
• Military control– None. There are no military regimes
• Military tutelage – Central America: e.g. Guatemala
• Conditional subordination– Andes: Bolivia, Colombia, Peru, Chile
• Civilian control– Costa Rica, Uruguay
A new era?
• Election of Piñera in Chile
• Military support for Evo Morales
• Chavez and the military
• Parapolitica scandal in Colombia
• Coup in Honduras