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Searching for Civilian Supremacy: The Concertación Governments and the Military in Chile
Author(s) -
Silva Patricio
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
bulletin of latin american research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.24
H-Index - 33
eISSN - 1470-9856
pISSN - 0261-3050
DOI - 10.1111/1470-9856.00049
Subject(s) - authoritarianism , government (linguistics) , democracy , military government , military rule , political science , political economy , civil–military relations , law , human rights , public administration , sociology , politics , linguistics , philosophy
This article explores the nature and evolution of government‐military relations in Chile since democratic restoration in 1990. Its highlights both the attempts by the Concertación governments to reinstate civilian control on the armed forces, as well as the mechanisms used by the military establishment to resist it. Special attention is given to two particular actors of the Chilean democratic transition who have played a critical role in the evolution of government‐military relations in the post‐authoritarian period: the civilian Right and the Judiciary. As this article aims to show, the strength of the Chilean right has constantly represented a formidable barrier for the Concertación governments in attempts to introduce the legal reforms required to re‐establish civilian supremacy over the military. Furthermore, legal decisions adopted by the Chilean judiciary on human rights‐related cases have also played a crucial role in the evolution of government‐military relations during the past decade.