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Civil-Military Relations and Democratization in Guatemala

Author: Carlos G. Berrios

Publisher:

Published: 1998-06-01

Total Pages: 107

ISBN-13: 9781423559900

The purpose of this thesis is to examine civil-military relations in Guatemala and their effect on democratic consolidation. The issue of civil- military relations in Guatemala is one of particular importance as political and military leaders as well as members of civil society attempt to redefine the role of the military after 36 years of civil war. Applying Felipe Aguero's theory of civilian supremacy, this thesis argues that since 1982, the Guatemalan military has evolved into a professional military institution, becoming an essential part of the democratic state. This evolution has resulted in the development of sound civil-military relations with finn civilian control, thus impacting significantly the democratization process of the country. The stability and structure of civil-military relations in Guatemala will depend not only on the military but also on the consensus reached by all elements of civil and political society as to how best to utilize the armed forces in support of the democratic state. Currently, Guatemala does not have the institutional mechanisms by which to control the military. Nevertheless, civil-military relations are stable and the military fully supports the democratization process. Further research is recommended in order to investigate the role of the democratic institutions in Guatemala in the monitoring and implementation of defense policy.

Enablers and Obstacles to Democratic Consolidation and Civil-Military Relations Reform

Author: Naval Postgraduate Naval Postgraduate School

Publisher: CreateSpace

Published: 2015-04-02

Total Pages: 64

ISBN-13: 9781511557092

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Argentina and Guatemala are separated by more than 3,000 miles, and their societies are in many ways dissimilar. Yet they share similarities in the undermining of democracy throughout their histories. Both countries were caught up in the Western fear of communism during the Cold War. With considerable backing from the United States, both countries crafted military governments with the mission of better governance and removal of their internal communist threats. Human rights were repeatedly violated by militaries and terrorists alike in each country. Both countries began democratizing in the 1980s; however, Argentina has made great strides toward democratic consolidation and civil-military relations reform. For Guatemala, these goals remain elusive. The Argentine case study serves to validate the mode-of-transition argument, which states that the dynamics of the transition to democracy deeply affect democratic consolidation and civilian control of the military. This case study, however, argues that Argentine civil society was a pivotal factor in preventing the military from controlling the transition. Civil society affected the outcome via protests and political participation. The Guatemalan case study also validates the mode-of-transition argument. This case study illustrates the negative consequences whenever the transition is under military control. It also supports the argument that civil society's actions are a pivotal factor in determining the military's ability to control the transition, via its active protesting of the regime and its participation in the electoral process, or lack thereof. In Guatemala's case, civil society participated in politics early on; over time, however, its participation dwindled.

Civil-military Relations Program in Guatemala

Author:

Publisher:

Published: 1999

Total Pages: 29

ISBN-13:

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The Center for Civil-Military Relations (CCMR) was invited to offer a program in July 1997 to assist Guatemala in consolidating democratic civil-military relations. By the end of 1998 the program had gone through four phases, and appears to have established a momentum in which discussion regarding the proper roles for civilians and military officials in a democracy is both legitimate and frequent. In this report, the author describes the different phases of the program and discusses lessons learned during the past 1 1/2 years. Between 1966 and 1985, all Guatemalan governments were dominated by the armed forces, and the coup d'etat was the most common mechanism for regime change. Between 1960 and 1996 the country was engaged in an armed insurrection, a virtual civil war. During this period 140,000 people were killed, 1 million uprooted out of a total population of 11 million, and the abuse of human rights, by both the government and the insurgent forces, was common. Largely due to decisions and dynamics within the armed forces themselves, the country gradually transitioned towards a democratic regime from the mid-1980s. An attempted autocoup of President Jorge Serrano in May of 1993 was opposed by large sectors of the civil society, and not supported by the armed forces, indicating that progress had been made in the 8 years since the end of the military regime. Progress also was made by the armed forces and the governments after 1986, but particularly those of Ramiro de Leon Carpio, 1993-1996, and Alvaro Arzu, from January 1996 until the present. A central element in the peace agreement, signed on 29 December 1996, was the stated goal of civilian control of the armed forces. The challenge is to institutionalize the structures and processes whereby democratically elected civilians control the armed forces as a part of the state, rather than the latter usurping the state itself. These are the issues that CCMR's programs are designed to address.

The Armed Forces and Democracy in Latin America

Author: John Samuel Fitch

Publisher: JHU Press

Published: 1998

Total Pages: 294

ISBN-13: 9780801859182

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The book tackles the subject of the military and politics in Latin America from a broad historical perspective, drawing on literature in the field and other information based on personal interviews with officers.

The Military and Democracy

Author: Louis Wolf Goodman

Publisher: Free Press

Published: 1990

Total Pages: 366

ISBN-13:

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Civil-military Relations

Author: David R Mares

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2018-02-12

Total Pages: 292

ISBN-13: 0429981201

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This book analyses the normative and institutional aspects of the civil-military relationship to demonstrate that it is the politics of the relationship rather than its form that influences the likelihood of democracy and regional peace. It is useful for policymakers, academics, and general readers.

Civil-Military Relations in Post-Conflict Societies

Author: Orlando J. Pérez

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2015-04-10

Total Pages: 215

ISBN-13: 1317806786

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Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Honduras are four Spanish speaking countries in Central America that possess uniformed military institutions. These four countries represent different approaches to reforms of civil-military relations, and embody varying degrees of success in both institutional democratization and the managing of security forces. In this book, Orlando J. Pérez expertly examines the competing theories of civil-military relations in Central America to advance our understanding of the origins, consequences and persistence of militarism in Latin America. Divided into four parts, Pérez begins by proposing a theoretical framework for analyzing civil-military relations, including an analysis of how U.S. foreign and military policy affects the establishment of stable civilian supremacy over the armed forces. Part Two examines the institutional and legal structures under which civil-military relations are carried out revealing in Part Three the reorientation of the missions and roles performed by the armed forces in each country. The concluding part analyzes the role beliefs of members of the military and public opinion about the armed forces in relation to other institutions. Combining both qualitative and quantitative data, Pérez bridges the gap between structural and cultural analyses for a more comprehensive understanding of the links between micro and macro level factors that influence civil-military relations and democratic governance.

The Guatemalan Military Project

Author: Jennifer Schirmer

Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press

Published: 2010-08-03

Total Pages: 364

ISBN-13: 0812200594

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In 1999, the Guatemala truth commission issued its report on human rights violations during Guatemala's thirty-six-year civil war that ended in 1996. The commission, sponsored by the UN, estimates the conflict resulted in 200,000 deaths and disappearances. The commission holds the Guatemalan military responsible for 93 percent of the deaths. In The Guatemalan Military Project, Jennifer Schirmer documents the military's role in human rights violations through a series of extensive interviews striking in their brutal frankness and unique in their first-hand descriptions of the campaign against Guatemala's citizens. High-ranking officers explain in their own words their thoughts and feelings regarding violence, political opposition, national security doctrine, democracy, human rights, and law. Additional interviews with congressional deputies, Guatemalan lawyers, journalists, social scientists, and a former president give a full and balanced account of the Guatemalan power structure and ruling system. With expert analysis of these interviews in the context of cultural, legal, and human rights considerations, The Guatemalan Military Project provides a successful evaluation of the possibilities and processes of conversion from war to peace in Latin America and around the world.

Civic-military Relations in Guatemala

Author: Rocio Cardiel

Publisher:

Published: 2001

Total Pages: 180

ISBN-13:

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Militarization and Demilitarization in El Salvador’s Transition to Democracy

Author: Philip Williams

Publisher: University of Pittsburgh Pre

Published: 1997-12-15

Total Pages: 257

ISBN-13: 0822971860

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With the resignation of General Renee Emilio Ponce in March 1993, the Salvadorian army’s sixty-year domination of El Salvador came to an end. The country’s January 1992 peace accords stripped the military of the power it once enjoyed, placing many areas under civilian rule. Establishing civilian control during the transition to democracy was no easy task, especially for a country that had never experienced even a brief period of democracy in its history. Phillip J. Williams and Knut Walter argue that prolonged military rule produced powerful obstacles that limited the possibilities for demilitarization in the wake of the peace accords. The failure of the accords to address several key aspects of the military’s political power had important implications for the democratic transition and for future civil-military relations. Drawing on an impressive array of primary source materials and interviews, this book will be valuable to students, scholars, and policy makers concerned with civil-military relations, democratic transitions, and the peace process in Central America.