Hostname: page-component-745bb68f8f-lrblm Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2025-01-10T05:04:47.215Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The Military and Democratization in El Salvador

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

Knut Walter  and
Philip J. Williams
Knut Walter
Affiliation:
Universidad Centroamericana
Philip J. Williams
Affiliation:
University of Florida, Universidad Centroamericana in El Salvador
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Extract

The recent coups and attempted coups in Haiti, Venezuela, and Peru serve as a sobering reminder of the military's central role in the political life of Latin America. Earlier assessments of the prospects for democratic consolidation now seem overly optimistic in light of these events. At a minimum, they point up the need to focus on the role of the military during transitions from authoritarianism and the consolidation of democratic regimes. As Stepan has suggested, prolonged military rule can leave important legacies which serve as powerful obstacles to democratic consolidation (Stepan, 1988: xi-xii). Understanding these legacies and the problems they present is essential in developing strategies aimed at democratizing civil-military relations.

This is no less true in El Salvador, where the prospects for democratization are closely linked to the future of the country's armed forces.

Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Interamerican Studies and World Affairs , Volume 35 , Issue 1 , Spring 1993 , pp. 39 - 88
Copyright
Copyright © University of Miami 1993

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Americas Watch (1992) Salvador, El. Peace and Human Rights: Successes and Shortcomings of the United Nations Observer Mission in El Salvador. Vol. IV, No. 8. Washington, D.c.,(2 September).Google Scholar
Baloyra, E. (1982) El Salvador in Transition. Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press.Google Scholar
Bacevich, A.J., Hallums, J., White, R., and Young, T. (1988) American Military Policy in Small Wars: The Case of El Salvador. Washington, DC: Pergamon-Brassey's International Defense Publishers.Google Scholar
Blandon, A. (1992) Author interview with former Chief of Staff, San Salvador (El Salvador), 17 June.Google Scholar
Castro Moran, M. (1987) Función política del ejército salvadoreño en el presente siglo. San Salvador,El Salvador: Uca Editores.Google Scholar
Corado Figueroa, J.H. (1992) Author interview with Chief of Operations of the Estado Mayor, San Salvador (El Salvador), 28 July.Google Scholar
Duarte, A. (1992) Author interview with President Napoleón Duarte's son and former advisor, San Salvador (El Salvador), 22 July.Google Scholar
Dunkerley, J. (1988) Power in the Isthmus. London, England: Verso.Google Scholar
Durham, W. (1979) Scarcity and Survival in Central America: The Ecological Origins of the Soccer War. Stanford, Ca: Stanford University Press.Google Scholar
Elam, R.V. (1968) Appeal to Arms: The Army and Politics in El Salvador, 1931-1964. Ph.D. Dissertation, University of New Mexico.Google Scholar
Salvador, El. Gobierno (1950) Ley Transitoria Electoral. San Salvador, El Salvador: Imprenta Nacional.Google Scholar
Salvador, El. Ministerio de Defensa (1959) Memoria. San Salvador, El Salvador: Imprenta Nacional.Google Scholar
Salvador, El (1956) Memoria. San Salvador, El Salvador: Imprenta Nacional.Google Scholar
Salvador, El (1955) Memoria. San Salvador, El Salvador: Imprenta Nacional.Google Scholar
Salvador, El (1951) Memoria. San Salvador, El Salvador: Imprenta Nacional.Google Scholar
Salvador, El (1950) Memoria. San Salvador, El Salvador: Imprenta Nacional.Google Scholar
Salvador, El (1947) Memoria. San Salvador, El Salvador: Imprenta Nacional.Google Scholar
Salvador, El (1944) Memoria. San Salvador, El Salvador: Imprenta Nacional.Google Scholar
Salvador, El (1942) Memoria. San Salvador, El Salvador: Imprenta Nacional.Google Scholar
Salvador, El. Ministerio de Defensa y Seguridad Pública (1979) Memoria. San Salvador, El Salvador: Imprenta Nacional.Google Scholar
Salvador, El (1977) Memoria. San Salvador, El Salvador: Imprenta Nacional.Google Scholar
Salvador, El (1961) Memoria. San Salvador, El Salvador: Imprenta Nacional.Google Scholar
Salvador, El (1975) Memoria. San Salvador, El Salvador: Imprenta Nacional.Google Scholar
Salvador, El (1974) Memoria. San Salvador, El Salvador: Imprenta Nacional.Google Scholar
Salvador, El (1971) Memoria. San Salvador, El Salvador: Imprenta Nacional.Google Scholar
Salvador, El (1963) Memoria. San Salvador, El Salvador: Imprenta Nacional.Google Scholar
Salvador, El. Ministerio de Guerra, Marina y Aviación (1941) Memoria. San Salvador, El Salvador: Imprenta Nacional.Google Scholar
Salvador, El (1931) Memoria. San Salvador, El Salvador: Imprenta Nacional.Google Scholar
Fitch, S. (1989) “Military Professionalism, National Security and Democracy: Lessons Learned from the Latin American Experience.” Paper presented at the XV International Latin American Studies Association Congress, Miami (FL), 4–6 December 1989.Google Scholar
Gallardo, R. (1961) Las constituciones de El Salvador (Vol. 2). Madrid, Spain: Instituto de Cultura Hispánica.Google Scholar
Gordon, S. (1989) Crisis política y guerra en El Salvador. México City, Mexico: Siglo XXI.Google Scholar
hagopian, F. (1990) “Democracy by Undemocratic Means?” Comparative Political Studies 23, 3 (july): 147–70.Google Scholar
Hamilton, M. (1992) Author interview with US Military Group Commander, San Salvador (El Salvador), 10 July.Google Scholar
Hernandez Pico, J., et al. (1972) El Salvador: Año Político. San Salvador, El Salvador: Universidad Centroamericana.Google Scholar
Centroamericana, Inforpress (1993) “El Salvador: todavía no se completa depuración.” (4 February): 4–5.Google Scholar
International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) (1990) The Military Balance: 1989-1990. London, England: IISS.Google Scholar
Lefeber, W. (1984) Inevitable Revolutions: The United States and Central America. New York, NY: Norton.Google Scholar
Lopez Nuila, C. R. (1992) Author interview with former Vice- Minister of Public Security, San Salvador (El Salvador), 2 June.Google Scholar
Melendez, C. (ed) (1971) Textos fundamentales de la independencia centroamericana. San José, Costa Rica: Editorial Universitaria de Central América (Educa).Google Scholar
Millman, J. (1989) “El Salvador's Army: A Force Unto Itself.” New York Times Magazine (10 December): 47, 95–97.Google Scholar
Molina, A. (1974) Ideario político democrático. San Salvador, El Salvador: Departamento de Relaciones Públicas, Casa Presidencial.Google Scholar
O'Donnel, G. and Schmitter, P. (1986) “Tentative Conclusions about Uncertain Democracies,” pp. 3-71 in O'Donnell, G., Schmitter, P. and Whitehead, L. (eds.) Transitions from Authoritarian Rule: Prospects for Democracy [Part IV]. Baltimore, Md: John Hopkins University Press.Google Scholar
(La) Prensa Gráfica (1992) “F.A. no permitara que se rompa institucionalidad.” (20 March): 21.Google Scholar
Przeworski, A. (1986) “La democracia como resultado contingente de los conflictos.” Zona Abierta 39-40 (April-September): 1–25.Google Scholar
Rouquie, A. (1987) The Military and the State in Latin America. Berkeley, Ca: University of California Press.Google Scholar
Schwarz, B. (1991) American Counterinsurgency Doctrine and El Salvador. Washington, Dc: The Rand Corporation.Google Scholar
Stepan, A. (1988) Rethinking Military Politics: Brazil and the Southern Cone. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
United Nations (Un). Observer Mission in Salvador, El (1992) Acuerdos de Paz. New York, Ny: Un Department of Public Information.Google Scholar
United Nations (Un). Observer Mission in Salvador, El (1991) Mexico Agreements. New York, NY: Un Department of Public Information.Google Scholar
Vargas, M. (1992) Author interview with Deputy Chief of Staff, San Salvador (El Salvador), 14 June.Google Scholar
Vejar, R. (1986) El ascenso del militarismo en El Salvador. San Salvador, El Salvador: UCA Editores.Google Scholar
Vickers, G., Spence, J., Holiday, D., Popkin, M., Stanley, W. and Williams, P. (1992) Endgame: A Progress Report on Implementation of the Salvadoran Peace Accords. Cambridge, MA: Hemisphere Initiatives.Google Scholar
White, A. (1973) El Salvador. London, England: Ernest Benn Ltd. Google Scholar
Williams, P. (1990) “Elections and Democratization in Nicaragua: The 1990 Elections in Perspective.” Journal of Interamerican Studies and World Affairs 32, 4 (Winter): 13–34.Google Scholar
Williams, R. (1986) Export Agriculture and Crisis in Central America. Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zagorski, P. (1992) Democracy vs. National Security: Civil- Military Relations in Latin America. Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner Publishers.Google Scholar