Reviews

Incomplete Transition:
Military Power and
Democracy in Argentina by J. Patrice McSherry, St. Martin’s Press, 1997, 408 pp., $45 (cloth).
Incomplete Transition: Military
Power and Democracy in Argentina
convincingly demonstrates that
despite the transition to democracy
that took place in Argentina starting
in 1983, the military retains sub-
stantial power. The book suggests
that, in fact, the armed forces do not
favor democratization and remain
committed to an authoritarian,
right-wing agenda.
After a brief theoretical discus-
sion and a historical sketch of the
development of the national secu-
rity state in Argentina, McSherry
moves to the core of the study, in
which she examines the presiden-
cies of Ratil Alfonsin (1983-1989)
and Carlos Menem (1989- ). The
author carefully demonstrates how
the armed forces gradually imposed
their agenda on civilian politicians
during this period. She examines
the ways in which military officers
and their allies worked their way
into positions of influence in almost
every sector of government, which
leads her to argue that by 1996, Argentina’s transition to democracy
was hardly complete. McSherry’s
material shows that the military
sought to establish what she calls a “guardian democracy,” in which the
armed forces act as mediators, set
the standards and protect their posi-
tion by any means possible.
The armed forces maintain that
their actions during the dirty war, which left perhaps as many as
30,000 people dead or disappeared, were justified given the circum-
stances and that they should not be
held accountable for doing their job.
They have also demanded jurisdic-
tion over Argentina’s internal and
external security, which implies a
vindication of their previous
actions. Once Alfonsfn took office,
the military began a concerted cam-
paign to achieve these objectives,
and he continuously gave ground on
both demands.
Menem, on the other hand, inte-
grated both current and former
members of the military into his
government and pardoned the gen-
erals who had been convicted for
the atrocities committed during the
military regime. As part of his rap-
prochement with the United States,
Menem gave the armed forces con-
trol over internal security, including
intelligence and surveillance, and
made them responsible for the war
against drugs and terrorism. The
actions of both Alfonsin and
Menem must be seen in the context
of a continuing mass movement
against impunity and the extension
of the military’s power, and for leg-
islative and presidential responsibil-
ity. McSherry argues that had the
popular movement not existed, the
military would have created even
greater obstacles to the democratic
process.
In many ways, McSherry’s book
reveals the extreme fragility of
Argentine democracy. The military
has a troubling degree of autonomy,
and as an institution, it still espouses
a national security doctrine that
opposes liberal democracy. It has
direct access to the highest seats of
power as well as representatives or
close allies in important govern-
ment positions. The military has
also been implicated in more recent
acts of terrorism, like the bombings
of the Israeli Embassy and the
Argentine-Israelite Mutual Assoc-
iation, and has full control over the
training curriculum of its personnel,
which includes instruction on the
use of torture. This being the case,
can it be said that democracy exists
in Argentina at all?
McSherry’s material also leads to
the conclusion that in the aftermath
of state terrorism, and despite the
return to electoral democracy, the
population remains traumatized.
Saber rattling or public threats made
by the President can convince many
not to exercise democratic rights
like free speech or assembly.
Backed by selective repression
against journalists and other social
activists, fear has proven a viable
instrument of control. Recent mass
protests against right-wing terror-
ism and impunity may indicate that
this is changing, but it has taken
time.
McSherry has written a well-
argued and solidly researched book.
Although in places details over-
whelm the reader, they are neces-
sary when dealing with often shad-
owy actors and events. Incomplete
Transition is must a for anyone
interested in contemporary Argentina
or in the Latin American military.
Those concerned with U.S. foreign
policy will also find this a useful
case study of how U.S. support for
foreign militaries works against
democracy rather than for it.