|
Uruguay Political Forces and Interest Groups
The Military
Prior to the 1973 coup, the military exercised
influence but
had rarely intervened directly in the political system.
The fact
that all of the defense ministers who served between 1959
and
1971 were military men indicated a degree of military
influence.
By 1984, when the military negotiated with the political
parties
on a transition to democratic government, the armed forces
were
considered a de facto political force
(see The Growth of Military Involvement in Politics
, ch. 5). As Uruguay returned
formally to
democratic rule in 1985, the armed forces continued to
exercise a
degree of tutelage over national affairs, despite their
depoliticized role. Sanguinetti's defense minister was a
retired
lieutenant general, Hugo M. Medina (the only military
defense
minister to serve in the 1980s), who as army commander in
chief
had refused to serve subpoenas on military officers. A
poll
commissioned by Búsqueda in September 1986 found
that an
overwhelming majority of Montevideo's population believed,
to
varying degrees, that the military was still a factor in
political power; only 10 percent believed that the
military had
no power.
Some observers and political party leaders commented on
alleged military pressure to defeat a call for prosecution
of
military officers for human rights abuses. The issue arose
in
December 1986 after the General Assembly approved the
full-stop
amnesty law, which exonerated 360 members of the armed
forces and
the police accused of committing human rights abuses
during the
military regime. In one demonstration of possible
continued
military influence, Defense Minister Medina reflected
military
opinion in condemning the April 1989 referendum to decide
the
validity of the amnesty law. Medina emphasized that "the
dignity
of the national army" should not be violated. General
Washington
Varela, head of the Military Academy, warned that the army
would
"close ranks" if the amnesty were rescinded.
Amnesty appeared to be firm, but the question of
whether or
not the military would retain its traditionally apolitical
role
in the future was less certain. Stating that "the
Pandora's box
of military intervention has been opened in Uruguay,"
Martin
Weinstein opined in 1989 that the military would continue
to
exercise a veto power over government action in human
rights and
military affairs and possibly assume a tutelary role in
areas
such as economic policy and labor relations. Military
influence
in the latter two areas, however, had not yet manifested
itself
in 1990. In order to demonstrate his authority over the
military,
Lacalle appointed a civilian as his defense minister and
exercised his presidential prerogative to appoint armed
forces
commanders of his own choosing, regardless of seniority.
His
appointments of the air force and naval commanders were
third and
fourth in seniority, respectively, among serving officers.
Data as of December 1990
|
