Argentina’s Army Isn’t Corralled Yet : Weak Democratic Institutions Leave Civil Authority at Risk

President Raul Alfonsin’s personal success in ending a military mutiny last weekend was a welcome resolution of the crisis, but it should not be interpreted as a permanent depoliticization of Argentina’s armed forces. Indeed, the striking feature of the confrontation between military officers and civilian authority was the length of time required to persuade them that acting unconstitutionally was unacceptable behavior.

The military in Argentina has seen itself as a parallel government--and often the real government--for decades. The dismal failure of the armed forces in the war against the British over possession of the Falkland/Malvinas Islands in April, 1982, led to popular disgust with authoritarian rule and to public pressure to restore democracy.

After his inauguration in December, 1983, Alfonsin initiated a process of trials both for the officers responsible for the military defeat and for those accused of having caused the deaths of thousands of Argentines during the “dirty war” that convulsed the country in the late 1970s. Ten key military and police officers eventually were convicted, and others are awaiting trial, but military authorities have resisted civilian prosecution of close to 300 lower-level officers accused of human-rights crimes.

In an effort to reassure the armed forces that he was not challenging their constitutional integrity, Alfonsin late last year pushed a law through--the Punto Final , or full stop--that set tight timetables for resolving all cases--thousands of them--related to the dirty war. That encouraged a flurry of last-minute filings by prosecutors, human-rights groups and relatives of victims. In the days before the Feb. 22 deadline, the Navy came forward, objecting to having any of its active-duty officers appear before civilian courts. The Navy’s argument was that the officers had been of lower rank during the dirty war and were following orders, and if they exceeded orders they should be tried by military tribunals. After a week of tense discussions, the Navy high command grudgingly pledged its loyalty to Alfonsin and agreed that the men would appear in court.

Meanwhile, the government reportedly has proposed that the Supreme Court rule on whether a distinction can be drawn between officer-ordered crimes, culpability for following such orders, and crimes committed by military personnel on their own initiative.

Last week’s rebellion began in Cordoba when an army major refused an order to appear in a civilian court to answer questions about his conduct in the dirty war. Other mid-rank officers joined the protest, which spread to a base outside Buenos Aires, defying both Alfonsin and the army chief of staff. It took a personal visit by Alfonsin to the base on Sunday to end the revolt. He followed through on Monday by replacing the army chief; at the same time, eight generals resigned, and the officers involved in the mutiny at both bases were cashiered.

The preceding days had been filled with impassioned demonstrations of civilian support for the government and democracy. But in actions that were unfortunately reminiscent of his demagogic predecessor, Juan Peron, Alfonsin took to the same balcony in the presidential palace that Peron had made famous, to rally popular support and communicate his strategy to the thousands assembled in the plaza below.

While the resolution of the crisis was universally hailed as a victory for the country’s democratic institutions, the episode in fact demonstrated the weakness of those institutions. Disgruntled military officers had defied the law and indicated that they still refuse to admit responsibility for the thousands of desaparecidos-- disappeared people--during years of torture and murder in the dirty war. Rather than having the rebellion dealt with as a matter of ordinary military indiscipline, it became a national trauma: If the civilian president imposed his authority, would there be a coup d’etat ?

In the end, mob agitation and the presidential balcony survived as the image of the events last week--not established procedures and institutions. The military threat to Argentine democracy has not ended, as demonstrated by new rebellions at two provincial military bases on Tuesday. The officer corps still believes that it is entitled to an amnesty.

Popular support won last weekend in Argentina, and a courageous--yes, macho--Alfonsin carried the crowd and saved democracy. But emotion and marches, balconies and exhortations are less likely to consolidate democracy in Argentina than the institutionalization of procedures that guarantee respect for and obedience to a society of laws. That is the real challenge that a brave and popular president confronts in Argentina.