The Etiology of Military Rule in Uruguay
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Soldiers, politicians, and reaction: the etiology of military rule in Uruguay Item Type text; Dissertation-Reproduction (electronic) Authors Moore, Richard Kinney Publisher The University of Arizona. Rights Copyright © is held by the author. Digital access to this material is made possible by the University Libraries, University of Arizona. Further transmission, reproduction or presentation (such as public display or performance) of protected items is prohibited except with permission of the author. Download date 06/10/2021 13:44:49 Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/10150/565398 soldiers, Politicians’, and reaction; THE ETIOLOGY OF MILITARY RULE IN URUGUAY by Richard Kinney Moore A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of the DEPARTMENT OF POLITICAL SCIENCE In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY In the Graduate College THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA 1 9 7 8 THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA GRADUATE COLLEGE I hereby recommend that this dissertation prepared under my direction by Richard Kinney Moore________________________________ entitled Soldiers, Politicians, and Reaction; The Etiology of Military Rule in Uruguay_________________________________ be accepted as fulfilling the dissertation requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy___________________________________ Dissertation Director As members of the Final Examination Committee, we certify that we have read this dissertation and agree that it may be presented for final defense. Final approval and acceptance of this dissertation is contingent on the candidate's adequate performance and defense thereof at the final oral examination. STATEMENT BY AUTHOR This dissertation has been submitted in partial fulfillment of requirements for an advanced degree at The University of Arizona and is deposited in the University Library to be made available to bor rowers under rules of the Library0 Brief quotations from this dissertation are allowable without special permission, provided that accurate acknowledgment of source is madeo Requests for permission for extended quotation from or re production of this manuscript in whole or in part may be granted by the head of the major department or the Dean of the Graduate College when in his judgment the proposed use of the material is in the in terests of scholarshipo In all other instances, however, permission must be obtained from the author ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Whatever merits are contained herein derive from the good will of manyo Its failings are my own0 This work has benefited from the spiritual and intellectual support of dozens of forebearing and gifted people= Among those who rrittst be singled out for particular thanks are: DrP Edward J0 Williams whose penetrating mind, unflagging zest and vast knowledge of Latin American politics kept the project on course and buoyed my spirits^ Dr0 C= Bradley Scharf, student of comparative theory and incisive intellect; Dr0 Henry Kenski, a renaissance man and expert on the ails of graduate students= ' In addition, invaluable support was received from the staffs of the University of Arizona Library, Graduate College, and the De partment of Political Scienceo Mrs. Hazel Gillie typed the entire raw manuscript with patience and grace„ Finally, a general thanks to my family0 Particular thanks to JOhnette and Jason who endured, supported and loved throughout the projecto This study is dedicated to all who care* TABLE OF CONTENTS Page LIST OF TABLES 00.0000000000000000000.0 vi LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 000000000000000000vii ABSTRACT 00 000 00 00 000 00 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 00vui Io INTRODUCTION 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0000o' 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 Scope of f he Dissertet 1.05 oooooooooooooo 3 Approach to the Sub je c t 00000 00 00 0 0 0 0 0 0 8 2o THE URUGUAYAN MILITARY AND ITS ENVIRONMENTS A PRELUDE TO INTERVENTION O O O O O O O OO O O O O O-O O O O O O OOO 13 Caudillos, Gauchos» and Civil War (I8OO-I868) = » 00 14 The Army Ascendent (l868«l886) » * o 000 » « 24 The Subordination of the Military to its Environment C1886^1907).o OO O O O O O O O O O O O O OO OOO 32 Professionalization of the Military Establishment 00 42 The Politicization of the Armed Forces (1958-1973) ° ° 48 3o INSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENT OF URUGUAY’S ARMED FORCES o = 0 52 Emergence of a National Army » 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 54 Emergence of Corporate Attitudes 0000000 000 = 58 Emergence of Organizational Power 000000=000 79 Emergence of a New Political Arena 00=0000000 85 Emergence of Sufficient Capabilities for Intervention 91 4= THE MILITARY'S OPERATING ENVIRONMENT 000=00=0000 97 Political-Economic Dimension 0000=000000=0 99 Political Violence in the Environment = 0 = 0 0 0 0 0 113 The International Dimension 0000000=000=0 117 Public Opinion and the Image of the Military = = = = = 128 9 o CONCLUSIONS o o 0 0 o 0 0= o o 0 0 o o o o o.= = 0000 134 Summary of Findings = = = = > = = =' 0 = 0000000 135 The Power of Dimension 0 0 = 0 = 0 0 0 0 0 =0=0 135 The Attitudinal Dimension 000=00000000 144 iv V TABLE OF CONTENTS--Continued Page The Opportunistic Dimension 151 Conclusions ooooooooooooooooaoooo 153 LIST OF EEFEEENGES o 00000000000000 o <> o o 159 LIST OF TABLES Table Page lo Comparison of the Uruguayan element in the army and the nation ====== ==oooooooooo=====o= 5^ 2= Comparison of the distribution of origins of cadets to the urban population of Uruguay ============ 63 3° Development of Uruguayan military education system = = = 6? 4. Foreign awards to Uruguayan officers ======== == 73 5o Incidence of political duels ============== 75 6= Curriculum of mandatory army officer schools ====== 77 7- Manpower levels of Uruguayan military ========= 93 80 Variation in the number of Uruguayan army colonels = = = 94 9= Cabinet stability (1965-1972) ============= 110 10 = Cabinet instability by time and type ========== 112 1 1 = U=S= military assistance trainees compared to total military strength (1964-1972) ============= 120 12 = Uruguayan armed forces trained under the U=S= Military Assistance Program (1950-1977) ============= 123 13= U=S= military aid deliveries to Uruguay (1964-1977) in U=S= dollars = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = 125 14= Visibility of Tupamaro activities (1964-1973) = = = = = 127 15= Visas issued to Uruguayans by the U=S= State Department (1957—1976) 0 0 = = 0 = 0 0 0 0 = 0=000000000 130 VI LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Figure Page i0 Total turnover in foreign trade 101 vii ABSTRACT In FebruEor-y 1973, the Republic of Uruguay's armed forces com pelled the nation's president to accept a radical reorganization of the governmental apparatus leaving the soldiers in control of the govern ment » The event of 1973 followed over 75 years of seemingly correct behavior on the part of the military establishment„ This study is predicated on three assumptions about the pre requisites for political action* First, sufficient power must be present to act* Second, a will to act is required* Third, the oppor tunity to act must be perceived* The etiology of military rule in Uruguay has two interrelated components: the internal evolution of the military and the changing nature of the military's operating en vironment* The armed forces' internal evolution consisted of a growing isolation from the mainstream of national life, an increasingly intolerant corporate attitude with respect to the political system, and the steady emergence of the military's political power* While the military establishment developed with a corporate will and the potential to intervene, its operating environment experi enced great changes which served to increase the likelihood of military intervention and the government^ s vulnerability to that intervention* Four environmental dimensions are postulated as being critical to the military's intervention in civil affairs* The political-economic dimension consisted of simultaneous growing demands for the services viii ix of government and declining ability to satisfy those demands= The second postulated dimension is international= Foreign military assis tance from France and the United States both shaped the corporate military attitude and increased the potential for action0 The specter of international communism focused the fears of the military and linked ddmestic troubles to perceptions of international "enemieso" The devolution of discursive polities to the politics of the streets, provides the third environmental dimension^ With the rise of the Tupamaro guerrillas the relevance of discursive political institu tions to Uruguay* s reality declined* The final environmental dimension was the image of the military in the general populace and in the per ceptions of various power contenders* Because the military had done few things political, it had made few mistakes* Its "flawless1* image both encouraged trust among the citizenry and encouraged the military’s heed to intervene as a "moral" duty* The various "internal" and "external*1 threads came together in 1973 to end democracy in Uruguay* This study concludes with some tentative generalizations as to how intervention occurred and some recommendations, for future research* CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION In early 19739 the president of Uruguay, Juan Maria Bordaberry, directed the commanding generals of the army and the air force to resigno Their refusal and counter-demand that the defense minister resign precipitated the most serious constitutional crisis in the his tory of a nation long known as the most democratic in South America,, In the five years following the initial confrontation between soldiers and president, the military establishment set aside the constitution, removed all elected officials from office, and won the reputation for being one of the greatest violators of human rights in the world,. This study describes and analyzes the forces and circumstances leading to the sudden changes evinced by the military since 1973o More explicitly it examines the evolution of the capabilities and dominant attitudes of the armed forces in contrast to those power contenders who constituted the military’s operating environment= The ”suddenness” of this transformation, however, is more apparent than realo Uruguay’s long democratic experience has belied an even longer period of blood shed, chaos, and military dominationo.