Anthony Pereira, a political scientist at Tulane University, works here at the intersection of comparative history and political science. Based on archival research, 89 interviews, media coverage, and secondary sources, he examines the nature and dynamics of political justice under military rule in Brazil, Chile, and Argentina. Pereira defines political justice as “the prosecution of the regimes’ opponents in courts of law for offenses against national security” (p. 18).
Pereira straightforwardly summarizes his thesis: “The degree of military and judicial consensus, integration, and cooperation is a key neglected variable in unlocking the puzzle of variation in authoritarian legality” (p. 191). In Brazil, greater trust and cooperation led to more frequent use of the judicial system to deal with political opponents, more civilian participation in that process, and substantial acquittal rates. While torture of political prisoners occurred frequently, the death penalty was never applied to those convicted of political offenses. Extrajudicial...
