The Inter-American Rule of Law in South American constitutionalism

The objective of this text is to present the modification of the conception of Rule of Law in the South America constitutionalism, from the dialogue and synergy between the Inter-American System of Human Rights and the new constitutions that emerged after dictatorships, authoritarian regimes, and internal wars, taking Operation Condor as a clandestine inter-American system or as unconventional status quo. We problematize how it is possible to speak of "Inter-American Rule of Law", which means the reconstruction of that State compatible with the ACHR in the Legislative, Executive and Judiciary spheres, as well the conventionality control and the standards emanating from the IACourtHR to laws, public policies, and national court decisions. Therefore, we defend the thesis that this dialogue can be the key to access the engine room of the constitutions, with the pro persona principle. The methodology used was a theoretical and normative approach, from a hypothetical deductive perspective and prioritizing as sources the bibliography and the caselaw of the IACourtHR.

The Cold War and Its Transnational Imprint in the Americas

This chapter addresses the geopolitics of the Cold War and its transnational imprint on Latin America. It starts by discussing the rise of the U.S. to hemispheric hegemony, and analyzes U.S. policies and their interplay with domestic constellations of power. Interested in curtailing the advance of the revolutionary Left and radical insurgent movements, the region witnessed a forceful takeover of power and the adoption of transnational counter-insurgency operations, such as Operation Condor, that undermined the rule of law and produced atrocious records of crimes against humanity. The chapter offers an overview of the impact of this geopolitical configuration on Latin American societies, including the controversial role of the School of the Americas, the prevailing doctrines of National Security and the organic conception of nations that led to a genocidal turn in the context of the Cold War.

Promoting a ‘Pinochetazo’: The Chilean Dictatorship's Foreign Policy in El Salvador during the Carter Years, 1977–81

This article takes existing histories of Chilean transnational anti-communist activity in the 1970s beyond Operation Condor (the Latin American military states’ covert transnational anti-communist intelligence and operations system) by asking how the Pinochet dictatorship responded to two key changes in the international system towards the end of that decade: the Carter presidency and introduction of the human rights policy, and the shift of the epicentre of the Cold War in Latin America to Central America. It shows how both Salvadoreans and Chileans understood the Pinochet dictatorship as a distinct model of anti-communist governance, applicable far beyond Chile's own borders. This study of Chilean foreign policy in El Salvador contributes to new histories of the Latin American Extreme Right and to new understandings of the inter-American system and the international history of the conflicts in Central America in the late 1970s and the 1980s.

Mass Murder and International Assassination

This chapter examines the grotesque policies of the military commanders of Argentina and Chile. Argentina emulated its South American neighbors when the military seized power in March of 1976. Argentina's military rulers thought it would be in the nation's best interest to eliminate 50,000 Argentines. Secretary Henry Kissinger was made aware of the Argentine military's campaign of mass murder by U.S. officials in Washington and Buenos Aires. His aides further warned him that Argentina's murderers and torturers targeted Argentina's Jewish population. The chapter then looks at Secretary Kissinger's response to Operation Condor, a conspiracy of South American military dictatorships that perpetrated international assassinations and terrorism.