International Studies

Event Title

The Madres de Plaza de Mayo and the Organization of American States: A Meeting Point for Human Rights Organizations and International Law in Democratic Sustainability

Document Type

Oral Presentation

Location

Indianapolis, IN

Subject Area

International Studies

Start Date

11-4-2014 9:00 AM

End Date

11-4-2014 10:15 AM

Description

After the fall of the authoririan regime, the Madres de Plaza de Mayo, through their spreading of awareness of the human rights violations during the "Dirty War," helped break down the military regime and reinstall a healthy democracy in Argentina, thanks to the organization's contributions to civil society, human rights laws, accountability, rule of law, and social justice. However, I argue that the Madres' success must be evaluated also by their success in condemning military personnel for their human rights crimes. The Madres received aid from the Organization of American States' Inter-American Court and Commission on Human Rights which influenced the government to enact greater rule of law by placing the accused soldiers on trial, but the majority of the punishments were monetary and did not provide adequate justice that could even be correctly enforced. Using Argentina's democratic transition and the Madres de Plaza de Mayo as a case study, I argue that human rights organizations can bring about nonviolent democratic transitions but not sustainable democratic institutions; however, in conjunction with intergovernmental organizations that have international legal jurisdiction, they can more effectively establish rule of law and accountability within the state, leading to a more sustainable democratic institution.

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Apr 11th, 9:00 AM Apr 11th, 10:15 AM

The Madres de Plaza de Mayo and the Organization of American States: A Meeting Point for Human Rights Organizations and International Law in Democratic Sustainability

Indianapolis, IN

After the fall of the authoririan regime, the Madres de Plaza de Mayo, through their spreading of awareness of the human rights violations during the "Dirty War," helped break down the military regime and reinstall a healthy democracy in Argentina, thanks to the organization's contributions to civil society, human rights laws, accountability, rule of law, and social justice. However, I argue that the Madres' success must be evaluated also by their success in condemning military personnel for their human rights crimes. The Madres received aid from the Organization of American States' Inter-American Court and Commission on Human Rights which influenced the government to enact greater rule of law by placing the accused soldiers on trial, but the majority of the punishments were monetary and did not provide adequate justice that could even be correctly enforced. Using Argentina's democratic transition and the Madres de Plaza de Mayo as a case study, I argue that human rights organizations can bring about nonviolent democratic transitions but not sustainable democratic institutions; however, in conjunction with intergovernmental organizations that have international legal jurisdiction, they can more effectively establish rule of law and accountability within the state, leading to a more sustainable democratic institution.