Terrorism and democratic stability - Jennifer S Holmes

This study examines the effects of terrorism and state repression on democratic stability in Uruguay, Peru and Spain. It is a detailed empirical study set within an overall theoretical framework.;In Uruguay in 1973 the military closed the national assembly and instituted over a decade of authoritarian rule. In spite of 70years of democracy, Uruguayans did not protest against the downfall of democracy. In Peru in April 1992, Peruvian president Alberto Fujimori dissolved the congress and the judiciary. Eighty per cent of Peruvians approved of his self-coup. In Spain, the troubled democracy survived an attempted coup in February 1981. Large demonstrations broke out in major cities in favour of democracy. Over three out of four Spaniards rejected the coup and almost half said they would act to defend democracy. Why did Uruguayans and Peruvians withhold support for their democracies? Why did the Spaniards defend theirs? This study, which begins conceptually and then moves on to comparative, empirical analysis, adopts an innovative Aristotelian approach that provides a new concept of citizen support to examine the consequences of terrorism and repression on democratic stability. The study of Spain is set within an EU context, which provides important lessons for other EU countries.