XVII Congress of the Brazilian Studies Association

Explaining military deployments for public security purposes: evidence from large deployments in Brazil

• In Event: Forças Armadas, Defesa e Segurança no Brasil contemporâneo

Abstract

This presentation seeks to explain large-scale deployments of the military for public security missions in Brazil. Drawing on specialized literature, FOIA requests, and interviews with high-ranking military officers, I show that, contra the conventional wisdom, moments where the degree of civilian control over the military were the highest coincided with the largest public security deployments of the military. When civilian control declined, the military will act on their preferences and will alter the course of deployments or avoid them altogether. Military behavior is shaped by what they believe to be an appropriate mission and by risks – individual and reputational – in case operations produce collateral damage.

Author

• Igor Acácio, Tulane University