ABSTRACT
The removal and forced exile of Honduran President Manuel Zelaya, on June 28, 2009, reminds us all that the Latin American military cannot be written o as a potentially powerful, political agent. Democracies with weak institutions, battered economies and dissatis- ed publics are vulnerable to the predation of praetorian actors, whether they be military or civilian in nature. And yet, the region has also made considerable progress from the dark days of de facto regimes and dirty wars. Coups are a rarity, and most militaries stay con ned to the barracks unless ordered out by the political authorities. Interactions between governments and soldiers are generally more stable and respectful then they were a generation ago. This chapter will peer into those relations by way of assessing the scholarship that has built up around la cuestión militar [the military issue] over the years. Because of the enormity of the eld, the chapter will also largely restrict itself to domestic contexts, omitting regional, inter-state dimensions to military politics.
