leadership forming a self-appointed junta with absolute power unconstrained
by any civilian political institutions. Government is then by decree.
Constitutional niceties such as parliamentary procedures, popular consent, or
political representation are ignored, because elected assemblies are dissolved
immediately upon taking power, elections are suspended, and political par-
ties are abolished. Some constitutional principles might be observed if it is
judged necessary to obtain a modicum of legitimacy, such as leaving the
judiciary intact, with the power to declare on the legality of some adminis-
trative decisions. But supplantment may be defined as the substitution of
a civilian regime by a military one by means of armed coercion.
This is by no means the only role which the military can perform. It is an
important organized interest or pressure group in all states. It is one of the
best endowed organizations in terms of access to the state apparatus. The
military leadership is always incorporated into the machinery of govern-
ment through various consultative and executive arrangements such as
defence councils, advisory committees, and the close working relationships
between top political, bureaucratic and military personnel. In no system of
government should the political importance of the military be underesti-
mated. A key questions about the military in politics is how far it has values
that extend beyond decisions about how best to defend a country and wage
war, to those which express not only a corporate interest in good pay, good
conditions, and the highest level of weapons technology but also a sense of
how society should be organized.
Furthermore, in its normal constitutional role the military is very difficult
to subject to democratic control and accountability because it is so easy for
it to surround itself with secrecy and so avoid parliamentary and other forms
of scrutiny. This secrecy commonly extends far beyond what it is necessary
to keep from potential or actual foreign aggressors, to include detailed
financing of expensive projects for which the taxpayer has to pay.
Another form of intervention is when the military displaces one civilian
regime and replaces it with another. A refusal to act as the instrument of the
government against its opponents is one way in which the military can bring
about a change of government (Woddis, 1977, p. 23). In any revolution con-
trol of the army is a vital factor. This was clearly the case in Iran. Whether
a new regime has control of the army and can use military power against
remnants of the ancien régimeis a critical factor determining the outcome
of a period of revolutionary upheaval. Changes of government resulting
from the military switching its allegiance from one group of political lead-
ers to another can also occur and have frequently done so in recent Latin
American history. The military is often the power behind the throne. Clear
examples of this are also found in South East Asia, where in both Indonesia
Military Intervention in Politics 177