Military Use in Public Security Operations: Is it ever Advisable?

Countries throughout the Latin American region have introduced the armed forces into internal security operations of one kind or another. Since militaries are accustomed to using maximal levels of violence to defeat enemies, such interventions could pose threats to civilians. However, it may be that those risks vary, depending upon the nature of the intervention. Internal security challenges must first be disaggregated to explore the varieties of operations that militaries undertake. Militaries can adhere to this and other international human rights standards of behavior, when the requisites of the mission are compatible with their pre-existing skill sets. Where they are not, human rights violations will inevitably result. Evidence for this comes from research on counter-narcotic operations in Mexico, where military police patrols are differentiated from high value targeted operations.