Transitional justice in Brazil: from military rule to a new constitutional order

Abstract

From 1964 to 1985 Brazil was ruled by the military. This two-decade period, in symbolic terms, was at last surpassed in 1988, with the publication of a new Constitution. Brazil’s existing constitutional text may be understood as the result of a legal and political transition from military regime to democracy. As a “response” to military rule, the Constitution of Brazil has dedicated considerable part of its text to the issue regarding the protection of human rights. The influence of the military in Brazilian politics, however, did not diminish instantaneously with the new constitutional order.