What role do control institutions play in the rise in police killings in Brazil and the Philippines between 2016 and 2022? The new PRIF Report by Ariadne Natal and Peter Kreuzer shows how radical presidents in both countries were able to emasculate democratic institutions tasked with upholding due procedure and rule of law, as well as controlling the executive, from internal police oversight to the judiciary and the legislative. They show that control fails as long as these institutions are not staffed with people who are prepared to resist in crisis situations in order to uphold the normative and legal foundations of the democratic order and thus ensure democratic resilience.
Dr. Ariadne Natal and Dr. Peter Kreuzer are Senior Researchers at PRIF’s Research Department Intrastate Conflict. Ariadne Natal’s research focuses on Brazil, police legitimacy and use of force as well as vigilantism, Peter Kreuzer focuses on political violence in the Philippines and maritime conflicts in the South China Sea.