After Authoritarianism: A Review Article

How does transitional justice impact democracy? In After Authoritarianism: Transitional Justice & Democratic Stability, Monika Nalepa convincingly challenges the “Spanish model” of transition, which argues that doing nothing in response to past human rights abuses is the best way to ensure a stable democracy. Focusing on the fates of authoritarian collaborators, Nalepa finds that transparency mechanisms—lustrations and truth commissions—tend to improve democratic representation by reducing political figures’ risk of blackmail; purges have more mixed effects, due to a loyalty-competency trade-off. Nalepa makes her case with a truly mixed-method approach, employing formal models, case studies, and statistical analysis of her own transitional justice data set. The book addresses essential questions for transitional justice, including what to do about authoritarian collaborators and institutions with bloody legacies. Given recent concerns about backsliding in even long-time democracies, the book is essential reading not only for those interested in transitions and human rights but also for those interested in understanding how best to strengthen democracy more generally.