Abstract

CIQCCHINI, Pablo. The Role of Judges in the 'War Against Crime' in the Global South: A Comparative Analysis of the Cases of the Province of Buenos Aires and Metro Manila. Estud. Socio-Juríd [online]. 2019, vol.21, n.2, pp.73-103. ISSN 0124-0579.  https://doi.org/10.12804/revistas.urosario.edu.co/sociojuridicos/a.7910.

In recent decades, we have witnessed the global emergence of penal populism as a response to the rising fear of crime. This phenomenon has acquired special characteristics in the countries of the Global South where the inefficiency of the state agencies in charge of dealing with crime aggravates the perception of insecurity. Corruption and police abuse make penal populism in the Global South even more dangerous than in the countries of the Global North. In this context, the indirect control exerted by courts over the legality of police behavior is crucial. However, the inefficiency of courts has limited the range and effectiveness of their interventions. Furthermore, an unintended consequence of legal reforms that sought to improve courts' effectiveness is that they have restrained courts' capacity to control police procedures. This article compares the role judges plays in criminal cases in the Province of Buenos Aires (Argentina) and Metro Manila (Philippines) regarding police behavior. The comparative analysis shows that, in both cases, the situation is worrisome. The judges have lost the moral leadership on criminal justice matters, and their role controlling the legality of the police behavior has weakened extremely.

Keywords : Criminal justice; courts' reform; judges; control of legality; Argentina; Filipinas.

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