President Aylwin created the Commission for Truth and Reconciliation. Its report in March 1991 documented over 1000 disappearances that resulted in death. But the civilian government following the lead of Uruguay choose to forgo prosecution, the military indicated that it would not permit it. These new civilian regimes were often unable to punish because the guilty retained considerable political power. This corruption of punishment and pardon makes preventing future abuses more difficult.
Truth can be a partial substitute for punishment.
The public declaration of the crimes of the guilty may help to put the past behind and focus a country's energy ad attention to preventing future abuses. Truth alone is never enough, but it is the task of human rights advocacy groups to speak truth to power.