To ‘midwife’ – and abort – a democracy: Mauritania's transition from military rule, 2005–2008

2009 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 129-152 ◽  
Author(s):  
Boubacar N'Diaye
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Political System ◽  
Third Republic ◽  
Transition Process ◽  
Military Coup ◽  
Military Rule ◽  
Civil Military Relations ◽  
Electoral Outcomes ◽  
Military Relations ◽  
The Military

ABSTRACTThe 3 August 2005 military coup was Mauritania's best opportunity to turn the page on decades of the deposed quasi-military regime's destructive politics. This article critically analyses relevant aspects of the transition that ensued in the context of the prevailing models of military withdrawal from politics in Africa. It also examines the challenges that Mauritania's short-lived Third Republic faced. It argues that the transition process did not escape the well-known African military junta leader's proclivity to manipulate transitions to fulfil suddenly awakened self-seeking political ambitions, in violation of solemn promises. While there was no old-fashioned ballot stuffing to decide electoral outcomes, Mauritania's junta leader and his lieutenants spared no effort to keep the military very much involved in politics, and to perpetuate a strong sense of entitlement to political power. Originally designed as an ingenious ‘delayed self-succession’ of sorts, in the end, another coup aborted Mauritania's democratisation process and threw its institutions in a tailspin. This only exacerbated the challenges that have saddled Mauritania's political system and society for decades – unhealthy civil-military relations, a dismal ‘human rights deficit’, terrorism, and a neo-patrimonial, disastrously mismanaged economy.

Civil–Military Relations and Human Rights

2021 ◽  
pp. 0095327X2110068
Author(s):  
Sam R. Bell ◽  
K. Chad Clay ◽  
Ghashia Kiyani ◽  
Amanda Murdie
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Military Leadership ◽  
Human Right ◽  
Principal Agent Theory ◽  
Military Conflict ◽  
Agent Theory ◽  
Civil Military Relations ◽  
Lack Of Control ◽  
Military Relations ◽  
The Military

Do civil–military relations influence human rights practices? Building on principal–agent theory, we argue that civilian–military relations, instead of having an effect on mean levels of repression, will be associated with the dispersion in human rights practices. States where there is less control of the military or more conflict between civilian and military leadership will see a wider range of human rights practices. We test our hypotheses quantitatively on a global sample of countries, using updated data on civil–military relations and find evidence that civil–military conflict and lack of control increase the variance in human right practices.

Synergy

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ozan O. Varol
Keyword(s):  
Political Parties ◽  
Viable Alternative ◽  
Military Rule ◽  
Military Interventions ◽  
Civil Military Relations ◽  
Working Together ◽  
Military Relations ◽  
The Military ◽  
Emerging Democracy ◽  
Real Chance

Balanced civil-military relations emerge from synergy. In this case synergy refers to civilians setting aside their ideological differences, working together to build credible democratic institutions, and constructing a viable alternative to military rule. If the civilians themselves are divided on the future democratic trajectory of the nation or the military’s exit from politics, the military may more easily exploit these divisions. Instead of trying for a quick power grab, civilians in an emerging democracy must shun any antidemocratic alternatives, including military interventions, to political rule. The more effective the civilian politicians are in constructing a stable, robust democracy, the less likely power vacuums and military interventions will occur. If political parties have a real chance to compete and win in the electoral marketplace, they are more likely to play the democratic game rather than violate its rules and resort to tanks and guns to oust their opponents.

Nigeria's New Constitution for 1992: The third Republic

1991 ◽  
Vol 35 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 174-193 ◽  
Author(s):  
James S. Read
Keyword(s):  
Political System ◽  
Third Republic ◽  
Military Coup ◽  
Military Government ◽  
Second Republic ◽  
Basic Scheme ◽  
White House ◽  
First Republic ◽  
New Generation ◽  
The Military

The 1979 Constitution of Nigeria was widely acclaimed as a boldly innovative attempt to introduce structures for democratic government which were new to the Commonwealth. These included the adoption of an American-style separation of legislative and executive powers, albeit with many distinctive elements, to replace the “Westminster model” which had been so productive of tension and conflict at both federal and regional levels under the Independence Constitution of 1960 and the Constitution of the First Republic (1963–66). The executive presidency also represented continuity with the realities of military government (1966–79). Although that transition from the Whitehall to the White House model in the Second Republic (1979–83) proved a short-lived experiment, the problems which precipitated the military coup of 31 December, 1983, or were cited as justifying it, were not attributed to defects in the basic constitutional structures but rather to the ways in which they had been operated by the politicians elected to office—many of whom, as survivors from the previous political era, were more familiar with “Westminster” than “Washington” Now a new generation of constitution-makers has affirmed, on behalf of the nation, its confidence in the basic scheme adopted in 1979: indeed, the new Constitution, enacted in 1989 for implementation in 1992, closely reproduces the structure and most of the detailed provisions of the 1979 Constitution; yet such similarity belies fundamental changes in the political system now in process of restoration.

scholarly journals The Search for an Exit from the Dictatorship and the Transformation of Greek Conservatism, 1967-1974

2014 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
pp. 9
Author(s):  
Sotiris Rizas
Keyword(s):  
Civil War ◽  
Political System ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Political Polarization ◽  
Military Coup ◽  
Military Rule ◽  
Related Factors ◽  
Political Class ◽  
The Military ◽  
A Current

The purpose of this paper is to examine the process of transformation of Greek conservatism that evolved during the dictatorship from a current identified with the restrictive practices of the post-Civil War political system to a tenet of the democratic regime established in 1974. The realization that the military coup was not just the manifestation of anti-communism, the dominant ideology of the post-Civil War period, but also of an anti-parliamentary spirit permeating the armed forces, the prolongation of military rule that led to the crystallization of differences between the military regime and the conservative political class and an apprehension that the dictatorship might fuel uncontrollable social and political polarization are three inter-related factors that explain this transformation.

The Military and Democratization in El Salvador

1993 ◽  
Vol 35 (1) ◽  
pp. 39-88 ◽  
Author(s):  
Knut Walter ◽  
Philip J. Williams
Keyword(s):  
El Salvador ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Democratic Consolidation ◽  
Political Life ◽  
Military Rule ◽  
Civil Military Relations ◽  
Democratic Regimes ◽  
Military Relations ◽  
The Military

The recent coups and attempted coups in Haiti, Venezuela, and Peru serve as a sobering reminder of the military's central role in the political life of Latin America. Earlier assessments of the prospects for democratic consolidation now seem overly optimistic in light of these events. At a minimum, they point up the need to focus on the role of the military during transitions from authoritarianism and the consolidation of democratic regimes. As Stepan has suggested, prolonged military rule can leave important legacies which serve as powerful obstacles to democratic consolidation (Stepan, 1988: xi-xii). Understanding these legacies and the problems they present is essential in developing strategies aimed at democratizing civil-military relations.This is no less true in El Salvador, where the prospects for democratization are closely linked to the future of the country's armed forces.

Civil-Military Relations in Developing Countries

1989 ◽  
Vol 45 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 154-192 ◽  
Author(s):  
Veena Kukreja
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Political System ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
The Other ◽  
Future Research ◽  
The Political ◽  
Civil Military Relations ◽  
The World ◽  
Military Relations ◽  
The Military

Students of civil-military relations, particularly those in the developing countries, admit having to work on myopic assumptions, meagre data, sloppy conceptualization and inelegant explanations. The relative newness of this area of studies could be one reason for this. The study of civil-military relations in the narrow sense referring mainly to military coups and interventions, has attained importance after World War II. But the study of civil-military relations in the broader perspective of multiplicity of relationships between military men, institutions and interests, on the one hand, and diverse and often conflicting non-military organizations and political personages and interests on the other, has begun to draw academic interest only in the last two decades or so. In the twentieth century, the armed forces, being an universal and integral part of a nation's political system, no longer remain completely aloof from politics in any nation. If politics is concerned, in David Easton's celebrated words, with the authoritative allocation of values and power within a society, the military as a vital institution in the polity can hardly be wished out of participatory bounds, at least for legitimate influence as an institutional interest group with a stake in the political decision-making. The varying roles the military may play in politics range from minimal legitimate influence by means of recognized channels inherent in their position and responsibilities within the political system to the other extreme of total displacement of the civilian government in the forms of illegitimate overt military intervention in politics. This paper seeks to attempt an overview of the existing scholarship on civil-military relations; second, it examines civil-military relations in the world with special reference to major political systems of the world; third, it surveys the literature on civil-military relations in general, and finally, it attempts to develop a general, complex, and hopefully fruitful causal model for analyzing the dynamics of civil-military relations; exploring implications for future research on civil-military relations.

scholarly journals Evolution of Civil-Military Relations in Bangladesh: A Comparative Study in the Context of Developing Countries

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
pp. 514-529
Author(s):  
Akkas Ahamed ◽  
Md. Sayedur Rahman ◽  
Nur Hossain
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
World War Ii ◽  
Historical Context ◽  
World War ◽  
Military Rule ◽  
Civil Military Relations ◽  
Military Members ◽  
Military Relations ◽  
The Military ◽  
Developed World

Although Civil-military relations have historically been recognized as a subject of study in the developed world, it has become a subject of study in the region since World War II due to military intervention in newly independent Third World countries. Although the country became independent on the basis of Civil-Military relations in the war of liberation of Bangladesh in 1971, the relations did not last long. Civil-Military relations have been the subject of renewed research in Bangladesh since the establishment of the military-backed government on 1/11, 2007. The study discusses the historical context of Civil-Military relations, the nature of Civil-Military relations in Bangladesh, various activities under military rule, and political leadership. The roles of the military in the formation of the country have been analyzed. The limitations of Bangladesh's Civil-Military relations have been discussed on the basis of the experiences gained through personal interviews of high-ranking Civil-Military members and general public. In this study has been described on the civil-military relations in the light of developing countries which have been under military rule for several decades during the 1950s, 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s. Therefore in carrying out this study, the civil-military relations in other developing countries and Bangladesh have been analyzed to understand the comparative aspects of civil-military relations at both local and global level. In addition, guidelines have been given on what should be the military-civil relations in the Political System of Bangladesh.

scholarly journals Civil-Military Relations in Asia

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aurel Croissant
Keyword(s):  
Social Science ◽  
Political Science ◽  
Single Case ◽  
The Political ◽  
Science Literature ◽  
Military Rule ◽  
Civil Military Relations ◽  
The Social ◽  
Military Relations ◽  
The Military

The social science literature on civil-military relations—a concept that encompasses the entire range of interactions between the military and civilian society at every level—falls into a sociological and a political science strand. The former is concerned primarily with the military as a social organization and the social functions of military systems, as well as the ways in which these factors have changed over time. The political science strand, in contrast, more narrowly focuses on political-military relations, that is, the structures, processes, and outcomes of the interactions between the institutions and organizations of the political system, on the one hand, and the armed forces and their members, on the other. As is the case with other continents, the study of civil-military relations in Asia is both normative and positive, often within the same work. While normative contributions ask what “good” civil-military relations should look like, positive analyses seek to describe and explain the actual relationship between the soldier and the state in Asia, examine the effects of military coups and military rule on other political or socioeconomic activities, and predict the consequences of political-military relations for the persistence and performance of political regimes. Perhaps as a consequence of the highly diverse cultures, colonial histories, political legacies, and modes of postcolonial governance, single-case studies and small-N comparative analyses dominate the field and systematic intra-regional comparisons and cross-national studies are rare. Since its inception in the 1960s, research on Asian civil-military relations in social science has moved in various directions: as elsewhere, its initial preoccupation was with the role of military institutions in processes of decolonization, modernization, and nation-building. In the 1970s, scholarship moved toward analyzing the origins of military coups d’état and policy consequences of military rule. A second line of research investigated party-military relations in Communist Party regimes, which operated under societal and institutional circumstances that were quite different from those in the non-socialist states. From the late 1980s onward, the so-called third wave of democratization inspired a new generation of civil-military studies, which illuminate the military’s role in the breakdown of authoritarianism and how young democracies struggle with the double challenge of creating and preserving a military that is strong enough to fulfill its functions, but that is subordinate to the authority of democratically elected institutions. In the 2000s, the study of security sector reform has become the most recent addition to the literature. This article is primarily concerned with the political science strand of civil-military research. It focuses on the positive literature and gives priority to research on Southeast Asia and East Asia, but also includes comparative works and collections that illuminate civil-military relations in South Pacific countries.

Civil–military relations and political order in Guinea-Bissau

2012 ◽  
Vol 50 (2) ◽  
pp. 253-281 ◽  
Author(s):  
Birgit Embaló
Keyword(s):  
Political System ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Political Order ◽  
Short Term ◽  
National Interests ◽  
Guinea Bissau ◽  
Civil Military Relations ◽  
Military Elite ◽  
Military Relations ◽  
The Military

ABSTRACTSince independence in 1974 the military of Guinea-Bissau have succeeded in controlling the political system, even attempting to impose their rule directly in the aftermath of the 1998/9 war. What makes the analysis of civil–military relations and political order in contemporary Guinea-Bissau particularly challenging is the overlapping of political, ethnic and personal considerations of the politico-military elite and their fluctuating and ambiguous short-term alliances. Guinea-Bissau's armed forces include an amalgam of veterans, claiming historical legitimacy from the liberation war, and officers who use their positions for personal gain rather than furthering democracy and national interests. This article examines the logic of civil–military relations against the heterarchical political figuration and the specific character of the politico-military elite of Guinea-Bissau.

Civil Military Relation and Stabilization in Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), Pakistan

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tughral Yamin
Keyword(s):  
Paper Briefly ◽  
Conflict Zones ◽  
Stabilization Process ◽  
Civil Military Relations ◽  
Salient Points ◽  
Military Relations ◽  
The Military ◽  
Tribal Areas

The importance of civil military relations assumes seminal importance in ensuring the success of all phases of a counter insurgency campaign. In the true tradition of the Clausewitzian dictum that war is the continuation of policy and vice versa; Pakistan Army has been employed as a matter of policy in counter insurgency operations in the erstwhile tribal areas. They have also been used in the stabilization operations to bring about normality in the insurgency ridden areas. In fact the employment of Pakistan Army in the stabilization process defies any previous example in any other country. In all phases of the conflict cycle, the military has worked hand in glove with its civilian counterparts. The civil-military coordination (CIMIC) in the insurgency ridden areas has taken place within the framework of the established ground rules of an organized counter insurgency campaign. It would not be unfair to say that the return to normality in the erstwhile FATA has only been possible because of a well-knit CIMIC architecture. This paper briefly explicates the salient points of the CIMIC aspect of the counter and post-insurgency part of the operations in the conflict zones and highlights the importance of this aspect of dealing with insurgencies.

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