Variations among North African Military Regimes

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 55-78
Author(s):  
Federico Battera
Keyword(s):  
Political Development ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Systems ◽  
North African ◽  
Military Rule ◽  
Military Regimes ◽  
Supreme Council ◽  
The Stability ◽  
The Military

This article explores the differences between two North African military regimes—Egypt and Algeria—which have been selected due to the continuity of military dominance of the political systems. Still, variations have marked their political development. In particular, the Algerian army’s approach to civilian institutions changed after a civilian president was chosen in 1999. This was not the case in Egypt after the demise of the Hosni Mubarak regime of 2011. Other important variations are to be found in the way power has been distributed among the military apparatuses themselves. In the case of Egypt, a principle of collegiality has been generally preserved within a body, the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF), which is absent in the case of Algeria, where conflicts between military opposed factions are more likely to arise in case of crisis. How differences generally impact the stability of military rule in these two cases is the main contribution of this paper.

Military vs. Citizens in the Arab Zone

2016 ◽  
pp. 140-157
Author(s):  
Stéphane Valter
Keyword(s):  
Armed Forces ◽  
Religious Communities ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Systems ◽  
The People ◽  
Sufficient Power ◽  
The Military ◽  
Physical Manifestation ◽  
Political Alternation

All the political systems of the Arab-Islamic zone are authoritarian, with the exception of Tunisia where fair elections recently took place and political alternation was accepted. Lebanon is another exception in the sense that state prerogatives – shared between antagonist religious communities – do not enjoy sufficient power to exert coercive policies. But apart from these two cases, this global authoritarian environment is of no avail vis-à-vis any initiative that would aim at forging some idea of citizenship – with its obligations and privileges – amongst the population, and particularly among the military. The present analysis will concentrate on the links existing between authoritarianism and citizenship, with an emphasis on Arab armed forces considered within their sociological contexts, since these entities are as much the emanation of the people(s) as the physical manifestation of the regimes' strength. The issue will be addressed through two perspectives: politics and philosophy.

The Argentine Process of Demilitarization: 1980–83

1984 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 225-238
Author(s):  
Guillermo Makin
Keyword(s):  
Political Development ◽  
Military Regime ◽  
Military Rule ◽  
Seminal Work ◽  
Military Regimes ◽  
The Future ◽  
The Military

THE FOREIGN ADVENTURISM OF THE ARGENTINE MILITARY may have made a few minds more cautious about automatically welcoming the advent of any other future military regime. This point was made more than a decade ago by Stepan in his seminal work on the military in Brazil; what he said then could have been said of most military regimes anywhere:Whatever the future outcome, it is clear that the attraction of military rule – its presumed stability, unity, and ftvity of purpose – has been largely illusory. Even more importantly, the difficulties encountered by the highly professional army of Brazil, with its technocratic civilian allies, illustrate that there can be no apolitical solution to the problems of political development.

Technology, the Military, and Democracy in Brazil

1992 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 141-178 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ken Conca
Keyword(s):  
Political Institutions ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
The Political ◽  
Military Government ◽  
Military Rule ◽  
Authoritarian Rule ◽  
Main Challenge ◽  
Democratic Control ◽  
The Military ◽  
Brazilian Politics

Brazil Entered the 1990s with its transition from authoritarian rule incomplete. The gradual withdrawal of the armed forces from power brought an end to over two decades of direct military rule in 1985, paving the way for a new constitution and the first presidential election in nearly 30 years. These formal democratizing changes were erected, however, on a foundation of socio-economic structures and political institutions with some decidedly non-democratic features. As a result, Brazilian politics retains some important vestiges of authoritarianism. Pre-existing centers of power in society remain extraordinarily influential within the emerging system, frequently operating beyond the reach of even nominal democratic control or oversight.If events of the 1980s did not completely transform Brazilian politics, they did redefine the main challenge of the political transition. The initial problem of replacing the military government with a civilian regime has given way to a second, less tangible, task of consolidating democratic institutions and procedures (O'Donnell, 1988).

Democratic Consolidation and Military Professionalism: Argentina in the 1980s

1990 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 151-176 ◽  
Author(s):  
Deborah L. Norden
Keyword(s):  
South America ◽  
Democratic Consolidation ◽  
The Political ◽  
Military Rule ◽  
Military Regimes ◽  
The Future ◽  
Democratic Rule ◽  
The Military ◽  
Military Professionalism

The 1980s Witnessed a series of halting, tenuous but, nonetheless, widely—hailed transitions from military regimes to constitutional democracies throughout South America. Yet, despite the initial optimism, the political newcomers faced formidable tasks. Not only had memories of democratic rule and practices grown dim in the years of disuse, but, with few exceptions, new governments found themselves threatened by a deteriorating economy with bleak prospects for the future. Equally — perhaps even more — threatening was the fact that though the military regimes may have relinquished their position, they had not necessarily relinquished their power, which raised the possibility that their civilian successors might not be able to stay in office long enough to confront their multifarious problems.In Argentina, the risk of a return to military rule was perhaps even greater than in some of its neighbors as the country had experienced a mosaic of alternating military and civilian governments ever since 1930.

The Soldier and the State in China: The Political Work System in the People' Liberation Army

1991 ◽  
Vol 127 ◽  
pp. 527-568 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Shambaugh
Keyword(s):  
Armed Forces ◽  
Active Duty ◽  
Political Life ◽  
The Political ◽  
Military Officers ◽  
Military Rule ◽  
Political Work ◽  
The People ◽  
The Military ◽  
Modern Era

The military is a key actor in the political life of many nations. Across the developing and socialist worlds, the armed forces have served as far more than guarantors of national security as they sustain civilian elites in power or often seize it themselves. In China there has been a long tradition of military rule during much of the modern era–one need think only of Li Hongzhang and the Beiyang Army, the Republic's first president General Yuan Shikai, the warlords of the 1920s, or Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek and theGuominjun(the twin sibling of the ruling Guomindang). In post-1949 China former and active-duty military officers (as well as the military as an institution) have been central actors in the political life of the nation, effectively administering the country from 1949–52 and 1967–73. However, this article is not so much about the militarization of politics in China as about the politicization of the military.

Diaries of a Surveilled Citizen after a Failed Revolution in Egypt

2021 ◽  
Vol 53 (1) ◽  
pp. 145-154
Author(s):  
Zeinab Abul-Magd
Keyword(s):  
Armed Forces ◽  
The Political ◽  
Supreme Council ◽  
Political Sources ◽  
Online Edition ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Military

Under a pseudonym in December 2011, I published an article titled “al-Jaysh wa-l-Iqtisad fi Barr Misr” (The Army and the Economy in Egypt) in Jadaliyya. I wrote it after months of participating in numerous protests in Cairo against the government of the Supreme Council of Armed Forces (SCAF), which took power upon President Hosni Mubarak's abdication in February 2011, and of searching fervidly for the political sources that had allowed the military to prevail over civilian forces. In addition to the tanks and fighter jets, I found some of these sources hidden in a gigantic business empire that the military had clandestinely developed for years. In early 2012 the editor of an online edition of a widely read Egyptian newspaper, a revolutionary female journalist who would later be arrested and detained, invited me to write a series of articles on this business empire, this time using my real name. The first work in decades to be published on this taboo topic, this became the foundation for my later book-length study. As a scholar, this was my humble contribution to an ongoing revolution.

State-run celebration of Liberation Day in Czechoslovakia (based on audiovisual sources)

2019 ◽  
pp. 251-268
Author(s):  
Timur Gimadeev
Keyword(s):  
Political Development ◽  
Communist Regime ◽  
Political Regime ◽  
The Political ◽  
Historical Experience ◽  
History Of ◽  
Post War ◽  
The 1960S ◽  
The Military

The article deals with the history of celebrating the Liberation Day in Czechoslovakia organised by the state. Various aspects of the history of the holiday have been considered with the extensive use of audiovisual documents (materials from Czechoslovak newsreels and TV archives), which allowed for a detailed analysis of the propaganda representation of the holiday. As a result, it has been possible to identify the main stages of the historical evolution of the celebrations of Liberation Day, to discover the close interdependence between these stages and the country’s political development. The establishment of the holiday itself — its concept and the military parade as the main ritual — took place in the first post-war years, simultaneously with the consolidation of the Communist regime in Czechoslovakia. Later, until the end of the 1960s, the celebrations gradually evolved along the political regime, acquiring new ritual forms (ceremonial meetings, and “guards of memory”). In 1968, at the same time as there was an attempt to rethink the entire socialist regime and the historical experience connected with it, an attempt was made to reconstruct Liberation Day. However, political “normalisation” led to the normalisation of the celebration itself, which played an important role in legitimising the Soviet presence in the country. At this stage, the role of ceremonial meetings and “guards of memory” increased, while inventions released in time for 9 May appeared and “May TV” was specially produced. The fall of the Communist regime in 1989 led to the fall of the concept of Liberation Day on 9 May, resulting in changes of the title, date and paradigm of the holiday, which became Victory Day and has been since celebrated on 8 May.

“With colleagues like that, who needs enemies?”:Doctors and Repression under Military and Post-Authoritarian Brazil

2019 ◽  
Vol 76 (3) ◽  
pp. 467-505
Author(s):  
Eyal Weinberg
Keyword(s):  
Medical Education ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Political Prisoners ◽  
State University ◽  
Medical Assistance ◽  
Military Rule ◽  
Medical Board ◽  
Military Physician ◽  
The Military ◽  
Healing Arts

As young medical students at Guanabara State University, Luiz Roberto Tenório and Ricardo Agnese Fayad received some of the best medical education offered in 1960s Brazil. For six years, the peers in the same entering class had studied the principles of the healing arts and practiced their application at the university's teaching hospital. They had also witnessed the Brazilian military oust a democratically elected president and install a dictatorship that ruled the country for 21 years (1964–85). After graduating, however, Tenório and Fayad embarked on very distinct paths. The former became a political dissident in opposition to the military regime and provided medical assistance to members of the armed left. The latter joined the armed forces and, as a military physician, participated in the brutal torture and cruel treatment of political prisoners. At the end of military rule, Brazil's medical board would find him guilty of violating the Brazilian code of medical ethics and revoke his license.

scholarly journals The anniversary of the military coup attempt in Turkey, July 15–16, 2016. The evolution of a political system

2017 ◽  
pp. 63-68
Author(s):  
Y. S. Kudryashova
Keyword(s):  
Political System ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
Authoritarian Regime ◽  
Military Coup ◽  
The Political ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Military ◽  
Ruling Party ◽  
Coup Attempt

During the government of AK Party army leaders underprivileged to act as an exclusive guarantor preserving a secular regime in the country. The political balance between Secular and Islamite elites was essentially removed after Erdogan was elected Turkish President. Consistently toughening authoritarian regime of a ruling party deeply accounts for a military coup attempt and earlier periodically occurred disturbance especially among the young. The methods of a coup showed the profundity of a split and the lack of cohesion in Turkish armed forces. Erdogan made the best use of a coup attempt’s opportunities to concentrate all power in his hands and to consolidate a present regime. The mass support of the population during a coup attempt ensured opportunities for a fundamental reorganization of a political system. Revamped Constitution at most increases political powers of the President.

scholarly journals The Degree of Military Political Autonomy during the Spanish, Argentine and Brazilian Transitions

1993 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 283-299 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jorge Zaverucha
Keyword(s):  
Third World ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
The Political ◽  
Civilian Control ◽  
Political Autonomy ◽  
Civil Military Relations ◽  
Military Relations ◽  
The Third World ◽  
The Military ◽  
Democratic Country

The state of civil–military relations in the world, especially in the Third World, is very well summed up by Mosca's statement that civilian control over the military ‘is a most fortunate exception in human history’.All over the globe, the armed forces have frequently preserved their autonomous power vis-à-vis civilians. They have also succeeded in maintaining their tutelage over some of the political regimes that have arisen from the process of transition from military to democratic governments, as in Argentina and Brazil. Spain is a remarkable exception. Today, Spain, despite its authoritarian legacy, is a democratic country. The constituted civil hierarchy has been institutionalised, military áutonomy weakened, and civilian control over the military has emerged. Spain's newly founded democracy now appears quite similar to the older European democracies.

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