Musa,
This is an interesting question. While a military rule can quickly bring to
an end the rule of a terrible regime, the consequences of the coup for that
country are more likely to be worse in the long-run.
I think Juwara's statement that you quoted is especially apt. When there is
a coup, the population of that country has no control whatsoever on who the
new rulers might be. Although the new rulers might appear benevolent
initially, more often that not, they tend to become dictators themselves.
The biggest problem of endorsing a military coup is the legitimization of
the use of violence. And this results in a culture of military coups as in
the case of Nigeria. Pretty soon, soldiers begin to develop the mentality
that the sole purpose of the military institution is to be engine of
political change. The repeated military coups forever delays the development
of democratic institutions and the rule of law and therefore keeps that
particular country in a perpetually ripe condition for more military coups.
While a few countries may have been able to develop democratic institutions
quickly after a military coup, a vast majority of countries had the opposite
experience. While thinking about this problem, an analogy came to mind.
Vigilantism is practiced widely in many parts of the world but it’s illegal
in almost every country. It may be really satisfying to give out justice
right there and then to some criminal but when every citizen feels that way,
this undoubtedly results in chaos and total breakdown of the rule of law.
This is why even though a person who murders your relative might only be a
few feet from you in a courtroom, the state will not (and should not) grant
you the right to strangle him. The criminal justice system in any country is
not perfect. The fact that some guilty ones walk free does not excuse
vigilantism. Criminal justice systems may not be perfect but they work
frequently enough to ensure order in societies.
So the best way to go about in changing regimes is through peaceful
resistance. For the so-called pragmatic ones, this may sounds loony and too
idealistic. However, the long-term consequences are a lot brighter than the
short-term (and short-lived) benefits of military coups. No brutal regime,
no matter how entrenched, is strong enough to withstand the collective
resistance of a population when that resistance reaches a critical mass.
More likely than not, when a society that goes through such a change,
acquiring the self-assurance and awareness that comes from it, would be in a
better position to build democratic institutions that last. Of course, how
to organize the resistance and bring it to the necessary critical mass is
the key question. That will be different for every country and will depend
on the brutality of the regime, how entrenched the regime is, the culture of
resistance in that society, the availability of an enlightened leader in the
opposition who will resist the temptation to use violence, and several other
factors. For some unlucky countries, it will take painfully long years to
reach that point.
Of course, there are exceptions to every rule…
Ousman
>From: Musa Jeng <[log in to unmask]>
>Reply-To: The Gambia and related-issues mailing list
><[log in to unmask]>
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Subject: Coup D'etat as a political option?
>Date: Sat, 14 Dec 2002 15:36:43 -0500
>
>Coup d’etat as a political option?
>
>Coup d’etat according to Webster Dictionary,a sudden overthrow of a
>government in deliberate violation of a constitution by a group of persons
>who are in a position of authority. Now to paraphrase Mr. Lamin Waa Juwara
>at the July Fourth Conference in Atlanta, “ I don’t want any form of coup
>d’etat because we never know what crazy people we are going to end up
>with”.
>
>Most Gambians share the views held by Mr. Juwara, but are they realistic?
>And to take it further, is there a difference when coup is used to remove a
>constitutional democracy, wrapped in a solid cloth of rule of law where
>generally power lies in the hands of the govern, and when it is used to
>remove a government that violates the constitution, total disregards for
>the rule of law, violates the civil liberties of its citizens and used the
>instrument of power to stay in power?
>
>Coups of course are not new in the Gambia’s political process, and we have
>our own history as a guide. The 1981 abortive coup initially had its
>supporters, especially from the opposition and to many Gambians who thought
>that the PPP Government had overstayed, and yearned for a change. In the
>end the coup only brought about anarchy, death and destruction. But it also
>sent a chilling message to the ruling PPP that they are not as invulnerable
>as they might have led to believe. The legacy of the 1994 coup still
>remained with us and the debate continues whether has it brought us closer
>to democracy, rule of law and economic development? Although the
>interesting question is, would the then PPP government be removed out of
>power if it were not for the intervention of the Armed Forces?
>
>Obviously, the above last question is only important for academic exercise,
>but it also attempts to guide us to the relevant question, is military
>intervention the only realistic option to bring an end to a government,
>that some seen has only brought us economic misery, death, violation of
>civil liberties and a bleak political and economic future? Well, to others,
>coups can only bring political and economic retrogression and instability.
>And as to the question to how do you get rid of a government of Bandits
>bend on taking us to the abyss, OH WELL! Tough question.
>
>Thanks
>Musa jeng
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