The Political Impact of African Military Leaders

The Political Impact of African Military Leaders

Author: Sabella Ogbobode Abidde

Publisher: Springer Nature

Published: 2023-06-28

Total Pages: 356

ISBN-13: 3031314271

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This edited volume examines the cases of four African military leaders who had enormous impact on the continent and beyond. These military officers, and later heads of state -- Jerry Rawlings of Ghana; Moammar Gaddafi of Libya; Thomas Sankara of Burkina Faso; and Gamal Abdel Nasser of Egypt – were provocative and polarizing figures, beloved domestically but mostly viewed with suspicion and hostility by foreign governments. This volume studies these leaders as a group, engaging in a critical but systematic examination of their personalities, leadership styles, official performance, legacies, and their continuing impact on the future and political destiny of the continent. Providing a survey of controversial but important African political figures, this volume will be of use to scholars and students in the social sciences, especially those interested in African history, African studies, military science, Black studies, political science, leadership studies, and the politics of developing nations.


Mauritania's Colonels

Mauritania's Colonels

Author: Boubacar N'Diaye

Publisher:

Published: 2018

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781138059481

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"Mauritania's Colonels examines the personalities and policy of five military officers turned heads of state who ruled Mauritania for nearly 40 years." -- from preface.


The Military in African Politics

The Military in African Politics

Author: Johns Hopkins University. School of Advanced International Studies

Publisher: Praeger

Published: 1987-05-15

Total Pages: 216

ISBN-13:

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The concern of this book is with military rulers as political actors in contemporary Africa. Much of Africa has been under military rule during the quarter century since a majority of the countries attained their political independence. Yet studies of military rule have focused on when and how to predict the occurrence of military rule and on distinguishing between military and civilian rule. The concern of the contributors to this volume, by contrast, is the political behavior of officers once in power: how they have ruled; what has been the significance of military rule on the character of political systems in the affected countries; and how problems of regime succession have been addressed by military rulers.--Preface.


Political Leadership in Africa

Political Leadership in Africa

Author: Giovanni Carbone

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2020-03-19

Total Pages: 393

ISBN-13: 1108423736

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An innovative analysis of political leadership in Africa between 1960 and 2018, drawing on an entirely new dataset.


Soldiers in Revolt

Soldiers in Revolt

Author: Maggie Dwyer

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 2018-02-01

Total Pages: 251

ISBN-13: 0190911654

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Soldiers in Revolt examines the understudied phenomenon of military mutinies in Africa. Through interviews with former mutineers in Sierra Leone, Burkina Faso, and The Gambia, the book provides a unique and intimate perspective on those who take the risky decision to revolt. This view from the lower ranks is key to comprehending the internal struggles that can threaten a military's ability to function effectively. Maggie Dwyer's detailed accounts of specific revolts are complemented by an original dataset of West African mutinies covering more than fifty years, allowing for the identification of trends. Her book shows the complex ways mutineers often formulate and interpret their grievances against a backdrop of domestic and global politics. Just as mutineers have been influenced by the political landscape, so too have they shaped it. Mutinies have challenged political and military leaders, spurred social unrest, led to civilian casualties, threatened peacekeeping efforts and, in extreme cases, resulted in international interventions. Soldiers in Revolt offers a better understanding of West African mutinies and mutinies in general, valuable not only for military studies but for anyone interested in the complex dynamics of African states.


The Real Politics of the Horn of Africa

The Real Politics of the Horn of Africa

Author: Alex de Waal

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons

Published: 2015-10-19

Total Pages: 242

ISBN-13: 0745695612

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The Real Politics of the Horn of Africa delves into the business of politics in the turbulent, war-torn countries of north-east Africa. It is a contemporary history of how politicians, generals and insurgents bargain over money and power, and use of war to achieve their goals. Drawing on a thirty-year career in Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea and Somalia, including experience as a participant in high-level peace talks, Alex de Waal provides a unique and compelling account of how these countries’ leaders run their governments, conduct their business, fight their wars and, occasionally, make peace. De Waal shows how leaders operate on a business model, securing funds for their ‘political budgets’ which they use to rent the provisional allegiances of army officers, militia commanders, tribal chiefs and party officials at the going rate. This political marketplace is eroding the institutions of government and reversing statebuildingÑand it is fuelled in large part by oil exports, aid funds and western military assistance for counter-terrorism and peacekeeping. The Real Politics of the Horn of Africa is a sharp and disturbing book with profound implications for international relations, development and peacemaking in the Horn of Africa and beyond.


Warlord Democrats in Africa

Warlord Democrats in Africa

Author: Anders Themnér

Publisher: Zed Books Ltd.

Published: 2017-04-15

Total Pages: 380

ISBN-13: 1783602511

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Post-war democratization has been identified as a crucial mechanism to build peace in war-ridden societies, supposedly allowing belligerents to compete through ballots rather than bullets. A byproduct of this process, however, is that military leaders often become an integral part of the new democratic system, using resources and networks generated from the previous war to dominate the emerging political landscape. The crucial and thus-far overlooked question to be addressed, therefore, is what effect the inclusion of ex-militaries into electoral politics has on post-war security. Can 'warlord democrats' make a positive contribution by shepherding their wartime constituencies to support the building of peace and democracy, or are they likely to use their electoral platforms to sponsor political violence and keep war-affected communities mobilized through aggressive discourses? This important volume, containing a wealth of fresh empirical detail and theoretical insight, and focussing on some of Africa's most high-profile political figures – from Paul Kagame to Riek Machar to Afonso Dhlakama – represents a crucial intervention in the literature of post-war democratization.


Democratization in Africa

Democratization in Africa

Author: Larry Jay Diamond

Publisher: JHU Press

Published: 1999

Total Pages: 570

ISBN-13: 9780801862731

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"The country-specific chapters serve to underline the differences between African democracy and liberal democracy, yet some authors are at pains to emphasize that whatever their limitations, African democracies are an advance over what had gone before." -- African Studies Review


Democracy, Public Expenditures, and the Poor

Democracy, Public Expenditures, and the Poor

Author: Philip Keefer

Publisher: World Bank Publications

Published: 2003

Total Pages: 36

ISBN-13: 0031210104

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Countries vary systematically with respect to the incentives of politicians to provide broad public goods, and to reduce poverty. Even in developing countries that are democracies, politicians often have incentives to divert resources to political rents, and to private transfers that benefit a few citizens at the expense of many. These distortions can be traced to imperfections in political markets, that are greater in some countries than in others. The authors review the theory, and evidence on the impact of incomplete information of voters, the lack of credibility of political promises, and social polarization on political incentives. They argue that the effects of these imperfections are large, but that their implications are insufficiently integrated into the design of policy reforms aimed at improving the provision of public goods, and reducing poverty.


The Democratic Coup D'état

The Democratic Coup D'état

Author: Ozan O. Varol

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 2017

Total Pages: 249

ISBN-13: 019062602X

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The Democratic Coup d'État advances a simple, yet controversial, argument: democracy sometimes comes through a military coup. Covering coups that toppled dictators and installed democratic rule in countries as diverse as Guinea-Bissau, Portugal, and Colombia, the book weaves a balanced narrative that challenges everything we knew about military coups.