The Democratic Coup d'État
It's a powerful, concise, and self-reinforcing idea. It's also wrong.
In The Democratic Coup d'État, Ozan Varol advances a simple, yet controversial, argument: Sometimes, a democracy is established through a military coup. Covering events from the Athenian Navy's stance in 411 B.C. against a tyrannical home government, to coups in the American colonies that ousted corrupt British governors, to twentieth-century coups that toppled dictators and established democracy in countries as diverse as Guinea-Bissau, Portugal, and Colombia, the book takes the reader on a gripping journey.
Connecting the dots between these neglected events, Varol weaves a balanced narrative that challenges everything we thought we knew about military coups. In so doing, he tackles several baffling questions: How can an event as undemocratic as a military coup lead to democracy? Why would imposing generals-armed with tanks and guns and all-voluntarily surrender power to civilian politicians? What distinguishes militaries that help build democracies from those that destroy them?
Varol's arguments made headlines across the globe in major media outlets and were cited critically in a public speech by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Written for a general audience, this book will entertain, challenge, and provoke, but more importantly, serve as a reminder of the imperative to question the standard narratives about our world and engage with all ideas, no matter how controversial.
Reviews (31)
A valuable and engaging work for anyone interested in contemporary democracy
The Democratic Coup d’Etat opens with a simple statement of its controversial premise: “Sometimes democracy is established through a military coup.” In the ensuing 200 pages, Ozan Varol’s new book presents a nuanced examination of the factors that comprise a military coup and how it may (may) result democracy: the makeup of the military forces, the relationship between the military and the governing dictatorship, the relationship between the populace and the military after the coup. Anyone interested in the creation and maintenance of functioning democracies will find valuable insights within its pages. One of the first striking things about the book is encountering the sheer number of dictatorships in recent world history. The book is rife with examples illustrating different causes and outcomes of military coups, ranging from the recent events in Turkey to Burkina Faso in 2014, Romania under Ceausescu, Portugal in 1974, Peru in 1975, Brazil in ’45, Guatemala in ’44, and many others. But the events of the Arab Spring provide the most prominent touchstone in the book. Partially inspired by the events in Cairo in 2011, where the Egyptian military toppled of longtime dictator Hosni Mubarak following months of popular protests against the regime, the book frequently returns to this recent example of how the military may play a role in both installing and overthrowing a democratically-elected government. Varol’s description of the factors that create a military coup are fascinating. I had never before considered the difference between a “military state” and a “police state,” and how that affects civilians’ attitudes to the armed forces. Another interesting chapter analyzes how a military decides to support or crush a burgeoning democratic movement, comparing volunteer military forces to “citizen-soldiers” serving mandatory conscription and likely to have closer ties to members of a popular uprising. While reading the first sections of the book, I wondered what lessons democratic activists could learn from this history. A late chapter, “Between Scylla and Charbydis,” provides a helpful analysis. There, Varol describes the difficult passage civilians must navigate in a post-coup society: the military will demand from the new government certain “exit benefits,” such as structuring the new civilian government to grant the military greater power in domestic affairs, in exchange for handing control back to the people. If civilians wish to negotiate against the military’s demands, they will have to do so without provoking a heavy-handed backlash from the armed forces. Varol suggests civilians can take anticipatory action for these circumstances and describes bargaining positions, such as “sunset dates” that gradually reduce military involvement in politics. Subsequent chapters in the book further describe this kind of high-stakes society-wide hostage negotiation, as well as the organizing that civilian political parties must do to gain and maintain popular support and establish a balanced civil-military relationship. The book is valuable not just for its analysis of the ways militaries interact with democratic institutions, but for its description of how civilians can build democratic institutions that withstand antidemocratic forces and prevent military coups. Following foreign events like the Arab Spring from afar can be difficult, but Varol breaks down military involvement in these uprisings in clear and engaging chapters. The Democratic Coup d’Etat is a must-read for anyone who wants to understand the dynamics underlying contemporary democracy.
Well researched, thoroughly convincing, a bit too academic for my taste
Ozan provides a well researched, thoroughly convincing argument. With solid examples from numerous perspectives, his title thesis becomes very difficult to refute. My only criticism is that the prose leans academic. To someone very interested in the topic, this is an engaging read. My struggle with this book is that I didn't find the fundamental thesis difficult to believe. While the examples provided were still new (to me) and interesting, I did not get to enjoy the frequent "aha" moments that I desire when reading nonfiction. If you look at a question like, "Why would a military leader willingly hand power over to the people after a successful coup?" and think "I have to learn more!" then this book is for definitely for you. It will address that, and many other thought provoking questions on the subject.
This book takes you through a well documented and riveting ...
This book takes you through a well documented and riveting journey that covers coups throughout global history. The journey, and topic, seem rather timely with the current global climate as we see countries around the world edging closer and closer to authoritarian practices (or fully embracing those practices with shameless abandon).
A fantastic, well-written account supporting a counter-intuitive thesis with a ...
A fantastic, well-written account supporting a counter-intuitive thesis with a catalogue of insightful historical vignettes in support. Varol combines a deep, at times first-hand understanding of the social forces that influence political and military actors in struggling states with a storyteller's wit and clarity. His book beautifully weaves together seemingly unrelated events into a coherent whole, distilling the complexities of power transitions the world over into a few common themes that support the possibility that, at times, a coup d'état is good for democracy.
A different perspective
Coherent writing backed by plenty of historical events. It really helped me to think from a new perspective.
This is a great book by a new author
This is a great book by a new author. Ozan Varol takes a very complex and nuanced topic, pulls it apart, and eloquently explains how the default conventional wisdom of assuming all coups are bad, is wrong. This is a fresh perspective, written in a compelling and accessible way, where you don’t need a political science or law degree to understand the argument.
Two thumbs up!
Ozan's thesis will undoubtedly become the consensus. You'll finish the book and ask how coups d'etats could have been understood any other way. Smart and precise writing punctuated with thoughtful personal anecdotes. I am looking forward to more from this this author!
A good read that I recommend to those with an interest in world events and politics
This timely nonfiction book provides an insightful introduction to a nuanced area of sociopolitical inquiry that Varol seems to have single-handedly created--that of the democratic coup d'etat. Does this sound like an oxymoron to you? Varol is counting on that. The premise of this book is that generally coups have a bad rap. We expect nothing good to come of them. By using many historical examples and drawing from literature and pop culture, Varol effectively argues that contrary to the bad taste in our collective mouth, coups can and have ushered in some semblance of democracy on occasion. Interestingly, Varol lays out some ground rules for what kinds of coups qualify and which do not. For example, Varol asserts that "a coup can be democratic only if it topples an authoritarian government." He explores the potential interests and motivations of military actors compellingly. Varol employs an authoritative (pun intended) and thoughtful tone in the book. At times, I grew tired of the many counterarguments he explores. He often considers what the reader might be thinking while reading and I found myself feeling slightly patronized by what I perceived to be a bit of condescension. Varol takes great care to reserve the right to add nuance to every defined word or piece of his argument. However, this being an academic endeavor and Varol being a law professor, that approach comes with the territory. What kept me reading was how Varol expertly weaved together historical events into narratives that were both engaging and persuasive. I recommend this book to anyone interested in world history, democracy, current affairs, or politics.
Educational, Engaging, and Insightful
Although I often feel compelled to reject out-of-hand any claims that militaristic revolution can engender increased political freedom, I found many of Ozan Varol's arguments compelling and, by the end, found myself agreeing with many of the conclusions. I thought it was surprisingly helpful to note the general academic skepticism and negative attitudes among intellectual elites regarding any political or social gains instigated by the armed forces. Obviously, another excellent sticking point is that one could probably not have chosen a more poignant time in human history to have written this work. Not only does Varol draw from several historical and recent examples, but he succintly distills their relevance to his arguments and the broader discussion in an unbelievably accessible manner. I can't think of a single time during the entire process where I was unable to follow the author's train of thought. I also felt that the author's use of popular culture and media portrayals painted a believable picture of the distorted realities many have come to blindly accept as gospel truth. Additionally, as mentioned above, the arguments gave me a chance to refine my own thinking on the subjects involved. Having run the gamut of classic philosophy and political science works in college, I found the discourse extremely interesting and practically useful in making sense of the modern international socio-political environment.
What lurks below...
Varoll asks a question - the answer to which is contrary to many entrenched views. Can a military coup be an instrument of democratic advancement? The books advances its arguments through very detailed research and answers this bedrock question. This part of the book is interesting for anyone with an interest in how and why democracy might take root. But this isn't the most interesting part of the book. Beneath the scholarly exterior there lurks the shadow of an author who is willing to engage difficult subject matter in a way that is contrary to our expectations. In this way it reminded me of someone like Malcolm Gladwell or the "freaky" duo of Levitt and Dubner. It makes a claim that we might all like to resist thinking about - might a strong military have to step in to right a domestic wrong? At least in the case of a coup overthrowing a dictator the answer seems to be...it depends but often...yes. The work flirts with a military solution to domestic problems and for now, narrows its subject matter to what is perhaps a laudable conclusion. In this, the work is successful. However, the reader should be forewarned - the text is capital "D" Dense. It is likely to be inaccessible to anyone without a formal education and even then its surface matter is probably most appreciated by someone with a deep interest in the evolution of democracy in societies. I think in this way the text does a disservice to its more interesting themes. The risk of being turned off by the at times "stodgy" tone to absorb the more interesting material is great. However, it is for sure worth a read to anyone who is willing to give it a chance and look beyond its ivory veneer. What lurks below is worth it.
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