How to Forge a Successful Military Coup?
In the introduction, Dr. Hammad explains that his research is not an incitement to military coups, as such, act is not expected from an international law professor; nor it is a warning for the illegitimate coup leaders as they are the least to care about. The research is rather a descriptive notes that he wrote down in German language few years ago. He aimed at helping political sciences and constitutional law students in Bern University/Switzerland, to understand one means of transition of power in some countries in the world nowadays. Then he had to organize and refine his notes to be published in Arabic in response to some of his friends’ insistence.
If it is true that this scientific article could help coup masterminds, the writer adds; then it can probably help at the same degree those who seek to prevent the coup from happening or sabotage it. The author is not interested which party would benefit from this study more, as much as he is interested in raising the Arab readers awareness and deepening their understanding regarding the process of transition of power and its impact on their life and destiny.
From a constitutional law perspective, the military coups in the countries that are not ruled by democratically elected government are considered a neutral phenomenon that is not judged positively or negatively by itself. This is because it is an act of resorting to power instead of law to topple an illegal leadership. Moreover, the results of these coup phenomenon could be a means to bring about positive change in the society, in a less familiar manner and with less pain and casualties that are caused by bloody means of popular revolutions. But on the other hand, it could bring about more confiscation of social freedom and impose a more authoritarian rule than the overthrown rule.
Since the political and social consequences of the coups don’t appear before one year of its taking place, as the coup perpetuators usually tend to hide their political intentions in the beginnings for tactical reasons; thus judging the military coups that take place in the third word legal wise is quite difficult although it doesn’t seem to be so. The writer explains that his research was written from the coups conspirators’ perspective, not as an act of sympathy with them, but to indulge in the atmosphere of thrill and try to add a sense of adventure that attracts the reader.
The study is divided into definitions, premilinary observations, and six very small chapters: motivations, opportunities, preparations, plan, implementation and endurance.
The Arab peoples suffered immensly from military coups, and suffered more from the ignorance regarding this trend. The study tries to open this folded page of our political life; a page that is usually read only by the conspirators who plot to confiscate the peoples’ freedom and their right of determination.
The study concludes that the book has escorted the military coup since it was an idea that emerged from the mind of a disgruntled officer, or stemmed from the conspiracy of a radical political movement. Then it accompanied the idea until it grew and its motivation and chances of success became obvious. Then the book escorted the coup in the dark paths of preparations then implementation then endurance. The coup perpetuators must ask themselves after seizing the power in their country: why did we go through all that? Why did we jeopardize our lives? Answering these questions is the purpose of the book, and it will define the message of the coup and its purpose at the end: was it to change the society for the better,did it really promote justice, freedom and democracy? Or did it only destroy the strength and resources of the society for the sake of seizing power?
