257 lines
13 KiB
Plaintext
257 lines
13 KiB
Plaintext
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**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**
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- -
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- How to Overthrow a country -
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- An objective essay written by Senator Bunker -
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- -
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**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**-**
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Introduction by Someone Else
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----------------------------
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I've been meaning to write this file for months, but it
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looks like the good Senator from California has put forth that
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extra effort I was too lazy to make in putting this together.
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This is not a humorous article, to bluntly say; it is designed to
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inform you of proper execution of coup d'etat, that 'stroke of
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state' that topples governments so often these days. Enjoy.
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I. Before you begin
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-------------------
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Subjugation of a nation is a tremendous undertaking
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requiring foresight, ingenuity, and careful thought. The first
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task of many is to decide whether the country is a suitable
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candidate for a drastic and sudden change in government. The
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degree of difficulty varies with size, population, political
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awareness, and literacy.
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The large state, tending to contain a greater number of
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persons, differs substantially from the small state in that the
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body politic is much more complex and hence more difficult to
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seize control of. It is generally advisable to tackle a smaller,
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unimportant regime rather than a country that, if seized, might
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draw a foreign power into the coup hence rendering it a failure.
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One thing to do before attempting anything of this kind is
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to make sure who your friends and allies are. With a little
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effort, it is possible to gain a mass of supporters such that it
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is quite difficult to quell your actions. A way to do this is to
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select (if possible) a nation whose government does not have
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support of all of its classes (poor, rich, middle). Or, if
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neccessary, lure to your cause a religious minority, or ethnic
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minority, that already has grievances against the current regime.
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Perhaps you might form a coalition. Summarizing, it is a
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requisite to get at least some support besides from soldiers of
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fortune, who are generally "gung-ho" incompetents anyway.
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Ideally, you should be part of some branch of the armed
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forces, police, national guard, or some government agency
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equipped with personnel trained in the use of weoponry. In the
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public's eye, you already have some sort of authority, so a
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little more authority couldn't hurt, could it?
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So, now what kind of government should we tackle? A
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democratic? Maybe. They are usually fragile, anyway. But much of
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the international community will frown on your taking a small,
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helpless, struggling democracy, and perhaps take actions that are
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unfavorable. How about a Marxist dictatorship? Now, that's a good
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idea. Most of the time these are anti-communist, even though they
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receive aid from the U.S.S.R., so it is a very good probability
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that Russia will not jump to help them. The Soviet Union waits to
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see if the new government will be pro-Soviet, not pro-Marxist, so
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you will be safe for the first few days. Also, not much of the
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world likes Marxist dictatorships.
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If you have a choice of which nation to put down (you
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usually don't), do not select a NATO country, or some other
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nation that receives $4 billion annually, because superpowers do
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not like to see their money to go down the drain so suddenly.
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Pick Martinique, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, or Surinam. If you're
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white, don't go in an African dump unless you have a deathwish.
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Plus, if the country has low literacy levels, good, for the
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people there won't know what is happening.
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Things to avoid:
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- High literacy rate
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- Large per capita income
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- Voter participation
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- An "established" nation
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- Countries with allies
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Things to look for:
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- Civilian unrest
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- Minority in control
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- Centralized government
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- Political apathy
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Note: An OK from Washington or Moscow couldn't hurt.
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II. The Mechanism of the Coup d'Etat
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-------------------------------------
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The first thing that should be done is the neutralization of
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all relevent political forces, including the general
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infrastructure of the state. This includes, among other things,
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highways, telecommunications facilities (including radio, TV,
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etc.), airports, and so on. The reason these are political forces
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is that they are controlled by nonmilitary portions of the state
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(in the event you were wondering). Unfortunately, these are a
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large and spread apart group of targets, so if you have no
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tactical or popular support your attemps will be fruitless.
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Undoubtedly the absolute first thing you should do is to cut
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all forms of communcations with the outside world off at once. Be
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sure to include: Telephone, Telex, Wireless, Radio, etc. THIS IS
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MOST IMPORTANT. It will prevent the present government from
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mobilizing its forces, deploying their forces in strategic
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locations that are not normally guarded, etc. It will also
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prevent them from calling outside for emergency help,
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jeopardizing your hard work, not to mention your life. Soon the
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rest of the world will know something has happened, but they will
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not know who has taken the government, how the coup is
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progressing, and so forth. Make sure all forms of communications
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are completely cut.
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One other important thing to do is remove air facilities
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from the use of the loyalist forces. It is not necessary to seize
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control of the airports; all that is needed to be done is to
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close the airports. A bomb or two in the middle of the runways
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will do nicely, or perhaps a couple of cars parked there, with
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snipers preventing their removal. You should not rely on
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airfields for your coup; if you rely on them and they are shut
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down, you will encounter problems. The old government will
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probably rely on them, and you will easily be able to prevent
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their usage of them. At an early time during the coup it
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should be evident as to its success.
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Government officials and employees of higher rank have a
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choice to make-- whether to remain loyal to the old government,
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or to join the new attempt at government. If they stay loyal,
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they may be richly rewarded; if they defect, and the coup fails,
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they will be out of a job mighty quick. The success of your coup
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depends much on whether many of these officials decide to join
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the coup.
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In addition to those people who remain loyal and those who
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join your cause, there is a "wait and see" element involved.
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Often this is the majority of the population, especially if the
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present regime is somewhat repressive. They don't want to show
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too much enthusiasm for either side, until it is more or less
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decided who will gain control. It's best to plan a sudden, abrupt
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seizure of all facilities to make the coup seem a smashing
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success; if this is done, the undecided will know to whom to
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turn.
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When you take power from the original government, it is best
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to know who actually runs it. In most of the world (but not in
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the U.S.) there are two governments: 1- a largely ceremonial
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government, the part that people see on television and at most
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public events. They are, for the most part, what is known as a
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"figurehead", set off to the side to keep the government's
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"alter- ego" working on policy. 2- the "real" government, the
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government that formulates domestic and foreign policy, makes all
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executive decisions, and basically controls the infrastructure of
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the nation. The part of the government you will need to take is
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(obviously) the latter. It is composed of the executive head
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(called by whatever title he may hold- Prime Minister, President,
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General Secretary, etc.), ministers, and various deputy and
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second ministers who make small yet influential decisions.
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The people you are most interested in detaining (or bumping
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off) are the Minister of the Interior (he normally supervises the
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police forces), the party leaders (of the ruling party, or of the
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only party, if a one-party state), the Minister of Defense, and
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the central figure of the "real" government. Once these people
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are neutralized, in one way or another, the basic functions of
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the state will be under your command, at least temporarily.
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What is often done is to detain (under house arrest, of
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course) the aforementioned officials, and leave the ceremonial
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portion of the government alone. This is done to give an aire of
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legitimacy and continuity after such an abrupt turn of events.
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Later, these may be kept or allowed/forced to leave, as need
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arises.
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You will not stay in power for long if you do not exert some
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sort of influence over the armed forces. The military has the
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ability to remove virtually any threat if perceives from within
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the boundaries of the nation-- especially YOU. If you are a
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foreigner, and do not have (or used to have but have now lost)
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support of the militia, prepare to die. You as a person will
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cease to exist, unless you leave the country. And, always have
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several prepared escape routes planned out in advance-- even the
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perfect coup d'etat will have its complicatons, and there will be
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things that you have overlooked. That is why it is best to have
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thoroughly studied the past and recent history of that state. Do
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your homework! If you do you will be richly rewarded.
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III. After the Coup
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--------------------
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Once you have removed the major functions of the government
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and bureaucracy from the Loyalist government, you will not yet be
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in solid control of them yourself. You will want to retain your
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control, and thus prevent a counter-coup from ensuing. Your new
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regime will be weakest at this time, and many times some other
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group seizes the reins of government hours after a coup d'etat--
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and this group is not necessarily the old loyalists. The
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military, political forces within the nation, and the public must
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all be satisfied to some extent in order for you to continue your
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rule. This can be attained either by a show of force, or by
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concessions made to any of these groups, such as a democratically
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elected government in the near future, or granting the military
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more influence over political decisions, and perhaps quickly
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promoting a number of young officers that proved faithful during
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the crisis. "Promote" those officers who have clout but you
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suspect might try to take more power for themselves to desk jobs,
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or remote outposts. And give them all pay raises, if at all
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possible.
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The goal of the new regime is to "shear" off the top layer
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of government, and more or less retain the old bureaucracy. Lower
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officials should be made to feel as if little or no change has
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taken place, and whatever change that has occurred is for the
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better. After a short while these people will realize that the
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new government is fully in control, and all will be calm and
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orderly.
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Mass media will act as a Vehicle to assert your control.
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Write the first communique as a positive, necessary step for a
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long-needed change. Reassure the people that the coup is a revolt
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for the masses-- not inspired by communists, or an extremist
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group, but by the public in general. Display the national
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symbols, and inspire the feeling of patriotism and unity. These
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techniques were used quite successfully so recently in the 1985
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coup d'etat in the Sudan. People poured into the streets, waving
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the old flag of the country, and having an all-around good time.
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A popular general was instated as the new chief of state, and a
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democratic government was promised.
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Lastly, your new regime has to be made to look legitimate in
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the eyes of the international community. Show evidence of
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atrocities made by the former government, witnesses, etc. Take
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positive steps in the direction of popular democracy, promise
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elections, and invite the foreign (especially American) press
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into the country to see these steps. Soon the world will forget
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about your coup, but whenever your country is in the news, they
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will remember this.
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IV. A Final Word
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----------------
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You will probably realize now that the fast, simple coup was
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actually the result of much swift planning and hard work. The
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coup is not an easy thing to accomplish-- should you be planning
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one of your own, know what you are doing and be sure to succeed.
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Hopefully I have been of some help.
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