Between Ballots and Bullets: Algeria's Transition from Authoritarianism

by William B. Quandt

In the Arab world as elsewhere, authoritarian regimes have come under pressure for change. As yet, however, democracy has not taken root as an alternative form of governance. This book on Algeria looks at both the erosion of the authoritarian model and the difficulties of making a transition to democracy. Within the past decade, Algeria experienced one of the most promising experiments of opening up the political system and allowing a remarkable degree of freedom. That initial effort failed, however, when elections were won by an Islamist party that was unacceptable to the military, and it was followed by an explosion of political violence that in recent years has cost at least 75,000 lives. Despite this deep crisis there are reasons to believe that Algeria may emerge from its turmoil with a consensus on the need to respect pluralism and to accept the basic rules of democratic politics.
Blending theoretical insights with an analysis of the Algerian case, this book demonstrates that democratization is likely to be a difficult process in the Middle East, but that the prospects for eventual success are not as gloomy as often asserted by those who see an incompatibility between democracy and Islam.

Genres: History

215 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 1998

About the author

William Bauer Quandt

Reviews

[Ben · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is as good as political science books get. It's about Algeria, of course, but in broader terms it's about how states transition into and out of authoritarianism and political violence. In Algeria's case, that transition is still happening, slowly, and the book really captures why Algeria's past (the colonial period, the independence movement) led to such a closed political system, and one dominated by the military and a small circle of elites. As a bonus, it is clear and well-written.