A 'non-violent revolution' is a
revolution using mostly
nonviolent protest against governments seen as entrenched and
authoritarian to advocate
democracy,
liberalism or
national independence in their nation. Nonviolent revolution is possible only if the controlling government does not take brutal measures against protesters; that is why most revolutions which happened in
dictatorial regimes were bloody. Nonviolent revolutions began in the 20th century and have increasingly become more successful and more common, especially as
Cold War political alliances which supported
status quo governance waned.
Many leftist and socialist movements have hoped to mount a "peaceful revolution" by organizing enough strikers to completely paralyze the targeted government (or, often, all governments). With the state and corporate apparatus thus crippled, the workers would be able to re-organize society along radically different lines. This philosophy was or still is favored by large elements within the
Socialist Party USA and the
Industrial Workers of the World, and is connected to the concept of the general strike which would end capitalism forever.
Two major revolutions during the 1980s strongly influenced
political movements that followed. The first was the 1986
overthrow of
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos, from which the term ''people power'' became widely used, especially in
Hispanic and
Asian nations. Three years later, the
Revolutions of 1989 reinforced the concept (with the notable exception of the notoriously bloody
Romanian Revolution), beginning with the victory of
Solidarity opposition in
that year's Polish legislative elections. The Revolutions of 1989 provided the template for the so-called
color revolutions in mainly
post-communist states, which use a
color or
flower as a
symbol and named after the
Velvet Revolution in
Czechoslovakia.
Overview
The beginnings of the
nonviolence movement lie in the
satyagraha philosophy of
Mahatma Gandhi, who guided the people of
India to
independence from
Britain. Despite the violence of the
Partition of India following independence, and numerous revolutionary uprisings which were not under Gandhi's control, India's independence was achieved through legal processes after a period of national
resistance rather than through a military revolution.
List of non-violent revolutions by era
Decolonization
★ 1930 -
Salt Satyagraha in
India in an attempt to overthrow
British colonial rule
Cold War
boo
In communist nations
★ 1968 - The
Prague Spring, a period of political liberalization in
Czechoslovakia.
★ The
Revolutions of 1989: Even though many of these revolutions did not take place entirely in 1989, they are usually grouped together as such.
★
★ 1981-1989 - The
Solidarity movement in
Poland marshals popular resistance to communist rule, though progress is halted by the imposition of
martial law.
★
★ 1987-1989 - The
Singing Revolution - a cycle of singing mass demonstrations, followed by a
living chain across the
Baltic states (
Estonia,
Lithuania,
Latvia), known as the
Baltic Way.
★
★ 1989 - The
Velvet Revolution - the bloodless revolution in
Czechoslovakia leading to the downfall of the communist government there.
★
★ 1989 - The
Tiananmen Square Protest was for democracy in China. The
Goddess of Democracy was their symbol. Though it was unsuccessful in effecting change in the
Chinese government, it took part in the broader challenge to communist regimes at that time. Though supported or tolerated by many senior government officials, the protests were crushed by military force.
★
★ 1989 - The bloodless revolution in
Bulgaria that resulted in the downfall of the communist government.
★ 1990 - The
Golaniad - a protest in
Romania in April by
Bucharest students who demanded a non-communist government. The protests ended in bloodshed after an intervention of miners called in by President
Ion Iliescu (the
Mineriad).
Outside communist nations
★ 1974 - The
Carnation Revolution in
Portugal.
★ 1986 - The
EDSA Revolution, where the term ''people power'' was coined.
Post-Cold War period
Color revolutions
Main articles: Color revolution
These are revolutions in
post-communist authoritarian Europe and other new countries that were part of the former
Soviet Union or
Warsaw Pact. Each of these had massive street protests and/or followed disputed elections and led to the resignation or overthrow of leaders considered by their opponents to be
authoritarian. Almost all of them used a particular color or a flower to be their symbol of unity.
★ 2000 - The '
Bulldozer Revolution', which led to the overthrow of
Slobodan Milošević. These demonstrations are considered by many to be the first example of the peaceful revolutions that followed in Georgia and Ukraine; however, the Serbs adopted an approach that had already been used in parliamentary elections in
Slovakia and
Croatia in 1998 and 2000, respectively, characterized by civic mobilization through get-out-the-vote campaigns and unification of the political opposition. The protesters in Serbia didn't adopt a color or specific symbol (the most recognizable symbol of the revolution was a stylized fist), and despite the commonalities, many others refer to Georgia as the most definite beginning of the series of "color revolutions." The demonstrations were supported by youth movement
Otpor.
★ 2003 - The '
Rose Revolution' in
Georgia, following the disputed
Georgia legislative election, 2003, led to the overthrow of
Eduard Shevardnadze and his replacement by
Mikhail Saakashvili after
new elections were held in March 2004. The Rose Revolution was supported by the civic resistance movement,
Kmara.
★ 2004 - The '
Orange Revolution' in
Ukraine, followed the disputed second round of the
2004 presidential election and led to the annulment of the result and the repeat of the round— the leader of the opposition
Viktor Yushchenko was declared President, defeating
Viktor Yanukovych. The Orange Revolution was supported by
Pora.
Revolutions in the Middle East
The media attention given to the
color revolutions has inspired movements in the
Middle East, and their supporters, to adopt similar symbology.
★ The '
Cedar Revolution' in
Lebanon followed the assassination of opposition leader
Rafik Hariri in 2005. Chiefly, the movement demanded the withdrawal of
Syrian troops from Lebanon, ending a ''de facto''
occupation. Unlike the revolutions in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, this movement did not seek to overturn disputed election results, but did cause the pro-Syrian government of Lebanon to fall. Due to similarities in motivation and organization strategies, it is widely considered a cousin of the color revolutions.
Revolutions in Latin America and Asia
Drawing inspiration from the recent
EDSA II in the
Philippines, as well as the
color revolution movement, several
South American countries experienced what were effectively non-violent revolutions.
★
Argentina
★
Bolivia
★
Ecuador - The impeachment of President
Lucio Gutierrez, by the Congress of that country after days of increasing demonstrations and protests by citizens led by the citizens of
Quito, the capital. Thousands of demonstrators were present in the Plaza of Independence. Flags were waved in celebration shortly after Congress voted out Gutierrez 62-0. Roads to Quito's airport were blocked by demonstrators to prevent Gutierrez from leaving the country. The former president was later given asylum by
Brazil and was transported out of the country on
April 24. Protesters also intend to depose the Congress after accusing the body of alleged corruption as well.
★
Peru
★ Philippines -
EDSA II, a four-day popular revolt that peacefully overthrew Philippine
president Joseph Estrada in January
2001, self-organized through
SMS messaging...
Organizers and supporters
Foundations
The
Soros Foundations, founded by
philanthropist George Soros, have been active for many years in fostering a transition to democracy and free enterprise in the post-Soviet sphere. Through the
Open Society Institute, they are noted for their close relationships with several of the color revolutions, particularly in Ukraine.
Other organizations
Students for Global Democracy, an organisation originated in the US, works with the ZUBR organization in Belarus, which is attempting to bring a color revolution to that nation. SGD has also worked with the new Azerbaijani YOX! (No) movement.
Current non-violent resistance
As of 2005, several countries are experiencing the rise of non-violent resistance movements with the intent of effecting a non-violent revolution.
Belarus
There have been a number of protests against President
Alexander Lukashenko, with participation from student group
Zubr. The most recent major protests were on
March 25,
2005. This was a self-declared attempt to emulate the Kyrgyzstan revolution, and involved over a thousand citizens. However it was severely suppressed by the police which arrested over 30 people.
Mikhail Marinich, a leader of the opposition, is currently in prison. The opposition uses as a symbol the white-red-white former
flag of Belarus. The movement has had significant connections with that in neighboring Ukraine, and during the Orange Revolution some white-red-white flags were seen being waved in Kiev.
Lukashenko has said in the past: "In our country, there will be no pink or orange, or even banana revolution." More recently he's said "They [the West] think that Belarus is ready for some 'orange' or, what is a rather frightening option, 'blue' or 'cornflower blue' revolution. Such 'blue' revolutions are the last thing we need".
[1] On
19 April, 2005, he further commented: "All these coloured revolutions are pure and simple banditry."
[2]
Moldova
The opposition in Moldova, is reported to have hoped and urged for some kind of Orange revolution, similar to that in Ukraine, in the followup of the
Moldovan parliamentary elections, 2005, while the
Christian Democratic People's Party adopted orange for its color in a clear reference to the events of Ukraine.
[3]
A name hypothesized for such an event was "grape revolution" because of the abundance of vineyards in the country, however such a revolution failed to materialize after the governmental victory in the elections. Many reasons have been given for this, including a fractured opposition and that the government had already co-opted many of the political positions that might have united the opposition (such as a perceived pro-European and anti-Russian stance). Also the elections themselves were declared fairer in the OSCE election monitoring reports than had been the case in other countries where similar revolutions occurred, even though the CIS monitoring mission strongly condemned them.
Mongolia
On
March 25,
2005, activists wearing yellow scarves held protests in the capital city of
Ulan Bator, disputing the results of the
2004 Mongolian parliamentary elections and calling for fresh elections. One of the chants heard in that protest was "Let's congratulate our Kyrgyz brothers for their revolutionary spirit. Let's free Mongolia of corruption."
[4]
Russia, Bashkortostan
The opposition in the
Republic of
Bashkortostan has held protests demanding that the federal authorities intervene to dismiss
Murtaza Rakhimov from his position as President of the republic, accusing him of leading an "arbitrary, corrupt, and violent" regime.
Airat Dilmukhametov, one of the opposition leaders, and leader of the
Bashkir National Front, has said that the opposition movement has been inspired by the mass protests of Ukraine and Kyrgyzstan.
[5] Another opposition leader,
Marat Khaiyirulin, said that if an
Orange Revolution were to happen in Russia, it would begin in Bashkortostan.
[6]
Uzbekistan
There has been longstanding opposition to President
Islom Karimov, from liberals and Islamists. The revolution in neighboring Kyrgyzstan began in the largely ethnic Uzbek south, and received early support in the city of
Osh.
Nigora Hidoyatova, leader of the
Free Peasants opposition party, has referred to the idea of a
farmers' revolution. She also said that her party is collaborating with the youth organization
Shiddat, and that she hopes it can evolve to an organization similar to
Kmara or
Pora.
[7]
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