TY - JOUR

T1 - Will the Real Tunisian Opposition Please Stand Up?

T2 - Opposition Coordination Failures under Authoritarian Constraints

AU - Haugbølle, Rikke Hostrup

AU - Cavatorta, Francesco

PY - 2011/12

Y1 - 2011/12

N2 - ABSTRACT This contribution examines the reasons behind the failure of Tunisia’s opposition to forge effective coordination and collaborative links during Ben Ali’s reign, focusing specifically on the inability and unwillingness of political parties to act in concert in order to challenge his authoritarian rule. Focusing on two attempts at opposition coordination in the 2000s (Rencontre De´mocratique and 18 October Collectif), it demonstrates that a number of interconnected explanations are at the heart of this failure, ranging from ideological differences and strategic divergence to personal rivalries among opposition leaders. The key contention of this study is that divisions within the political opposition were as important as regime repression in sustaining the Ben Ali regime for over 20 years. In addition, the present study contends that these intra-opposition divisions and past coordination failures explain the absence of political parties at the helm of the 2011 uprising.

AB - ABSTRACT This contribution examines the reasons behind the failure of Tunisia’s opposition to forge effective coordination and collaborative links during Ben Ali’s reign, focusing specifically on the inability and unwillingness of political parties to act in concert in order to challenge his authoritarian rule. Focusing on two attempts at opposition coordination in the 2000s (Rencontre De´mocratique and 18 October Collectif), it demonstrates that a number of interconnected explanations are at the heart of this failure, ranging from ideological differences and strategic divergence to personal rivalries among opposition leaders. The key contention of this study is that divisions within the political opposition were as important as regime repression in sustaining the Ben Ali regime for over 20 years. In addition, the present study contends that these intra-opposition divisions and past coordination failures explain the absence of political parties at the helm of the 2011 uprising.

KW - Faculty of Humanities

M3 - Journal article

VL - 38

SP - 323

EP - 341

JO - British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies

JF - British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies

SN - 1353-0194

IS - 3

ER -