El Salvador's Civil War: A Study of Revolution
Hugh Byrne| | | ISBN: 978-1-55587-606-7 $55.00 |
| ISBN: 978-1-58826-196-0 $26.00 |
| 1996/242 pages/LC: 96-14147 |
DESCRIPTION
Choice Outstanding Academic Book!
This in-depth study of the recent civil war in El Salvador supports the author's broader contention that the strategies adopted by incumbent regimes and insurgent movements are key to explaining why revolutions occur—and the conditions under which they succeed or fail.
Arguing that prevailing theories of revolution underemphasize the importance of choices and the dynamic interaction between conflicting parties, Byrne demonstrates that strategy played a critical role in the outcome of El Salvador's civil war. His analysis is based in large part on a close examination of more than 12,000 recently declassified U.S. documents, documents of the FMLN insurgents, and interviews with leading participants in the conflict.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Hugh Byrne is a fellow at the Washington Office on Latin America and teaches Latin American politics at George Washington University.
CONTENTS
- Strategy and Revolution.
- The Origins of El Salvador's Crisis.
- Preparation for War.
- Fighting Different Wars: Insurgent and Counterinsurgent Strategies from the January 1981 FMLN Offensive to Mid-1984.
- The Primacy of the Political: Strategies of Insurgency and Counterinsurgency 1984–1989.
- Resolving the Conflict Through Negotiations.
- Conclusion.
"This study is strengthened by the author’s experience with the Committee in Solidarity with the People of El Salvador, his impeccable scholarship, which draws on recently declassified U.S. documents, and extensive interviews with former FMLN guerrilla leaders.... Highly recommended for undergraduate and graduate students, professionals, and most general readers."—Choice