This thesis discusses the impact of opposition movements in effecting regime transition in Syria and Egypt during the Arab Spring, analyzing their organizational structure, objectives, strategies,...Show moreThis thesis discusses the impact of opposition movements in effecting regime transition in Syria and Egypt during the Arab Spring, analyzing their organizational structure, objectives, strategies, legitimacy, and de facto power. It starts out from the premise that it is crucial that the opposition influences 'soft-liners' within the regime to undermine its internal cohesion and stability. It is argued that the opposition in both countries has been durable due to intrinsic motivations of the participants and widespread social dissatisfaction, and their diffuse yet coherent grassroots forms of organization have rendered them hard to repress by the regime. In both countries, however, the opposition was unable to overthrow the regime by itself since it did not have sufficient military power resources to pose a real threat to the regime's survival. In Syria, the opposition could not generate enough division among the elite, while in Egypt, division already existed among the elite and this was augmented by the opposition, with the acquiescence of the military proving crucial in the regime transition. The extent of influence of the opposition was heavily constrained by the political opportunity structures in which they operated, with repression by the regime playing a large role and curtailing agency.Show less
In two periods since the early nineties, first under presidents Shevardnadze and then under president Saakashvili, democratic progress in Georgia stalled. For the Georgian case the explanatory...Show moreIn two periods since the early nineties, first under presidents Shevardnadze and then under president Saakashvili, democratic progress in Georgia stalled. For the Georgian case the explanatory merit of two theories that attempt to explain democratisation is assessed . Carothers’ revised transition paradigm better explains the stagnation of democratic progress in Georgia in the Shevardnadze era, while presidential power theory is better at explaining that stagnation in the period of Saakashvili's presidential terms.Show less
