Some rebel groups abuse noncombatant populations, while others exhibit restraint. Insurgent leaders in some countries transform local structures of government, while others simply extract resources for their own benefit. In some contexts, groups kill their victims selectively, while in other environments violence appears indiscriminate, even random. This book presents a theory that accounts for the different strategies pursued by rebel groups in civil war, explaining why patterns of insurgent violence vary so much across conflicts. It does so by examining the membership, structure, and behavior of four insurgent movements in Uganda, Mozambique, and Peru. Drawing on interviews with nearly two hundred combatants and civilians who experienced violence firsthand, it shows that rebels’ strategies depend in important ways on how difficult it is to launch a rebellion. The book thus demonstrates how characteristics of the environment in which rebellions emerge constrain rebel organization and shape the patterns of violence that civilians experience.
• A textured account of the internal organization of four rebel movements, drawing on interviews with combatants and civilians • Employs the comparative method, mixing qualitative and quantitative methods, to develop and test a simple theory of violence • Tackles a critical question that motivates much scholarly work on civil war, asking why civilians suffer so much more in some conflicts than in others
Contents
Part I. The Structure of Rebel Organizations: 1. The industrial organization of rebellion; 2. Four rebel organizations; 3. Recruitment; 4. Control; Part II. The Strategies of Rebel Groups: 5. Governance; 6. Violence; 7. Resilience; 8. Extensions.
Reviews
‘Well structured and clearly written … I would strongly recommend this book to those scholars who still believe that quantitative and qualitative approaches are generally irreconcilable.’ Political Studies Review
'This book would be of much benefit for both research students and established scholars of civil wars. Moreover, I would strongly recommend this book to those scholars who still believe that quantitative and qualitative approaches are generally irreconcilable.' Political Studies Review
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