Libya: Continuity and Change

by St John; Ronald Bruce

• ISBN13: 9780415779777
• ISBN10: 0415779774
• Format: Nonspecific Binding
• Copyright: 2011-04-06
• Publisher: Routledge

Summary

This book examines the socioeconomic and political development of Libya since independence in 1951 with a focus on the four decades of revolutionary rule which began in 1969. Following a brief look at pre-independence Libya, it explores the way in which the fragility of the post-independence state, unable to contain rising Arab nationalist struggles and growing economic expectations, opened the way for the Free Unionist Officers led by Muammar al-Qaddafi to seize power. It then traces the progressive development of the revolutionary state through four stages: the consolidation of power to 1973, the projection of power to 1986, withdrawal and retrenchment to 1999, and the redefinition of the state after 1999. In following this outline, the emphasis in each chapter is on the post-1999 period, highlighting the issues facing the contemporary state along with possible solutions.

Author Biography

Ronald Bruce St John is an independent scholar and consultant for Associated Press, National Geographic, New York Times, ABC's 20-20, the Department of State, the National Intelligence Council, and Fortune 500 companies. An analyst for Foreign Policy in Focus, he has served on the International Advisory Board of the Journal of Libyan Studies and the Atlantic Council Working Group on Libya, and has published a large number of books, articles, and reviews on Andean America, North Africa and the Middle East, and Southeast Asia.

Table of Contents

Preface	p. xi
Acknowledgments	p. xiv
Note on transliteration and use of names	p. xv
Chronology	p. xvi
List of abbreviations	p. xx
Map	p. xxii
Introduction	p. 1
State formation	p. 21
Politics	p. 48
Economics	p. 82
International relations	p. 113
Conclusions	p. 143
Bibliographical survey of the recent literature	p. 152
Glossary	p. 155
Bibliography	p. 156
Index	p. 173
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