A Military coup is the sudden illegal, and often violent overthrow or alteration of a government by a small group within the armed forces. Coups are a polarizing phenomenon of military interference and a critical focus of civil-military relations research. However, defining and reacting sensibly to a Military coup is challenging for many democratic governments.
The dictionary definition of a Military coup is fairly clear: Merriam-Webster says “the sudden decisive exercise of power in politics by a small group of people.” And Cambridge Dictionary says, “the sudden, illegal, often violent taking of government by a military group.” However, the reality of a Military coup can be much more complicated.
In general, a Military coup is triggered when the governing leadership is perceived to be incompetent or corrupt and there are popular protests that the governing regime cannot respond to. Once the military decides that a coup is necessary they convince their soldiers that the “right thing” to do is oust the current leader and take control. After removing the existing leader they usually impose their will by installing their own people in key positions so that there is no way to restore the previous government.
Fitness instructor Khing Hnin Wai has been videotaping her aerobics routine on the streets of Yangon, Myanmar for months, but it was only last week that one of her YouTube videos went viral. In it she dances along to techno-pop, seemingly oblivious to the military convoys streaming down the street behind her.