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URL: http://news-info.wustl.edu/sb/page/normal/115.html
Professor Emeritus of Political Science
- Professor Emeritus, Political Science (http://news-info.wustl.edu/group/page/normal/46.html)
Expertise: politics, terrorism, guerrilla warfare, Middle East, Iraq, Africa, Liberia, Eritrea, corruption, international law
Bio:
Victor Le Vine is an expert on hostages, terrorism, guerrilla warfare and political problems of the Middle East and Northern Africa. Other areas of interest include international law and politics and ethnic politics. He has followed the situation in Iraq closely since well before the Gulf War and can discuss the current situation from various perspectives. He is articulate on issues related to U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East, as well as the U.S. handling of domestic terrorism threats, including the possibility that a war with Iraq might spur terrorist attacks against U.S. holdings both here and abroad. More recently, he has commented on constitutional issues and political unrest in emerging African nations, such as Liberia and Eritrea. A frequent news commentator, he has served as a consultant to the U.S. Peace Corps, State Department and Department of Defense.
WUSTL Contact Information:
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| E-mail: | vlevine@artsci.wustl.edu |
| Address: | Campus Box 1063
One Brookings Dr.
Washington University in St. Louis
St. Louis, MO 63130
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Education:
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Ph.D. at University of California at Los Angeles
| News Stories & Tip Sheets: |
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Iraq endgame
U.S. rules Iraq under international law doctrine of 'debellatio' and will until stable government is formed (http://news-info.wustl.edu/tips/page/normal/717.html)
March 3,
2004 --
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| Photo courtesy U.S. Army |
| A U.S. Army brigadier general congratulates the graduates of the new police academy in Sin'Jar. |
Americans anxious to handover power to a sovereign Iraqi government by June 30 should remember it took 10 years for Allied Forces to return similar powers to Germany following World War II, says WUSTL political expert Victor Le Vine. Iraq, like post-war Germany, is now considered debellatio — its government no longer exists under international law. And, like it or not, the United States is stuck in Iraq until a new government is formed, a process that hinges on some very contentious constitution making. As part of an international conference on post-conflict constitutional reconstruction, Le Vine spent two years examining some 20 cases of constitution making in countries torn by war, revolution, rebellion and internal collapse. His analysis suggests that Iraqi nation-building will be both "painful and agonizingly difficult."
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Additional Background: Victor LeVine has been at Washington University since 1961. He his currently working on two books, Politics in French-Speaking Africa and Non-Formal Politics. Recent Publications include articles on "Conceptualizing 'Ethnicity' and 'Ethnic Conflict'..." (Studies in Comparative International Development, Fall, 1997); "The Fall and Rise of Constitutionalism in West Africa"(Journal of Modern African Studies, June 1997); "The Logomachy of Terrorism" (Terrorism and Political Violence, Winter 1995); "Does a Coercive Official Response Deter Terrorism? The Case of the PLO" (Terrorism and Political Violence, Spring 1966; with Barbara Salert).
Le Vine teaches a class on "Terrorism and Terrorists," which analyzes the use of terror as a political weapon, seen both in historical context and through its contemporary forms. The focused, public demonstration of violence is one of the oldest forms of coercion, employed by those in power as well as by those opposing them, and for reasons that range from religious devotion or rage, to the assertion of authority, to the fulfillment of ideological commitment, to the expression of policy lines. The course explores both the many forms in which terrorism becomes manifest and the mind, personality, and intentions of those involved in it. It also considers the problems of dealing with terrorism and terrorists, including counter-terror, official interdiction, negotiation, security measures, and legislation.
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