Donald P. Moynihan is Associate Director of the La Follette School of Public Affairs and Professor of Public Affairs. His research examines the application of organization theory to public management issues such as performance, budgeting, homeland security, election administration, and employee behavior. In particular, he studies the selection and implementation of public management reforms. We contacted the Professor Moynihan to discuss revolutions, uprisings, and nations’ capabilities, and he replied to our questions in an exclusive interview to Gulan Magazine as the following:

* Revolution and uprising are two terms that every nation have been through, in a certain time in history, so to what extend revolution and uprising shows the ability of a nation in a certain time?
- I think there is a time period that people become feel oppressed with the governing system that in place, and if they lack the means to represent their interests through the existing laws, that if you revolution as their only alternative. In general one mark of developed democracies is that different groups can come to terms one another through lawful means rather than the uprising. You can’t see more violent revolutions or uprisings all in cases were there hasn’t been an effort to give voice to competing groups or societies.

* Revolution and uprisings are the reflection of the ability of a nation which unites in a specific time period and no any power can resist it, what is the factor that unifies the abilities of a nation?
- I think there has to be broad based support for the goals of the revolution in the society among different groups so to take the American Revolution as an example, here you had a rowdily broad group of society who believe that they will be oppressed by the British colonial system I think revolution are more likely to succeed in those conditions in the conditions they were slide to narrow the interest of a particular group.

* Revolution and uprising for rescuing a nation is different from revolutions for social reforms, to what extend revolution and uprising of an oppressed nation is the beginning of freedom for that nation?
- I think we do have examples in the history were uprisings in the basis have found new nation, I think one of the most important things so for these nations succeeded is that they can find the way to get along with the neighbors, so I think in the American case because America is geographically isolated that was a little bit easer realest examples of some places Europe and former Yugoslavia or even Ireland were you had uprisings let longer disagreement between neighbors in general I think finding areas of agreement between different parts of society or different parts of the country is important to try to sustain some sort of long term peace after and uprising take place so you know for example in Egypt now you have different groups coming to Tahrir square protesting the Mubarak regime and they demonstrate the high degree of unity in that period if this new democracy is going to succeed I think it depend largely upon those groups still been able to maintain some level of mutual respect and ability to work for one another's future and weather that happens or not I think its too early to tell in the case of Egypt.

* As the oppressed nation get their independency they face many problems in managing freedom, how to get benefit from the history of revolutions and uprisings for social independency and also social justice?
- I think having an ability to not just go to revolution and uprising but also think about the structure of governance afterwards is very important so maintaining some sort of long term success from uprising in American case the design of governance here makes it so that no single group or party can completely dominate and so that no one can take over a sort of dictatorial power or royal power that would make one person much more important than the rest of society I think this a pretty good lesson for other countries because it suggest that having separation of power produces potential that any group can dominate another group.

* How to enhance the rebuilding process after any revolution?
- I think one think that can help is using the administrative of capacity of the former state so even though people work for former state might be distrusted and even disliked at least know how government worked and to finding ways to get them to work for the revolution and use their skills to provide, to teach people to take over the new government has actually run it well would help a great deal a lot of challenges that any new administration the new government faces are practically like how to keep electricity running how to make sure that benefits are paid to citizens or to public employee but at least basic things aren’t done people will come dissolution for it who ever new administration emplaced, so I do think one probably simple lesson is to take over the administrative machine that was already emplaced and at least in the short term use that to try to completely reinvent how government works.

* The revolution for freedom should be followed by democracy and development processes, to what extend revolution and uprisings are the factors for the success of the democracy?
- I think any time you see a revolution that displaces a non-democratic regime some sort of dictatorship that generally a positive thing it doesn’t always necessarily follow though back the regime, the new regime will be any more democratic than the previous one in some examples in Former Eastern Europe after the fallen of Berlin wall you would lots of central and eastern European countries that move from essential dictatorship some one party state to democratic regime that’s what they have today I think in the former Russia that transition has been much more difficult and have one dominant party and one dominant figure running the state so having some sort of structures and placed to make sure that there will be multiple political parties, that different political parties have an ability to access public airways and media for example that they have ability to states airplane and public that provides the foundation for a healthy democracy moving to situation workers simple one dominant party reduces potential for democracy it succeed.

Transcription: Mahmud Samih