“El antigolpe”, by Gonzalo Arias

What should a people do to defend itself from pro-coup military and political leaders? El antigolpe (The Anti-Coup) was one of the few books that tried to answer this question following the attempted coup d’état of 23 February 1981 in the midst of Spain’s transition to democracy. Hence the significance of this publication, which Gonzalo Arias had to publish himself after twelve different publishers refused to do so.
The book raises issues that are still relevant today: the hierarchical nature and rules of obedience in the armed forces, the analysis of coup attempts that fail due to disobedience within and outside the army, and the examination of successful coups in order to analyze what failed in the popular resistance.
The historical significance of this publication and the topicality of the issues discussed fully justify its reissue. El antigolpe. Manual para la respuesta noviolenta a un golpe de estado has been published as part of the series “Tools for Peace, Security and Justice” (ICIP and Líniazero), and also in digital format (PDF and EPUB).