faint pages

This study develops a leader-centric theory of civil-military relations that expands upon three broad areas of research. Specifically, the study suggests that leaders will evaluate multiple threats to their political survival and will ultimately implement strategy that is most likely to keep them in power. While Downs (1957) has noted such a tendency in democracies, this study expands this rationale to authoritarian regimes by focusing on the primary means of authoritarian removal: the military coup. In contrast to the state-centric nature of traditional international relations theory, this dissertation finds that leaders frequently undermine the power of the state in order to accomplish the self-interested goal of political survival. First, the study carefully describes a number of coup-proofing strategies that leaders can implement. These are broadly defined in terms of influencing either the military’s willingness or its ability to attempt a coup. In addition to testing the effectiveness of these strategies, this study also theoretically explores the implications of coup-proofing for other political development of the state: interstate and intrastate conflict. Second, the study considers the influence of coup-proofing on interstate conflict. This study builds on the diversionary literature by investing coup risk as an incentive to use diversionary tactics as well as coup-proofing as a potential disincentive. The latter can both undermine the necessity of diversion as well as military capabilities, making leaders less capable of utilizing international conflict as a political tool. Third, the dissertation considers the influence of coup-proofing on intrastate conflict. The theory argues that the capability-reducing practice of coup-proofing can have important domestic consequences. Specifically, the practice can increase the mobilizational potential of would-be insurgents, can reduce the mobilizational capacity of the state, and leaders that are particularly fearful of a coup will likely tolerate the rise of an insurgency.

Foi definido que elementos regulatórios da expressão atrial-específica do promotor da SMyHC3 estão contidos em um elemento complexo de resposta a receptores nucleares (ECRRN). Ensaios de transativação celular indicam que alguns receptores nucleares se ligam nesta região. A partir destes ensaios verificamos a ativação do promotor por um receptor nuclear, o COUP-TFII. Ele regula muitos processos biológicos, como angiogênese e o próprio desenvolvimento atrial. Através da deleção do ECRRN observamos que o promotor não era ativado por COUP-TFII, indicando a sua ligação nessa região. Verificamos ainda que somente o domínio de ligação ao ligante do COUP-TFII é capaz de ativar o promotor, sugerindo a necessidade de uma interação com outros RNs para ativar o promotor. Uma análise proteômica indica que a maioria dos interactores de COUP-TFII está relacionada com complexos reguladores da transcrição e com a via de sinalização do receptor de andrógenos (AR). Ensaios de transativação celular mostram que juntos, COUP-TFII e AR, são capazes de aumentar a ativação do promotor. / It was determined that regulatory elements of the atrial-specific expression of the promoter SMyHC3 are contained in a complex nuclear receptor response element (CNRRE). Cellular transactivation assays indicated certain nuclear receptors (NR) can bind in this region. From these trials, was observed the promoter activation by a nuclear receptor, COUP-TFII. It regulates many biological processes such as angiogenesis and atrial development. Deletion of CNRRE resulted in no activation of the promoter by COUP-TFII, indicating their connection in this region. We also verified that only the ligand binding domain of COUP-TFII is able to activate the promoter, suggesting interaction with other NRs to activate it. A proteomic analysis revealed that most of COUP-TFII partners relates to complexes of transcription regulators and the androgen receptor (AR) signaling pathway. Cell transactivation assays showed that together, COUP - TFII and AR, are able to increase promoter activation.

Depuis les indépendances, les régimes politiques africains sont demeurés très instables, du fait de la militarisation de ces régimes et des accessions illégales et illégitimes au pouvoir politique. Mais les transitions démocratiques de 1990 ont amorcé un constitutionnalisme nouveau marqué par l’adhésion à la démocratie pluraliste et à l’État de droit. Cependant le coup d'État persiste à être un procédé privilégié d'accession au pouvoir. Cette situation ne saurait laisser indifférent le chercheur. On peut s’interroger sur l’approche que le droit public réserve à la notion de coup d’État. / Since independence, African political regimes have remained very volatile, because of militarization of these political regimes, and also illegal and illegitimate accession to political power. But the democratic transitions of 1990 introduced a new constitutionalism with democracy and rule of law. However, the coup d'etat persists in being a privileged way of accession to political power. This situation should interest searchers. We might ask how public law pprehends the concept of a coup d'état.

This thesis looks at the causes behind Fiji’s 5 December 2006 coup. It takes a twofold approach, first looking at the background causes which illustrate that Fiji was vulnerable to a further coup after the 2000 coup. The study then moves on to an analysis of the triggering causes. This analyses both the motive; consisting of threats to the military’s interests and failures of the government, and the opportunity, consisting of a deflation in the government’s legitimacy and military cohesion. To test these factors a cross-time comparison of the five instances of high tension between the Fijian military and Government is presented in an effort to identify how the coup differed from those disputes that preceded it. These periods of tension are: the 2004 reappointment of Bainimarama; the Unity Bill dispute; the January 2006 coup threat; the 2006 election; and the December 2006 Coup. From this analysis it was found that threats to the military’s interests were key in generating the motive for intervention, but that governmental failures were not a significant factor; while they motivated the military to be a vocal actor, they did not garner the motive for intervention. The opportunity was only found to occur when there was both a deflation in the Government’s legitimacy and strong military cohesion. For Fiji’s 2006 coup the motivating factors were the threats to the military’s interests, from the scheduled Supreme Court ruling on the role of the military, the rivalry with the fully-armed Tactical Response Unit of the Police, and crucially the pending criminal charges against Bainimarama. This coincided with the opportunity for intervention from a drop in the Government’s legitimacy as a result of a crisis in the multi-party Cabinet and the Government’s growing ethnic bias, along with strong cohesion in the military.

L’hippocampe est un composant majeur du cerveau des mammifères et joue d'importants rôles dans la mémoire, l’apprentissage et la navigation spatiale. Il comprend deux régions distinctes: les champs ammoniens et le gyrus denté (DG). Pendant ma thèse, je me suis intéressée au facteur de transcription COUP- TFI, jouant des rôles clefs dans la spécification et migration neocorticale. Peu de choses sont connues sur son rôle dans l’hippocampe. COUP-TFI y est exprimé en gradient dans les progéniteurs et dans les neurones différentiés, et est fortement localisé dans le neuroépithelium du DG. Le but de ma thèse était de déchiffrer le rôle de COUP-TFI dans le développement de l’hippocampe, au cours de la différentiation et migration des granules, population principale du DG. À l’aide de lignées de souris dans lesquelles COUP-TFI est soit inactivé dans les progéniteurs soit seulement dans les cellules différentiées, j’ai montré que l’absence de COUP-TFI induit différents degrés d’altérations. En l’absence de COUPTFI dans les progéniteurs, les précurseurs du DG se différentient précocement, ont une prolifération réduite et leur migration est altérée. De plus, les afférences du cortex n’innervent pas le DG septal et l’apoptose y est accrue. Le DG en résulte fortement réduit chez adulte, particulièrement dans la région septal. La perte de COUP-TFI dans les cellules différentiées n’entraine que des anomalies mineures et transitoires. Ainsi, mes résultats indiquent que COUP-TFI régule la différentiation et migration des granules, particulièrement au niveau des progéniteurs, et propose COUP-TFI comme un nouveau facteur requis dans le développement et le fonctionnement de l’hippocampe. / The hippocampus is a major component of the mammalian brain and plays important roles in memory, learning, and spatial navigation. It comprises two distinct regions: the hippocampus proper and the dentate gyrus (DG). During my thesis, I have challenged the role of the strong transcriptional regulator COUP-TFI, playing key roles during neocortical specification and migration. Yet, little is known about its involvement in the hippocampus. COUP-TFI is expressed in a gradient fashion in both proliferating progenitors and differentiated neurons in the hippocampus, and is highly localized in the DG neuroepithelium. The aim of my thesis was thus to decipher the role of COUP-TFI in the developing hippocampus, and specifically in cell differentiation and migration of granule cells, the major DG cell population. Using two mutant mouse lines, in which COUP-TFI is either ablated in progenitors, or solely in post-mitotic cells, I have shown that absence of COUP-TFI induces different degrees of growth impairments. In the absence of COUP-TFI in progenitors, DG precursors tend to differentiate precociously, exhibit reduced proliferation and granule cells migration is impaired. Postnatally, inputs from the cortex fail to innervate the septal DG and apoptosis is abnormally increased. The DG results strongly reduced in adult, particularly in the septal region. Loss of COUP-TFI in differentiated cells leads only to minor and transient defects. Together, my results indicate that COUP-TFI is involved in regulating granule cell differentiation and migration predominantly in progenitors, and propose COUPTFI as a novel transcriptional regulator required in hippocampal development and functions.

Foi definido que elementos regulatórios da expressão atrial-específica do promotor da SMyHC3 estão contidos em um elemento complexo de resposta a receptores nucleares (ECRRN). Ensaios de transativação celular indicam que alguns receptores nucleares se ligam nesta região. A partir destes ensaios verificamos a ativação do promotor por um receptor nuclear, o COUP-TFII. Ele regula muitos processos biológicos, como angiogênese e o próprio desenvolvimento atrial. Através da deleção do ECRRN observamos que o promotor não era ativado por COUP-TFII, indicando a sua ligação nessa região. Verificamos ainda que somente o domínio de ligação ao ligante do COUP-TFII é capaz de ativar o promotor, sugerindo a necessidade de uma interação com outros RNs para ativar o promotor. Uma análise proteômica indica que a maioria dos interactores de COUP-TFII está relacionada com complexos reguladores da transcrição e com a via de sinalização do receptor de andrógenos (AR). Ensaios de transativação celular mostram que juntos, COUP-TFII e AR, são capazes de aumentar a ativação do promotor. / It was determined that regulatory elements of the atrial-specific expression of the promoter SMyHC3 are contained in a complex nuclear receptor response element (CNRRE). Cellular transactivation assays indicated certain nuclear receptors (NR) can bind in this region. From these trials, was observed the promoter activation by a nuclear receptor, COUP-TFII. It regulates many biological processes such as angiogenesis and atrial development. Deletion of CNRRE resulted in no activation of the promoter by COUP-TFII, indicating their connection in this region. We also verified that only the ligand binding domain of COUP-TFII is able to activate the promoter, suggesting interaction with other NRs to activate it. A proteomic analysis revealed that most of COUP-TFII partners relates to complexes of transcription regulators and the androgen receptor (AR) signaling pathway. Cell transactivation assays showed that together, COUP - TFII and AR, are able to increase promoter activation.

Mémoire numérisé par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal.

Mémoire numérisé par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal.

Comment une prise de pouvoir par la force peut-elle donner naissance à un ordre juridique stable? Peu étudié par les juristes, le coup d’Etat moderne n’est pas seulement un procédé permettant l’accession au pouvoir, il est également l’un des modes d’enclenchement du pouvoir constituant originaire, moment de rupture et de reconstruction constitutionnelles. Cette notion se trouve être au croisement de la science politique, de la philosophie du droit, et de l’histoire. Permettant l’instauration d’une nouvelle constitution, le coup d’Etat moderne est une prise de pouvoir soudaine par un petit groupe d'hommes appartenant à l’appareil de l’Etat et utilisant la force. En se fondant sur différents évènements historiques majeurs, comme les coups de Bonaparte, Lénine, Pinochet, etc., il paraît nécessaire de définir ce concept, le distinguant de la révolution. Il est possible d’établir une classification des différents types de coups, selon leurs protagonistes et leur impact sur l’ordre juridique : coup d’Etat révolutionnaire, coup d’Etat classique, coup d’Etat moderne, putsch, et pronunciamiento. Il se dégage alors les techniques de préparation, de mise en oeuvre, et de maintien du coup qui touchent à la fois aux sphères politique et juridique. / How can the violent overthrow of a government generate a stable legal order? Often overlooked by the legal community, a modern coup is not just a process of accession to power; it is also one of the ways of engaging the original constituent power, of constitutional rupture and of reconstruction. This concept is located at the intersection of political science, of the philosophy of law and of history. The modern coup, which permits the establishment of a new constitution, is the sudden, illegal replacement of a government by a small group of the existing state establishment by the use of force. Based on various historical events, such as the coups d’état of Bonaparte, Lenin, Pinochet, etc., we define this concept and distinguish it from a revolution. We establish a classification of different types of coups, according to their protagonists and their impact on the constitutional system: revolutionary coups, classical coups, modern coups, putsches, and pronunciamienti. We also define the techniques of preparation, implementation and preservation of the coup which affect both the political and legal spheres