TEDxKrakow - Srdja Popovic - How to topple a dictator

Srđa Popović was one of the founders and key organizers with the Serbian student nonviolent resistance group Otpor! Their nonviolent campaign to unseat Serbian president Slobodan Milošević met with success in October 2000, when hundreds of thousands of protestors converged upon and took over the Serbian Parliament, effectively ending Milošević's rule. Srđa says that 2011 is already "A Very Bad Year For Very Bad Guys" and it is worth understanding how people power, or the real power behind the on-going dramatic events in the Arab Spring and beyond actually works. This can help us predict events and scenarios not only in the on-going Arab struggles, but also in places like Burma and Belarus.

Srđa spoke at TEDxKraków, an independently organised TED event which took place on 20 October 2011 at the Manggha Centre for Japanese Art and Technology in Kraków, Poland. Our theme was "The New Normal" and we asked our speakers to tell us about what we might just have to get used to once the dust settles from the various ongoing geopolitical, financial and environmental crises.

In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized.* (*Subject to certain rules and regulations).

Polish:
Translation: Rysia Wand
Review: Krystian Aparta

English:
Original subtitles: Krystian Aparta

German:
Translation: Katja Tongucer

Spanish:
Translation: Lidia Cámara de la Fuente

French:
Translation: Laurent Penou

Serbian:
Translation: Ivana Korom

Category:

Nonprofits & Activism

Tags:

• Egypt
• tahrir square
• khaled said
• occupy wall street
• people power
• nonviolent struggle
• nonviolence
• Syria
• democracy
• Serbia
• OTPOR
• Tunisia
• libya
• anti-austerity
• violence
• foreign military intervention
• NATO
• Mubarak
• ben ali
• gaddafi
• osama bin laden
• ratko mladic
• Milosevic
• CANVAS
• Al-Assad
• Assad
• Salahi
• Yemen
• transition
• repression
• oppression
• fear
• enthusiasm
• humor
• social media
• twitter
• facebook
• protests
• movements
• youth
• dictator
• regime

[annoloki]

You guys going on about CIA are SO missing the point here. Sheesh.

[chikabuda]

- foreign exchange reserves amounted to only USD 300 million

- 600,000 refugees from the ex Yugoslav Republics and Kosovo

- the internal debts totaled to EUR 15 billion

- almost 70% non-repaired railways, roads, schools, hospitals

- foreign exchange debt to the depositor around 10 billion

[Genieinus]

Well spoken.

thank you

[PanicusVulgaris]

Pseto masonsko, ponizni sluga americkog nacizma! On prica o demokratiji, koja podmukla ironija!!!

[stash51]

wow... soo much bull

[3SRBIJACCCC]

Ђубре издајничко!

This CIA idiot destroyed us!

[goran2912]

Srdja prica o Otporu a ne kaze zbog cega je bio izbacen iz Otpora.... govedo jedno....mlatis pare i prodajes maglu ljudima....

[TRBtree]

What really irks me about this is that it's a lie. The Arab Spring Revolutions were NOT NON-VIOLENT. Not a single one; not Egypt, not Syria, not Tunisia. Video after video shows thousands not only defending themselves, but taking the offensive with urban guerrilla warfare. They fire-bombed police stations around Cairo in order to topple the regime. They used molotovs, rocks, poles...There is no way the Arab Spring would have happened without the violent revolutionaries who died to defend it.

[mrzombiepants]

What a great guy

[ribizlla]

@bebeblabla in facts percents say something else. if you look at 323 different conflicts from 1900 to 2006 you will see that in case of nonviolent uprisings against dictators people who desire change are sucesfull in 53 % cases if they pick the path of nonviolent struggle More than 40 percents of this changes end up in stable democracies (checking period of 5 years after change occurs) - quite a fair chances for positive outcome for those living without basic freedoms, aint it?