Millions of Ghandhis: the power of nonviolent revolution.

• Author: Walker, Jesse
• Position: Liberation movements, Freedom House study

"Spreading freedom" has become the White House's all-purpose justification for war, but wars aren't necessarily the best way to plant the seeds of liberty.

A recent study from the D.C.-based group Freedom House suggests that the most effective movements against oppressive rule are those rooted in civic action from below rather than intervention from outside or above.

How Freedom Is Won, released in June, examines the most significant transfers of political power since the organization began categorizing countries as "free," "partly free," and "not free" in 1972. (Palace coups were excluded, as were changes in very small nations.) In each country, the report notes the strength of nonviolent civic coalitions, the social forces driving the transition, the level of violence, and whether that violence came from the state, the opposition, or both.

"The force of civic resistance was a key factor in driving 50 of 67 transitions," the study concludes, "or over 70 percent of countries where transitions began as dictatorial systems fell and/or new states arose from the disintegration of multinational states." Of those countries, the number categorized as free has grown from zero to 32, the number categorized as partly free has dropped from 25 to 14, and the number categorized as not free has fallen from 25 to four. Top-down movements for freedom were much less successful.

Furthermore...