| “ | You walk into this room at your own risk, because it leads to the future. Not a future that will be but one that might be. This is not a new world; it is simply an extension of what began in the old one. It has patterned itself after every dictator who has ever planted the ripping imprint of a boot on the pages of history since the beginning of time. It has refinements, technological advances, and a more sophisticated approach to the destruction of human freedom. But like every one of the super-states that preceded it, it has one iron rule: logic is an enemy and truth is a menace. | „ |
| ~ The Twilight Zone, "The Obsolete Man" |
A dictatorship is a form of government that centers power in a single organ, party or in the hands of just one person that gets called "dictator".
Types
Authoritarianism
Summary
Authoritarianism is when a state in which sovereignty is exercised by a hegemonic party or a dictator.
Features
- It abolishes the rule of law of the principles of legality, thus it violates the freedoms of the human being and acts as a force above the law.
- It limitates the fundamental individual rights: personal freedom, freedom of speech, freedom of expression and freedom of the press.
- It represses any form of dissent with the prohibition of setting up private associations or organizations, other than those expressly authorized, and the creation of a single party.
- It suppress the trade union freedom.
- It replaces the elected bodies, with bodies nominated by the government.
- It creates a rigid hierarchical system.
Totalitarianism
Summary
Totalitarianism is a type of dictatorship similar to authoritarianism, but it also expands its control in the life of the single individual.
Features
- It concentrates power on an immovable and politically irresponsible oligarchy.
- It imposes an official ideology, such as fascism or communism.
- It has a single mass party in power.
- It controls the forces operating in the state and uses terror.
- It has complete control of communication and information.
- It uses propaganda to plagiarize the mind of the people into thinking their ideology.
Military dictatorship
Summary
A military dictatorship is an authoritarian form of government in which political power is held by the military.
Features
- It is guided by collegiate body.
- The head of state can be a senior officer or supreme commander of the armed forces.
- The dictator pushes a cult of personality to become the emblem of the nation.
- It starts after coup d'etat.
- Very often it has the characteristics of an autocracy.
- It often abandons power only under the pressure of an already ongoing or imminent popular uprising.
- It justifies itself with excuse of protecting the country from dangerous ideologies.
- It applies martial laws.
- It strives to portray civilian politicians as "corrupt" and "incompetent".