Dictatorship (Meaning and Explanation)

We explain what a dictatorship is, what types exist and their characteristics. Also, examples in history and today.

What is a dictatorship?

A dictatorship is a form of government in which a single individual, or a small group of them, holds absolute power on the State indefinitely and without real constitutional limitations. It implies that political power is exercised in an authoritarian, vertical manner, without space for debate or political dissent, and therefore neither for the exercise of democracy.

Dictatorships can be established in very different ways, some even coming to power democratically, others through revolutions, civil wars or coups d'état. But even if their origin is legitimate and democratic, authoritarian practices and The imbalance of powers that every dictatorship implies prevents its removal of power, and sometimes even its mere denunciation.

The term dictatorship comes from dictator, which is the person who holds political power in governments of this nature, and this word in turn comes from Latin dictatora term used in the ancient Roman Republic to designate magistrates who, in the face of a military threat or an extraordinary crisis, were invested with special and absolute powers, that is, unlimited authority within the State.

We should not confuse dictatorships with monarchies, since in the latter the power of the king is limited by other political forces (in the case of parliamentary monarchies, for example) or subscribed to a constitution (in the case of constitutional monarchies). ). Dictatorship is a modern political concept.

Characteristics of a dictatorship

In general, every dictatorship is characterized by:

Absolute and unlimited political power in the hands of a single individual or a single party, or a generally military clique.
Suspension of constitutional guarantees minimums such as freedom of expression (press censorship), freedom of association, the right to protest, the right to life, etc.
Authoritarian management of the powers of the State to maintain political and social order at all costs, even exercising systematic violence against the population: repression, imprisonment, disappearances, torture, etc.
Annulment or dissolution of democratic institutions making the balance of powers of the Republic impossible and violating what is established in the Constitution, or at least giving it a biased, convenient interpretation.
Loss of the rule of law: Citizens are judged differently depending on whether or not they belong to the powerful segment, who become untouchable.

Types of dictatorship

military dictatorship — Military dictatorships often openly use violence against citizens.

Dictatorships can be of different types, since they are created according to the desire and needs of the group that assumes absolute power. There are no rules or manuals to govern dictatorially, but based on their similarities, we can distinguish between:

military dictatorship. That in which a military leadership takes political control of the State, through a coup d'état or victory in some type of civil war. They usually govern through Military Juntas or Civic-Military Juntas, and normally openly exercise violence against citizens, militarizing the streets and administering military justice.
personalist dictatorship. This is the name given to dictatorships that place the entire leadership of the State in a single person, generally a charismatic leader or caudillo, who then governs according to his subjective criteria, in a completely authoritarian manner. His word becomes law and, if he cannot be removed from power sooner, this type of government lasts until the death of the dictator.
monarchical dictatorship. Before we said that monarchy should not be confused with dictatorship, but in this case, both are true. These are dictatorships in which a member of the line of succession of some royal aristocracy takes over the political power of the State, ruling absolutely, protected by his supposed royal right for having blue blood.
Dictatorship of the proletariat. This term of Marxist origin is often used to designate communist dictatorships, that is, in which parties of leftist and revolutionary affiliation in one way or another take power, putting aside democracy and imposing on It forces its model of a totalitarian society, without social classes, in which power is exercised vertically from the top of the party.
“Soft dictation.” This is known as the most contemporary and most difficult to define forms of dictatorship, since they retain apparent democratic features, or certain republican practices. They are a mixed and complex type of dictatorship, not always recognized as such.

Difference between democracy and dictatorship

The fundamental and irreconcilable differences between democracy and dictatorship are usually the following:

Government election. Democracies contemplate voting systems and equal participation to elect the authorities who will legitimately exercise political power during a period of time. Dictatorships, on the other hand, refuse to give up power and exercise it in a despotic manner, without having the support of the population or, at least, without subjecting themselves to the possibility of other rulers being elected.
Balance of power. Contemporary democracies are more or less republican, that is, they are governed by the principle of balance and separation of public powers, so that the executive, legislative and judicial institutions become a counterweight and protect the people from abuses of power. In dictatorships this principle is lost, and the will of the dictator or the ruling party is imposed on any type of institution.
Respect for rights and freedoms. Any democracy worth its salt must respect fundamental human rights, which include the right to life, free political exercise, expression and security from different points of view. In dictatorships, on the other hand, these rights are suspended or curtailed with impunity, since those in power do not question their own methods or find justifications for exercising violence against the people.
Social justice and order. Democracies are complex systems that pursue peace and prosperity through the limited government of majorities, and therefore can be more or less problematic, since people have freedom of protest, political participation and demonstration. On the other hand, dictatorships are often silent regimes: protest, strikes, or opposition are not allowed, therefore, they do not bring with them social justice, but rather they impose a specific order through violence, it hurts whoever hurts. .

Dictatorships throughout history

Dictatorship - Totalitarianism — During the 20th century, dictatorships developed in different parts of the world.

Unfortunately, examples of dictatorships abound in modern human history. Some of his most infamous cases were:

European fascist dictatorships. They emerged in the first third of the 20th century as a reactionary response to the threat of communism that had triumphed in Russia, and largely due to the state of political crisis left by the First World War. In this case, the Franco dictatorship in Spain (1939-1975), the Nazi dictatorship in Germany (1933-1945), and the fascist dictatorship in Italy (1922-1943) stand out.
Communist dictatorships. Promoted during the Cold War by the Soviet Union in different nations, under the theory that the Dictatorship of the proletariat would be the transition stage towards communism and a society without social classes. These dictatorships include: the Soviet Union of Stalinism (government of Joseph Stalin, from around 1930 to 1953), the People's Republic of China of Mao Zedong (from 1949 to the present), the North Korea of the Kim dynasty (from 1948 to the present) and the Cuba of Fidel Castro (from 1959 to the present).
Latin American military dictatorships. Also emerged during the Cold War, but as a consequence of the intervention of the United States in the region, to repel with fire and blood the communist insurgency and any type of popular government. The following stood out for their cruelty: the National Reorganization Process of Argentina (1976-1983), Pinochetism in Chile (1973-1990) and the Paraguay of Alfredo Stroessner (1954-1989).

Countries with dictatorships today

At the beginning of the 21st century, unfortunately, there are many nations that have dictatorial governments. Some of them come from the last century, such as the aforementioned communist regimes in Cuba, North Korea and China (the Soviet Union dissolved in the early 1990s), even though their founding leaders are long dead.

References

“Dictatorship” on Wikipedia.
“Dictator (Ancient Rome)” on Wikipedia.
“Dictatorships in Latin America” in La Vanguardia.
“These are the 32 countries that still live under a dictatorship, ruling 28% of the world's population” in Business Insider.
“What is a Dictatorship?” on Study.com.
“Dictatorship (political science)” in The Encyclopaedia Britannica.