Authoritarianism

Authoritarianism • Autocracy • Dictatorship • Military Dictatorship • Fascism • One-Party State • Oligarchies

Ways to Maintain Power • Use of Law • Promises and Fulfillment • Purges • Great People • Control Judicial Branch • Propaganda • Education • Youth • Violence • Provision for change with in a Constitution

Advantages and Disadvantages to A.G. ADVANTAGES • Quick and efficient • Less Bureaucracy • No Pressure or Lobby Groups • No uninterested electorate • Provision for change • Control and shape society DISADVANTAGES • Tyranny of Minority • Threat of Violence • Coercion • Purges • Limited or no rights • No fair Judicial Branch • Brainwashing • Provision for change • Corruption • 10. Control and shape society • Use of economy for needs of state and not that of the people • Miniturization

Techniques of Auth. Govts Indoctrination Force or Threat of Force Controlled Participation Direction of Popular Discontent

Theories of the Origins to Auth. Govts Carlyle's view perfect government - rule by a great man detested democracy as rule by the mediocre history study of great men - individuals who made their mark Nietzsche's view German philosopher felt that although democracy created equality it crushed the spirit of superior people for the sake of mediocre Adolf Hitler reworded Nietzsche to: "it is madness to think and criminal to proclaim that a majority can replace the accomplishments of a genius." “Great Man” Theory one of the oldest concepts of political leadership first civilizations ruled by absolute monarchs believed authority came from divine right to rule divine power infallible succession to the throne hereditary How one becomes a dictator when society is in a crisis (e.g.: economic depression - United States 1930s or political upheaval - USSR 1990s) people tend to look to a strong ruler to solve their problems for them dictators not selected by heredity Machiavelli’s view must be ruthless and create fear in those you rule must know how to resort to evil

Fascist/Nazi Ideology Fascist/Nazi ideology based on irrational ideas rejects use of science and reason relies on myths, emotions, hate manipulates people because they are irrational fierce national loyalty Communism rational, scientific and international in scope Conditions under which fascism can best rise conditions of acute distress causes insecurity amongst citizens frustration - resentment problems overwhelming - strong leader solves them for the citizens Appeal of fascism philosophy of action leadership generally charismatic; commanding promise of glory Majority tyranny majority rule without respect to minority rights US during slave trade Nazi Germany rule over Jews Minority tyranny minority rules over majority without respect to majority rights white regime rule over Black/Asian South Africans Absolute monarchy monarch achieves power by heredity Emir of Kuwait Louis XIV - 1780s Military dictatorship power seized by force in a coup d’etat Pinochet In Chile (1973-1990)

Vocabulary Communism - A social, political, and economic system characterized by the revolutionary struggle to create a society which has an absence of classes, and the common ownership of the means of production and subsistence and centralized governmental control over the economy. Dictator - A ruler having absolute authority and supreme jurisdiction over the government of a state; especially one who is considered tyrannical or oppressive. Elitism - Philosophy that a narrow clique of the "best" or "most skilled" members of a given social group should have the power. Fascism - A philosophy or system of government that advocates or exercises a dictatorship of the extreme right , typically through the merging of state and business leadership, together with an ideology of belligerent nationalism. Hierarchy - A body of persons organized or classified according to rank, capacity, or authority. Ideology - The body of ideas reflecting the social needs and aspirations of an individual, group, class, or culture. Left-wing - As used in this chapter, individuals and groups who desire to reform or overthrow the established order and advocate change in the name of greater freedom or well-being of the common man. Nazism - The ideology and policies of Adolf Hitler and his National Socialist German Worker's Party from 1921 to 1945. Propaganda - The systematic spreading of a given doctrine or of allegations reflecting its views and interests. Right-wing - As used in this chapter, individuals or groups who profess opposition to change in the established order and who favor traditional attitudes and practices, and who sometimes advocate the forced establishment of an authoritarian political order. Totalitarianism - A form of government in which all societal resources are monopolized by the state in an effort to penetrate and control all aspects of public and private life, through the state's use of propaganda, terror, and technology.

SADDAM HUSSEIN

SADDAM “ONE WHO CONFRONTS” • 1963- First came to power amid Ba’athist revolution • New regime ousted within the year & Saddam was imprisoned in 1964 • 1967 – escaped from prison

HUSSEIN RISE TO POWER • 1968 coup brought Ba'athists power . Ba'ath's named Saddam vice president. • strongman of govt & was de facto ruler of Iraq some years before formally came to power in 1979. • slowly consolidated power over govt & Ba'ath party. • Relations with party members carefully cultivated & gained support within party. • Iraq's weak & elderly President became unable to execute duties, Saddam takes on greater role

Ba’athist party1972-79 • Nationalize Western oil companies • Wanted modernization & industrialization • Mechanized agriculture • Improved programs for literacy & free education • Free hospitalization • Subsidized farmers

GAINS FORMAL POWER- PURGES • 1979-Saddam president. • convened assembly of Ba'ath party leaders which ordered videotaped • claim found spies & conspirators within Ba'ath Party & read out names of members thought could oppose him. • members labeled "disloyal" removed from room one by one to face firing squad. • After list read, Saddam congratulated those still seated in room for past & future loyalty.

ONE PARTY DICTATORSHIP • Full political participation restricted only to members of Ba'ath Party • impossible to change government. • not allowed to assemble legally unless to express support for government. • Iraqi government controlled establishment of political parties, regulates internal affairs and monitors activities.

PROPAGANDA • Portrayed himself as a devout Muslim • Built mosques to show he co-ops with religious segments of society • Murals of Saddam praying towards Mecca • Gigantic framed portraits & enormous statues • Pictured in Bedouin costume (clothing of peasants) & suits = image of modern leader respectful of past

PROPAGANDA • 2002 REFERENDUM • 100% vote that he should continue to lead Iraq • 100% turnout • He was the only candidate on ballot • Voting was mandatory

NATIONALISM • Saddam refers to glorious past – Islamic Period when Baghdad capital of Arab world • Envisioned Arab world led by Iraq again • Wars vs. Iran in 1979- Shiites sympathetic to Iran’s new leader Ayatollah • 1991 war vs. Kuwait • 2003- Gulf War II

HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS • Human rights organizations documented executions, torture, and rape • 2002-no improvement in human rights crisis. • condemned government for "systematic, widespread & extremely grave violations of human rights & international humanitarian law". • human rights violations against women. • prostitutes beheaded, took place in front of family members, including children. • heads of victims publicly displayed near signs reading, "For the honor of Iraq." 130 women killed in this way, but actual number probably much higher.

HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS • human rights violations directed against children. • as young as 5 recruited into "Saddam's Cubs," & indoctrinated to adulate Hussein & denounce own family members. • children subjected to military training, includes cruelty to animals. • parents of children executed if object to this treatment, and in some cases, children themselves imprisoned.

HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS • 1994 severe penalties, including amputation, branding & death penalty for offenses such as theft, corruption, currency speculation & military desertion. • 2003 several mass graves found containing several thousand bodies • dead believed to have died in 1991 uprising against Saddam • after invasion, numerous torture centers found in security offices & police stations • equipment found included hooks for hanging people by hands for beatings, devices for electric shock • torture used to improve performance of Iraqi soccer team.

HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS • Police checkpoints prevent citizens from traveling abroad without government permission & expensive exit visas. • Before traveling, citizen had to post collateral. • Iraqi women not travel outside of country without escort of male relative. • activities of citizens living inside Iraq who received money from relatives abroad were closely monitored.

HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS • 1988-extermination against Kurdish • Kurdish town of Halabja – 5000 killed • Other attacks - death of at least 50,000 (some estimate 100,000), many women & children. • use of chemical weapons -Sarin, mustard gas & nerve agents • arbitrary imprisoning of tens of thousands of women, children, & elderly people for months in conditions of extreme deprivation, • forced displacement of hundreds of thousands of villagers after demolition of homes, & destruction of 2000 villages along with schools, mosques, farms, & power stations.

Human Rights cont… • 1991, after Gulf War, cracked down in Kurdish region • Estimates of deaths range from 40,000 to 100,000 for Kurds, and 60,000 to 130,000 for Shi'ites. • 100,000 Kurds exiled since 1991

Anfal Campaign • an anti-Kurdish campaign led by the Iraqi regime of Hussein between 1986 and 1989

ANFAL CAMPAIGN • headed by Ali Hasan al-Majid, a cousin of Hussein. • campaign included use of ground offensives, aerial bombing, systematic destruction of settlements, mass deportation, concentration camps, firing squads, and chemical warfare, which earned al-Majid the nickname of "Chemical Ali". • The attacks were part of a long-standing campaign that destroyed almost every Kurdish village in Iraq -- along with a centuries-old way of life -- and displaced at least a million of the country's estimated 3.5 million Kurdish population. • Independent sources estimate 50,000 to more than 100,000 deaths; the Kurds claim about 182,000 people were killed. • Amnesty International collected the names of more than 17,000 people who had "disappeared" during 1988. • The campaign has been characterized as genocidal in nature, notably before a court in The Hague.

ANFAL CAMPAIGN CONT… • During the Anfal campaign, the Iraqi government: • spirited away or killed 182,000 Iraq Kurds (figures are hard to estimate because of the scale of destruction) • destroyed about 4,000 villages in Iraqi Kurdistan • destroyed 1,754 schools, 270 hospitals, 2,450 mosques, 27 churches • wiped out around 90% of Kurdish villages in targeted areas.

POSITIVES OF SADDAM • Authoritarian rule kept lid on various tribes, classes, religions, factional & ethnic groups • Ex. Kurds, Sunnis & Shiite Muslims • Modernized economy • Focused on National Campaign for the Eradication of Illiteracy • Implemented free compulsory education – up to highest levels • Free hospitalization • Subsidized farmers & redistributed land

SHAKING HANDS WITH THE DEVIL • AMERICAN FOREIGN POLICY – 1983

POLITICAL CARTOONS

END OF A REGIME

Authoritarianism