Military dictatorship
:''For related terms, see
Military ruleA
military dictatorship is a
form of government wherein the political power resides with the
military; it is similar but not identical to a
stratocracy, a state ruled directly by the military.
Like all
dictatorships, a military dictatorship may be official or unofficial, and as a result may not actually qualify as stratocratic (some military dictators, like Panama's
Manuel Noriega, are nominally subordinate to the civil government). Mixed forms also exist, where the military exerts a very strong influence without being entirely dominant.
The declaration by which a military coup d'état is made official is called a
pronunciamento, from the Spanish
pronunciamiento, 'proclamation'.
The typical military dictatorship in
Latin America was ruled by a
junta (derived from a
Spanish word which can be translated as "conference" or "board"), or a committee composed of several officers, often from the military's most senior leadership, but in other cases (e.g. when their military superiors remained loyal to, or indeed were, the previous regime) less senior, as evidenced by the term colonels' regime. Other military dictatorships are entirely in the hands of a single officer, usually the senior army commander. In either case, the
chairman of the junta or the single commander may often personally assume office as
head of state.
In the
Middle East and
Africa, military governments more often came to be led by a single powerful person, and were
autocracies in addition to military dictatorships. Leaders like
Idi Amin,
Muammar al-Qaddafi, and
Gamal Abdul Nasser worked to develop a
personality cult and became the face of the nation inside and outside their countries.
Most military dictatorships are formed after a
coup d'état has overthrown the previous government. One very different pattern was the one followed by
Saddam Hussein's regime in
Iraq, which began as a
one-party state ruled by the
Ba'ath Party, but over the course of its existence turned into a military dictatorship (as its leaders donned uniforms and the military became closely involved in the government).
Conversely, other military dictatorships may gradually restore significant components of
civilian government while the senior-most military commander still maintains supreme
political power. In
Pakistan, ruling Generals
Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq (
1977-
1988) and
Pervez Musharraf (
1999 till present) have held singular
referendums to elect themselves
President of Pakistan for a further several years, as well as
general elections voting in civilian Prime Ministers (politically subordinate to the President). Despite this, the
Pakistan Army maintained a monopoly over the power structure in both cases, with the country's four
provinces entirely coming under the
dictatorial military rule of senior generals in the President's cabinet; such as General
Rahimuddin Khan's
authoritarian and unprecedentedly long rule over
Balochistan, the country's largest province.
In the past, military juntas have justified their rule as a way of bringing political stability for the nation or rescuing it from the threat of "dangerous
ideologies". This is a form of
threat construction. In Latin America the threat of
communism or
capitalism was often used, while in the Middle East the desire to oppose
Israel and later
Islamic fundamentalism proved an important motivating pattern. Military regimes tend to portray themselves as non-partisan, as a "neutral" party that can provide interim leadership in times of turmoil, and also tend to portray civilian politicians as corrupt and ineffective. One of the almost universal characteristics of a military government is the institution of
martial law or a permanent
state of emergency.
Although there are exceptions, military regimes usually have little respect for
human rights and use whatever means necessary to silence political opponents. A military regime is also rarely willing to leave power unless forced to by popular revolt, whether active or imminent.
Latin America, Africa, and the Middle East have been common areas for military dictatorships. One of the reasons for this is the fact that the military often has more cohesion and
institutional structure than most of the civilian institutions of society.
Military dictatorships can be contrasted with other forms of dictatorship. For example, in most current and historical
Communist states, the center of power rests among civilian party officials, and very careful measures (such as
political commissars and frequent rotations) are taken to prevent the military from exercising independent authority.
Since the 1990s, military dictatorships have become less common. Reasons for this include the fact that military dictatorships no longer have much international legitimacy, as well as the fact that many militaries having unsuccessfully ruled many nations are now inclined not to become involved in political disputes. Furthermore, the end of the
Cold War and the collapse of the
Soviet Union made it more difficult for military regimes to use the threat of
communism as justification for their actions, or to gain support from foreign sources.
As the Cold War began to wind down, military regimes throughout Latin America were replaced with democracies. In the Middle East, regimes such as those of
Syria and
Egypt that were once clearly military dictatorships have switched to other forms of
despotism.
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States currently under military dictatorships are shown in olive |
The following lists are probably incomplete, especially before World War II
Nations currently under military rule
*
Libya - on
September 1,
1969, a group of military officers staged a coup, and are still in power
*
Mauritania â€" on
August 3,
2005, the military staged a coup and declared a two year transitional military dictatorship
*
Myanmar (Burma) - military siezed power in
1962.
*
Pakistan (President came to power in coup in 1999, but institutions of civil rule have gradually been re-instated)
Nations with a legacy of military dictatorship(s)
In Africa
*
Algeria (1965-1994)
*
Burkina Faso (1966-1991)
*
Burundi (1966-1993)
*
Central African Republic (1966-1993)
*
Chad (1975-1991)
*
Congo-Brazzaville (1968-1992)
*
Congo-Kinshasa (1965-2001)
*
Equatorial Guinea (1968-1982)
*
Ethiopia (1974-1991)
*
Guinea (1984-1991)
*
Ghana (1966-1969; 1972-1979; 1981-1993)
*
Liberia (1980-1990)
*
Madagascar (1972-1975)
*
Mauritania (1978-1992) (2005-present)
*
Niger (1974-1989; 1996-1999)
*
Nigeria (1966-1979; 1983-1999)
*
Sierra Leone (1992-1996; 1997-1998)
*
Somalia (1969-1991; then local militia rule)
*
Sudan (1958-1964; 1969-2005)
*
Uganda (1962-1986)
*
The Gambia (1994-1997)
In the Americas
*
Argentina (1930-1932; 1943-1946; 1955-1958; 1966-1973; 1976-1983)
*
Brazil (1930-1945; 1964-1985)
*
Chile (1973-1990)
*
Colombia (1953-1957)
*
Dominican Republic (1844-1978 with a few exceptions)
*
El Salvador (1931-1992)
*
Guatemala (1931-1944; 1954-1986)
*
Haiti (1957-1990; 1991-1994)
*
Honduras (1963-1971; 1972-1982)
*
Panama (1968-1989)
*
Paraguay (1940-1948; 1949-1989)
*
Peru (1948-1956; 1968-1980)
*
Suriname (1980-1988)
*
Uruguay (1973-1985)
*
Venezuela (1952-1958)
In Asia
*
Bangladesh (1975-1979; 1982-1990)
*
Burma (1962-1988; 1990-Present)
*
China (1916-1927)(or 1920-1922)
*
Indonesia (1967-1998)
*
Iraq (1958-1968)
*
Pakistan (1958-1971; 1978-1988; 1999-Present)
*
South Korea (1961-1979; 1980-1987)
*
Thailand (1938-1992 with a few exceptions)
*
Turkey (1960-1962; 1971-1973; 1980-1982)
In Europe
*
Commonwealth of England (1648-1659) Dated from Pride's Purge, the first major act the army took to control the Parliament to the abdication of Lord Protector of Richard Cromwell.
*
Greece (1967-1974)
*
Poland (1981-1983)
*
Portugal (1926-1933)
*
Romania under
Ion Antonescu (1941-1944)
*
Spain (1923-1930; 1939-1975)
*
The Generals
