In neighboring Guinea, some initially greeted the coup leader as a liberator, but many also shut themselves up at home, afraid for the future. But COVID-19 has given them greater leverage, providing further pretext for postponing elections in Somalia and Ethiopia, muzzling opposition figures in Uganda and Tanzania, and imposing restrictions [PDF] on media across the continent. However, within this category, increasingly populist governments are suppressing opposition groups, postponing elections, eliminating term limits, and abusing human rights to maintain power. Millions of people across the Sahel region have been displaced, and thousands are dead and often, people say that politicians seem not to notice or care, driving fancy cars and sending their children to expensive foreign schools. The challenge facing American and other policy makers is to support African governments in taking meaningful steps toward democracy while at the same time acknowledging the legitimate grievances that underpin so much of the insecurity. The People's Republic of China is currently ruled by President Xi Jinping, who also serves as the General Secretary of the Communist Party of China, Chairman of the Central Military Commission, the country's Vice President, the President of the Central Party School, and the 1st ranked member of the CPC Politburo Standing Committee. by CFR.org Editors But billions of dollars in loans and aid were put on hold after the 2021 military coup. Associated Press writers Jon Gambrell in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Rodney Muhumuza in Kampala, Uganda, and Joseph Krauss in Ottawa, Ontario, contributed. John Campbell and Countries are responding to the World Health Organization (WHO) call to action by putting into place best-practice TFA policies. The terms "autocrat" and "autocracy" are often used interchangeably with "dictator" and "dictatorship". WebAs of early 2022, the countries of Afghanistan, Eritrea, North Korea, and Turkmenistan are the only nations in the world whose governments are generally considered to be Facebook alsostatedthat as part of its strategy, the Ministry of Information had been using "fake and duplicate accounts" for propaganda purposes. In 2011, the Obama White House launched the Open Government Partnership, an initiative in which member governmentsover a dozen of them Africanmade concrete commitments to promote transparency, empower citizens, and fight corruption. These five nations that have recently experienced military coups form a broken line that stretches across the wide bulge of Africa, from Guinea on the west coast to Sudan in the east. West Africa and East Africa both have mostly partially free regimes. Now, the central bank is back in the spotlight for its battle against inflation. June 2, 2022, Stopping Illegal Gun Trafficking Through South Florida, Blog Post The United Arab Emirates, a rising military power that has expanded its presence across the Middle East and East Africa, has close ties to the Rapid Support Forces, which sent thousands of fighters to aid the UAE and Saudi Arabia in their war against Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen. However, in Central Africa and the Horn, almost all states are authoritarian. Laos (Lao People's Democratic Republic) North Korea. Leaders of these dictatorships often place those loyal to them in positions of power (qualified or not), and foster cults of personality to sway public opinion to their side. The Malcolm and Carolyn Wiener Annual Lecture on Science and Technology addresses issues at the intersection of science, technology, and foreign policy. While a large number of countries have Malcolm and Carolyn Wiener Annual Lecture, Religion and Foreign Policy Webinar: Religion and Technology, Virtual Event It's time for the United States to get serious about stopping the flow. Some said they were inspired by the way the junta in neighboring Mali had stood up to France, the increasingly unpopular former colonial power. with Heidi Campbell and Paul Brandeis Raushenbush, with Ivan Kanapathy, Bonny Lin and Stephen S. Roach, Authors Note: Comparing and Quantifying Democracy, Malcolm and Carolyn Wiener Annual Lecture. February 13, 2023 Control over political funds will be no less decisive than the battlefield, De Waal said. But when the countrys Supreme Court upheld incumbent President Nana Akufo-Addos victory, Mahama accepted the results, conceding that he was legally bound by the decisions of the Supreme Court. Large-scale violence was absent from the electoral process; five people, however, were killed in postelection violence. On a similar note, a dictatorship's regular citizens have no voice in most matters. WebAs of 2020, there are 52 nations with a dictator or authoritarian regime ruling the country: Three in Latin America and South America, 27 in Asia and the Middle East, and 22 in Meanwhile, similar reports are also surfacing fromwest Africa: InNigeria,President Muhammadu Buhari"criticized the activists of the #EndSARS movement in June and called for action to be taken against them. Monarchies: 3. April 25, 2023 On April 21, 1976, a group of four Greek Army colonels overthrew the caretaker government in a coup d'etat. The #EndSARSmovement was initated by social media-savvyyoung Nigerians, who sought to put pressure onthe government to abolish Nigeria's controversial Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) police unit. From 1967 to 1974, Greece was ruled by an extreme right-wing military dictatorship known as the Regime of the Colonels. C.V. Starr & Co. In Burkina Faso, an attack last November that left almost 50 military police officers dead is considered a key event that led to the coup two months later. March 23, 2023 Yet, if a witchs brew of jihadi terrorists, criminal networks, and the disaffected destroy sitting governments, the human rights consequences certainly will be worse than the status quo. The internet and social media are increasingly empowering Africas youthful population to become politically active. Conceived as the principal defenders of the 1979 revolution, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has evolved into an institution with vast political, economic, and military power. Military dictatorship - Wikipedia If we wait until the next elections in 2025 to change leaders, our country will no longer exist, he said. Whats Happening to Democracy in Africa? In others, it is because they have political projects they wish to complete that take longer than expected. First came Mali, in August 2020. Failing to counter crime and insurgency, some African leaders are seeking greater security involvement from the United States. The 25 Best Countries View All 29 Slides Sudans regional, economic and strategic importance Sudan is located at a critical nexus, geographically. Article Why Sudan's conflict matters to the rest of the world | AP News In 2021, five sitting African heads of state had been in power for more than three decades each: Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo in Equatorial Guinea, Paul Biya Sudan is Africas third-largest country by area and straddles the Nile River. Declan Walsh contributed reporting from Ouagadougou. October 6, 2022. The enforcement of pandemic restrictions by security services has often been brutal, provoking demonstrations in Kenya and even in more advanced democracies such as South Africa. It comes two years after they jointly carried out a military coup and derailed a transition to democracy that had begun after protesters in 2019 helped force the ouster of longtime autocrat Omar al-Bashir. This means that the ruler or party has complete control. Yet, these movements have frequently been met with an equal and opposite reaction: Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni cracked down on activists and implemented a social media ban; in Nigeria, protesters were massacred by army and police forces. Eritrean troopsovertly or tacitly supported by the Ethiopian governmenthave reportedly committed a range of atrocities, while Abiys government stands accused of attempting to starve large swathes of the Tigrayan population into submission. EXPLAINER: What Is Happening in Sudan, and How Does it Dictatorship Obiang's regime is known for state-sanctioned kidnappings, torture of prisoners, and unlawful killings. Four trends stand out: In its 2021 report, Freedom House rated only eight countries in sub-Saharan Africa as free. Similarly, former Malian President Ibrahim Boubacar Keta was accused of rigging the 2020 legislative elections. To compare levels of democracy across different countries, Freedom House, a well-regarded nongovernmental organization, publishes an index that measures by standard criteria the degree of freedom enjoyed by people in countries and some territories and assigns to each a numerical score. Just like a dictatorship, an autocracy is a government headed by a single ruler (the autocrat) whose decisions are not subject to legal restraints and who exercises unlimited and undisputed power. President Obiang gained power in 1979 after ousting his uncle, Francisco Macas Nguema, and sentencing him to death by firing squad. April 23, 2023 at 2:00 a.m. EDT. Examples might include King Cyrus the Great of Persia, who is thought to have created the first declaration of human rights, the Biblical King Solomon, Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius, and Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Kwan Yue. The victor of the latest fighting is likely to be Sudans next president, with the loser facing exile, arrest or death. Michele Cattani/Agence France-Presse Getty Images, governments failure to protect its people from violent extremists. While their president was imprisoned at a military base, hundreds of Malians celebrated with soldiers in the streets. Geography is not quite destiny, but similarly rated countries do tend to form clusters. WebCurrent dictatorships include Russia, Equatorial New Guinea, and North Korea. Dictators In Africa NMN Africa The Wagner Group, a Russian mercenary outfit with close ties to the Kremlin, has made inroads across Africa in recent years and has been operating in Sudan since 2017. However, foreign as well as domestic expectations for liberal democracy in Africa have often been unrealistic, and Africas setbacks are not surprising. Renewing America, Backgrounder Littoral states are also, on average, freer than landlocked ones, likely benefitting from increased interactions with foreigners from democratic societiesa factor more important prior to the advent of the digital age. Izama saysthat "(t)he political leadership, especially here in sub-Saharan Africa, comes from a generation where society was structured so that the child would not contradict the father.". Global Health Program, Innovating Solutions to the Climate Crisis, Virtual Event That said, there are two important differences between dictatorships and autocracies. Vietnam. An observer signs a paper marking the closing of the polls at a polling station in Mekele during Tigrays regional elections in September 2020. Chad and South Sudan look most immediately at risk of potential spillover. Governments are performing abysmally, said Abdul Zanya Salifu, a scholar at the University of Calgary who focuses on the Sahel, the swath of Africa that lies just below the Sahara. Others, such as Botswana, enjoy high levels of economic and social development. The Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS) is stocked with autocrats, while the East African Community (EAC) has been but a weak presence to the point of risking irrelevance. The Guardian view on India at a crossroads: development, not Fighting in Sudan between forces loyal to two top generals has put that nation at risk of collapse and could have consequences far beyond its borders. Ulm-Dsterhft warns users not to download any unknown apps, take a close look at dubious social media accounts, and contact the app operators if in doubt. Mr Cond had also become increasingly authoritarian in the months leading up to the coup, jailing and exacting violence against his political opponents and anti-government activists. Countries By Greg Miller. The president is nowhere to be seen. Democracy is defined differentlyby the United Nations [PDF], academics [PDF], and politiciansand comes in various forms. The Five Kinds of Dictatorship 1. EXPLAINER: What Is Happening in Sudan, and How Does it But in Sudan, as in other resource-rich African nations, armed groups have long enriched themselves through the shadowy trade in rare minerals and other natural resources. https://www.nytimes.com/article/burkina-faso-africa-coup.html. What Does the World Health Organization Do? Economic prosperity, also concentrated on the coasts [PDF], likely has also influenced a positive democratic trajectory. Put another way, Africa can and does reap a democratic dividend - the problem comes when supposedly democratic leaders start to use undemocratic strategies to keep themselves in power against the wishes of their people. The type of dictatorship a country is ruled by typically comes down to the methods the dictator used to obtain power and how they go about maintaining it. Thats more than 114 million people now ruled by soldiers who have illegally seized power. Those criteria, and their application to a specific locale, are always subject to debate; the score can only be indicative, not definitive. Typically, dictators rise to power when a nation faces significant social issues, such as strong economic crises or unrest among the nation's people. WebFreedom in the World 2021 Status Change Explanations. These countries usually have low levels of social development, underdeveloped civil organizations, and weak institutions of government. This third annual report monitors global progress towards the 2023 target for global elimination of industrially produced trans-fatty acids (TFA), highlighting achievements from the past year. (The military) will want to take control of gold mines and smuggling routes. In Africa, authoritarian states are often run by strongmen, geriatric leaders for life, some of whom are now looking to anoint their sons as their successors. His wealth is estimated to be approximately $600 million. Sudan borders five additional countries: Libya, Chad, the Central African Republic, Eritrea and South Sudan, which seceded in 2011 and took 75% of Khartoums oil resources with it. Dictators often employ illegal and/or immoral methods to maintain their power and control, including the use of secret police, indefinite arrests, and concentration camps. In some cases, this is because they enjoy the personal benefits of being in power and don't want to give them up. Despite the decline, a plurality of countries (twenty-two) are considered partially free, in line with the sixteen-year average. The pro-military sentiment does not extend to Sudan. Both Twitter and Facebook accusethe Ugandan government of using social media asa tool politicians to manipulate public opinion, spread disinformation, and intimidate the opposition. Sub-Saharan Africa: undemocratic regimes undermine As of 2020, there are 52 nations with a dictator or authoritarian regime ruling the country: Three in Latin America and South America, 27 in Asia and the Middle East, and 22 in Africa. The same administrations Young African Leaders Initiative, which has been reinvigorated by the Joe Biden administration, seeks to groom future leaders in a democratic context. Ghana is the most notable, positive exception in West Africa. As in Mali, many in Burkina Faso said they had lost faith in democracy, including Assami Ouedraogo, 35, a police officer who resigned in November.
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