Dictatorship 101: What, Who and Why?
Disclaimer: This article is written based on the opinion of the author and does not in any way reflect the view of the organisation.
Special thanks to: Daniel & Ke Wen
Dictators. A word that resurrects thoughts of infamous figures like Adolf Hitler, Mao Zedong and Joseph Stalin. A word that evokes images of aggression, suppression and manipulation of people’s rights. Truthfully, dictatorship can be seen as a loss of freedom and human rights, especially to those who had lived their lives being able to make choices of their own. However, we have not asked ourselves the most important question: is dictatorship truly a bad form of leadership, and if so, how do the dictators that we hear about so often are able to come into power?
What is Dictatorship?
A dictator, as defined by the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, is ‘a political leader who has complete power over a country, especially one who has gained it using military force’. Regardless of possessing a left-wing or right-wing political ideology, dictators would enforce their ideology within a group of members in order to carry out their vision. Some famous dictators most commonly know is listed as follows:
- Adolf Hitler — Fuhrer of Nazi Party, Germany (1921–1945)
- Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini — Prime Minister of Italy (1922–1943)
- Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz — 15th President of the Council of State of Cuba (1976–2008)
- Genghis Khan — Great Khan of the Mongol Empire (1206–1227)
- Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin — General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (1922–1952)
- Kim Jong-il — 2nd Supreme Leader of North Korea (1941–2011)
- Mao Zedong — Chairman of the Communist Party of China (1943–1976)
- Pol Pot — 27th Prime Minister of Cambodia (1976–1979)
- Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti — 5th President of Iraq (1979–2003)
- Syngman Rhee — 1st President of South Korea (1948–1960)
Reasons for their rise to power
Before diving into the dictatorship of the present day, we would be taking a look at how dictators in their years come into power. One main factor was the circumstances at that moment. When the opportunity arises, a striving dictator takes them. That’s exactly what Adolf Hitler did in order to create his 12 year Nazi Germany. By taking advantage of the Great Depression and the growing sentiment for nationality, Hitler was able to garner power and spread his influence that spoke of a greater Germany. Despite that, his power remained only that of Chancellor until Hindenburg’s death in 1934. This effectively gave him the opportunity to solidify his standing as the most powerful within Germany through the position of Fuhrer.
Some opportunities, however, have to be made as well. A very important factor in terms of rising to power would be eliminating rivals. This was evident in the case of how Stalin rose to power. With Vladmir Lenin’s death in 1924, Stalin had ensured that all his rivals, especially Leon Trotsky, were gotten rid of. With the offer to “get rid of a mutual enemy”, Stalin made use of his political enemies and pitted them against each other. He was thus able to remove Trotsky along with other prominent Bolsheviks like Grigory Zinoviev, Lev Kamenev, Nikolai Bukharin, Mikhail Tomsky and Alexei Rykov from power. Individuals who could threaten his power were disposed of through the Great Purge in the late 1930s.
Whilst we often link dictatorship with the absolute rule of a single person, in actuality it is impossible for one man to rule and govern all. It is rather necessary for a dictator to have subordinates who are not only willing to follow him, but are able to provide him the necessary resources in terms of keeping influence. This is very much evident in how Genghis Khan placed immeasurable trust within his three military generals Muqali, Jebe and Subutai. Due to Genghis Khan’s policy in prioritising loyalty and performance over lineage, it garnered him the loyalty of these three individuals, allowing him to expand the Mongol Empire extensively over the numerous battles won.
Another effective way of gaining power was the use of propaganda, a method Mussolini deployed through “The People of Italy”, a newspaper advocating for the unification of all Italian descents. Through the publication, Mussollini was able to gain support through incriminating the Italian Socialist Party as a tool by the Russian government to control the state. As his power accumulated, the Ministry of Popular Culture was formed in order to ensure that the ideology of fascism was spread effectively throughout the state.
Are all dictators bad?
Dictatorship is a means of tool for asserting order and control over a group of people, however this does not necessarily mean it is all that bad. Especially when a country is plunged into an emergency state, it is rather necessary for a figurehead to step in and ensure that some form of order is set in place. Here we would be taking a look at some important dictators that played an important role in ensuring the stability of a country.
One example would be the efforts of Kemal Atatürk, the 1st President of Turkey from 1923 to 1938. After the First World War, Turkey had been liberated under his leadership and the Treaty of Lausanne was signed which formally recognised the boundaries of the Turkey we know today. During his term, Atatürk had made progressive reforms ranging from implementation of educational policies, such as promoting mandatory education and education for women. Under his leadership he was able to create a more scientific approach towards the education and judiciary system.
We also have Lee Kuan Yew, the Former Prime Minister of Singapore from 1959 to 1990. Through his years in office, he had laid down the foundations of a prosperous Singapore we know of today. This included liberating Singapore from British rule, extinguishing racial tension within the early development of Singapore, and adopting free trade and business policies to build up Singapore’s influence internationally.
Being a Dictator
At this point you may think to yourself and ask, “well in that case why don’t I become a dictator and ensure that our nation is a better place?” Reality, however, is not that simple. As a dictator, one cannot simply govern on their own. As mentioned above, it is rather important to have loyal subordinates. More often than not, these subordinates do not merely stay because they admire their leader, but rather the authority or money they can get in return for their loyalty. Hence, resources would be required to ensure they are able to help the dictator remain in power.
Another thing to note would be the existence of rivals. Competent members are not easy to find, and if the terms offered by the opposition are more favourable, they may seek out the opposition for support. Thus, being a good dictator is definitely not an easy task. Only by being able to balance the transfer of power among key supporters and distribution of opportunity to the citizens can one be a truly admirable dictator.
[Written by: Evelyn Chen Siaw Yin]
