MILITARY

DICTATORSHIP
  Dictatorship is a form of government in which one person or a small group
possesses absolute power without effective constitutional limitations.

Latin Title
Dictatorship “DICTATOR” Roman Republic

• designated a temporary
magistrate who was granted
extraordinary powers in
order to deal with state
crises.

Military Dictatorship
  In a military dictatorship is an autocratic type of government in which the
military holds all or most power over the country.
 The ruler in a military dictatorship may be a single high-ranking military
officer or a group of such officers, referred to as a military junta.
 Most military dictatorships take power after overthrowing the existing
civilian government in a coup d’état.

Key Takeaways Military Dictatorship

  Historically, many military regimes have been noted for their brutal
suppression of freedom and persecution of political opponents.
 The number of countries ruled by military dictatorships began to fall
sharply after the end of the Cold War in the early 1990s.
 While Thailand remains the world’s last active military dictatorship, other
notable examples of modern countries with histories of military rule
include: Brazil, Chile, Argentina, and Greece.

Key Takeaways Military Dictatorship

• In a military dictatorship, military leaders exercise substantial or complete
control of the people and functions of government.
• As an autocratic form of government, a military dictatorship may be ruled by
either a single military strongman whose authority is unlimited or by a group
of high-ranking military officers—a “military junta”—who can to some
extent limit the dictator’s authority.
 A military junta is a coordinated MILITARY JUNTA
group of high-ranking military
officers who exercise authoritarian or
totalitarian rule over a country after
taking power by force.
 Meaning “meeting” or “committee,”
the term junta was first used about
the Spanish military leaders who
resisted Napoleon’s invasion of Spain
in 1808 and later about the groups
that helped Latin America win
independence from Spain between
1810 and 1825. Like military
dictatorships, military juntas often
take power through a coup d’état.
 Military Dictatorship Military Junta

 The power of a single dictator or  The officers of a military junta can

“military strongman” is unlimited. limit the dictator’s power.
 Military Junta

 Unlike military dictators, the leaders

of military juntas may end martial
law, wear civilian clothing, and
appoint former military officers to
maintain de-facto control over local
governments and political parties.
 Rather than all functions of the
national government, military juntas
may choose to control a more
Under the rule of this military junta, up to 30,000
limited range of areas, such as
people went missing in Argentina. foreign policy or national security.
Examples of 20th Century Military Dictatorships
 Thailand
On May 22, 2014, the caretaker government of
Thailand was overthrown in a bloodless coup
d’état led by General Prayuth Chan-o-cha,
commander of the Royal Thai Army. Prayuth
established a military junta, the National
Council for Peace and Order (NCPO), to
govern the country. The junta repealed the
constitution, declared martial law, and banned
all forms of political expression. In 2017, the
NCPO issued an interim constitution granting
itself almost total power and establishing a
puppet legislature, which unanimously elected
Prayuth prime minister.
 Brazil
From 1964 to 1985, Brazil was
controlled by an authoritarian military
dictatorship. After taking power in a
coup d'état, commanders of the
Brazilian Army, backed by anti-
communist interests, including the
United States, enacted a new
constitution that restricted freedom of
speech and outlawed political
opposition. The military regime gained
popular support by encouraging
nationalism, promising economic
growth, and rejecting communism.
Brazil officially restored democracy in
1988.
 Chile
On September 11, 1973, Chile’s socialist
government of Salvador Allende was
overthrown in a coup d'état backed by the
United States. Over the next 17 years, a military
junta headed by General Augusto Pinochet
orchestrated the most brutal period of human
rights abuses in Chilean history. During what it
called the “national reconstruction,” Pinochet’s
regime outlawed political participation,
executed over 3,000 suspected dissidents,
tortured tens of thousands of political prisoners,
and forced some 200,000 Chileans into exile.
Although Chile returned to democracy in 1990,
the people continue to suffer from the effects of
Pinochet’s military dictatorship on political and
economic life.
 Argentina
After overthrowing President Isabel Perón in a
coup d'état on March 24, 1976, a junta of right-
wing military officers ruled Argentina until
democracy was restored in December 1983.
Operating under the official name of the
National Reorganization Process, the junta
persecuted social minorities, imposed
censorship, and placed all levels of government
under military control. During Argentina’s so-
called “Dirty War” period of military
dictatorship, as many as 30,000 citizens were
killed or “disappeared.” In 1985, five leaders of
the former ruling military junta were convicted
of crimes against humanity.
 Greece
From 1967 to 1974, Greece was ruled by an
extreme right-wing military dictatorship known
as the Regime of the Colonels. On April 21,
1976, a group of four Greek Army colonels
overthrew the caretaker government in a coup
d'état. In just the first week of its reign, the
junta jailed, tortured, and exiled over 6,000
suspected political opponents in the name of
protecting Greece from communism. Their
actions were so swift and brutal that by
September 1967 the European Commission of
Human Rights had charged the Regime of the
Colonels with multiple gross violations of
human rights.
 It can have a deterrent It can provide ruling
effect on crime. stability.

Pros of
Dictatorships can take the Political corruption is taken
lead on innovation. Dictatorship out of the shadows.

They prove very crucial

International diplomacy can
during the times of
flourish.
emergency.
 It is never a long-term The nation becomes
solution to governing. isolated, just like the
leadership.

Opposition is rarely Cons of

Ruling by fear is a common
permitted. Dictatorship action within a dictatorship.

Personal rights are often

Laws can be changed at any
restricted, if not completely
time.
eliminated.
 It creates a disinterest within the
society.

Power vacuums can be Cons of

Innocent people get caught
created instantly. Dictatorship in power struggles.