POLITICAL SYSTEMS - INFOPOINT

Absolute Monarchy

A ruler of an absolute monarchy has unmitigated power. The citizens of an absolute monarchy are often treated unfairly, and the reign of an absolute monarchy can often be oppressive. Absolute monarchy was a common form of government in Europe in the Middle Ages. Today, most absolute monarchies are in the Middle East and Africa. 

Oman is an absolute monarchy. Its ruler is Sultan Quaboos bin Said Al Said, who has been guiding the oil-rich nation since the 1970s. 

Constitutional Monarchy

Nowadays, most monarchies are constitutional monarchies. This means that a nation recognizes a monarch, but expects the monarch to abide by laws and the nation’s constitution. Constitutional monarchies usually emerged from absolute monarchies as a result of changes in society and political climate. In a constitutional monarchy, there is usually an elected leader and parliament, who are centrally involved in political matters. The monarch has a symbolic role in holding up tradition and customs, but holds no real authority.

Great Britain is a constitutional monarchy. People in Britain enjoy the ceremonies and traditional symbolism that comes with the monarchy, so they may show support to King Charles III and the royal family as a result.

Direct Democracy

The first direct democracy was in Ancient Greece. In the capital city of Athens, all citizens would meet to debate and vote on the 

issues of the day. In that time, citizen status was restricted to adult white males, but still, political participation was open to 

everyone that was a citizen.  Direct democracy or pure democracy is a form of democracy in which the electorate decides on 

policy initiatives without elected representatives. 

Today only Switzerland is a direct democracy. Alongside the usual voting rights accorded in democracies, the Swiss people also 

have the right to vote on specific issues.  

Representative Democracy

Representative democracy, also known as indirect democracy, is a type of democracy where elected people represent a group of people.

This form of government consists of citizens who elect officials (leaders) to represent their wishes and have their opinions shared in an organized government. In this system of government, the citizens exercise their power through voting and contacting elected representatives who are then responsible for voting on laws and matters of the state. 

Theocracy

The word theocracy comes from the Greek words theos (‘God, deity’) 

and kratia (rule, governance), which means ‘rule by God’. In fact the 

state's  

political leadership is drawn from the clergy of  a particular religious 

group, who act in the name of God. These political leaders are believed 

to have some special God-given authority, or particular religious and 

moral insight, to make them legitimate rulers in the political sphere 

and qualified to rule in the name of God.  While religion may occupy a 

prominent position in public life in many countries, this doesn't 

necessarily make these states theocracies. Even if politicians invoke 

religious ideas, teachings or texts when discussing political issues, this 

doesn't make them theocratic rulers. Theocratic government usually 

involves privileging one particular religious belief system (Christianity, 

Islam, etc.) or clerical group (mullahs, Shinto priests, the Roman 

Catholic Church) over others. This privileged position is often enshrined 

in the constitution, or other foundational documents of the state. 

While we might think of theocracy as something that belongs to a past 

era, we can still find examples of theocratic government in the world 

today.  Afghanistan operates as a theocracy today, largely under the

control of the Taliban. The Taliban is a fundamentalist militant Islamic 

group that came to power during the Afghan Civil War.  Iran is a good 

example of a government that combines elements of both a theocracy 

and a democracy. The head of government is referred to as the 

"supreme leader, who also serves as a religious leader. Once in office, 

the Supreme Leader serves for life. By contrast, Iran elects a president 

for a four-year term.  Saudi Arabia is a clear example of a theocracy 

that is also a monarchy. The Holy See, located within the Vatican City, 

is another major example of a modern-day theocracy.  

Oligarchy

An oligarchy is a government where a small, elite groups rules all over society. In an oligarchy, the members of the ruling elite do not necessarily receive their titles by birth, like in a monarchy. The members are people in significant positions of power in business, in the military or in politics. 

States don’t usually define themselves as oligarchies, as the term carries a negative connotation. It is often associated with corruption, unfair policymaking and the small elite group’s sole purpose of upholding their privilege and power.

Russia is considered to be an oligarchy by many. Wealthy business owners and military leaders control politics for the purposes of growing their own wealth and not for the nation. Most of the wealth is in the hands of a small group of people in Russia.

As the rest of society is dependent on their businesses, the oligarchs have political and social power. Instead of using this power to bring changes in the country for all, they exploit it to generate more wealth and ability to control for themselves. This is a typical characteristic of oligarchies.

Dictatorship 

A dictatorship is a government in which a single person or small group holds all the power, and has absolute authority over politics and the population. Dictatorships are often corrupt and aim to limit the liberties of the general population in order to maintain their power. 

Dictators take and keep absolute power and authority through economic and military means, and they often use even brutality and threat. They know that the people are easier to control if they are poor, starving and afraid. Dictators often start out as military leaders, so to them, violence is not necessarily an extreme form of control against opposition. 

Some dictators also have a charismatic personality, according to Max Weber, which can make them appealing to citizens regardless of the force and violence they apply.

Kim Jong-Il and his son and successor, Kim Jong-Un have both been known as charismatic leaders. They have generated support as dictators of North Korea, not only through military power, propaganda and oppression, but by having a personality and charisma that captured the public.

In history, there have been many dictators who based their rule on a belief system or ideology. There have been others, who just wanted to preserve their power and had no ideology behind their rule. Adolf Hitler is probably the most famous dictator whose rule was based on an ideology (national socialism). Napoleon is also considered as a dictator, but did not base his rule on any specific ideology. Most dictatorships today exist in Africa.

A totalitarian government is an extremely oppressive dictatorial system. It aims to keep the lives of their citizens completely under control. This form of government restricts occupation, religious belief and the number of children a family can have, among other things. Citizens of a totalitarian dictatorship are publicly required to demonstrate their support for the government through attending marches and public celebrations. There have been dictators in history, like Napoleon or Anwar Sadat, who arguably improved the standards of living of their citizens. However, there have been more who abused their power and have committed serious crimes against their people. Examples of the latter are Joseph Stalin, Adolf Hitler, Saddam Hussein and Robert Mugabe (dictator of Zimbabwe) to mention a few.