By Abak Hussain
After a long struggle with authoritarian rule, Bangladeshis are at long last able to breathe again in a new world with a new set of values. Of course, the fight is not yet over, because the struggle to build a functional democracy with solid institutions that keep each other in check will be a long, hard one. A certain amount of uncertainty, then, was a given. And yet, this is a time for cautious optimism, and a time for rigorous reflection. What went wrong? We must ask this question, and not just in the context of our own country, but in terms of history, and also in terms of regimes around the world. We may, for example, look at highly developed, democratic nations around the world with impeccable human rights records such as Switzerland or Iceland and ask what makes them the way they are. On the other hand, we should also study despotic regimes – undemocratic regimes – whether they be in the form of an absolute monarchy, a military dictatorship, a one-party system, or an ostensibly democratic system which has been corrupted by a single ruler, and safeguard ourselves against such rule. This is the time to say “never again!” to tyrannical rulers, and create a world where people are treated fairly, equally, and no one, not even the individual at the seat of power, is above accountability. Here I present a quick list of five dictatorships around the world. Please note: there are many, many undemocratic regimes around the world, and so the picks here are my purely personal and idiosyncratic choices.
BRUNEI
The longest-serving state leader in the world right now is the Sultan of Brunei Hassanal Bolkiah, who has sat on the throne of Brunei since 1967, and has also held the position of prime minister since 1984, when Brunei gained independence from the UK. The wealth of oil-rich Brunei, since independence, has been pretty much concentrated in the hands of Bolkiah, who has treated the nation’s resources like his own personal ATM machine, living the most appallingly extravagant and wasteful lifestyle. There was no one to curb him in his indulgences, and since he has always been surrounded by sycophants, there was never anyone to talk sense into him. In the 80s he was known as the richest man in the world, and even now, worth many billions for sure, it is not quite clear just how much wealth Bolkiah and his family sit on. He owns a whole fleet of private jets, including a gold-plated Boeing 747 nicknamed Flying Palace. Bolkiah also owns a fleet of over 7,000 luxury cars, a vast collection of art, and a 2 million sq-ft palace with a gold dome. One could go on and on with descriptions of the extravagance of the Sultan of Brunei, as well as the profligate behavior his younger brother Jefri, which the sultan enabled. The point is, Hassanal Bolkiah with his unchecked conspicuous consumption demonstrates a very simple point about autocrats very clearly: absolute power corrupts absolutely.
NORTH KOREA
When Canadian engineer Peter Fairlie sat in his backyard scanning for sports channels, he accidentally stumbled upon North Korean TV, which he put on Youtube, which subsequently went viral. North Korea is so closed up and secretive, there is no way for the rest of the world to even get a glimpse of its media except tapping into its airwaves by accident. What we see in the clip is a bizarre carnival of propaganda, pomp, and Kim Jong-un-worship. DPRK is an impoverished nation where the bulk of the money is spent on propaganda about the “dear leader” and the Kim family, and on the military. Regular people do not have internet access, freedom of speech, or freedom of movement. So tightly controlled is the population that people are not allowed to sit at parks of their own free will, and only a certain number of state-approved hairstyles are allowed. The cult of personality in North Korea is probably the worst in the world, with its founding leader Kim Il-Sung (Kim Jong-un’s grandfather) seen as nothing short of God Almighty. There are numerous flashy-looking buildings, but many are empty, and exist for show. The glaring contrast between North Korea and its prosperous and culturally vibrant neighbor to the south only makes clear how badly a dictatorship can repress the potential of its people.
BELARUS
When Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine prompting almost universal condemnation, his best friend and ally was Alexander Lukashenko of Belarus, a self-described, proud authoritarian. Lukashenko has ruled the country since 1994 – Belarus has never had any other president. He has stolen election after election, earning himself the nickname Europe’s Last Dictator, a nickname he wears as a badge of honor. Lukashenko has violent suppressed all dissent and opposition, and deployed Soviet-style economic controls. Many under his regime have been jailed or tortured, and those who were able to flee the country have done so. After so many years in power, it is clear that Lukashenko has brought vote-rigging to a fine art, and the Soviet-era nostalgia in his governance style is appealing to some. Unlike many other authoritarians who try to craft a veneer of democratic legitimacy, Lukashenko is unabashedly authoritarian and sees himself as a dying breed. Many in the country find it hard to imagine a world without Lukashenko at the helm (30 years is a long time!) and it is quite possible that the great dictator has bought a little bit into his own myth. In spite of recent health problems and a Covid scare, he stands tall, shrugging off doubts. “I’m not going to die,” he said recently. Sounds like famous last words to me. One can hope.
EQUATORIAL GUINEA
All of the power of Equatorial Guinea has been concentrated in the hands of Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo since 1979. Initially, Obiang served under his uncle Macias, the first president of the country. Obiang overthrew Macias in a violent coup, put him to trial, and executed him by firing squad that very same year. Initially, Obiang was considered to be less despotic than his uncle, but those hopes were short-lived. Right now, Equatorial Guinea is deemed to be one of the worst human rights offenders in the world, and one of the worst countries in terms of human development. Obiang is appallingly corrupt – he has taken full control of the treasury, ostensibly to “prevent” corruption among public officials. He has siphoned money out of the country and put huge amounts of wealth in American banks, into dozens upon dozens of accounts controlled personally by him. Equatorial Guinea, because of its totalitarian government, has become a hotbed for human trafficking, especially sex trafficking. There is no press freedom, no political or civil rights, and virtually no avenues for the average citizen to lift themselves out of this horrific situation and escape to a better life. Unlike many other dictatorships, Obiang does not bother to even provide his people with a comforting narrative of development, or razzle dazzle propaganda. It is a bleak picture of plunder and violent repression all the way.
VENEZUELA
The “everyman” president of Venezuela Nicolas Maduro started off as a bus driver. What could be a better picture of working-class aspirations? Indeed, depending on one’s ideology, one could very well start off thinking of Maduro a socialist hero. But what a leader says is one thing, what he actually does is another. Under Maduro’s rule in the early years, inflation in Venezuela reached catastrophic levels, and the economy was hit by a recession. Rather than fixing the country, Maduro’s priority all along has been to cling to power by whatever means necessary. This is especially unfortunate, because Venezuela was once an economically thriving nation. Maduro, in his thirst for power, has made sweeping changes, rigging special elections and giving himself carte blanche to rewrite the constitution. There is now no opposition – he has thrown his political enemies in jail, and has cracked down hard on street protesters. Venezuela’s economy is now a total and utter mess, and still Maduro does nothing to address the issues. So dire is the food shortage that the country went through a period between 2015 and 2016 where the average citizen lost nearly 9 kilos of bodyweight. Like many other dictators throughout the world, Maduro has resorted to arbitrary arrests and extrajudicial killings to maintain control over a highly dissatisfied nation, but it is not clear just how much longer he will be able to maintain his grip, especially with so much pressure – both internal and external – for him to step down.
Abak Hussain is Contributing Editor at MW Bangladesh
