Suppressive Rulers and Their Citizens Essay (Critical Writing)

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Updated: Jan 11th, 2024

Introduction

Every nation has its constitution and rulers in accordance with their own structures. The world is progressively moving towards liberalism and democracy as is witnessed throughout the globe. The current status of events in the Middle East and Northern Africa highly suggest pro-democracy movement, or so as it seems to suggest. Days of tyranny are becoming less and less for repressive rulers as they face several counts of charges for atrocities. These rulers have always tried to credit their actions to the rule of law as well as ‘democracy’, although it rarely conveys that. They usually do this for several reasons such as, influencing their juniors to undertake their commands without fear or guilt. Other factors include international watchdogs, which profess democracy in every nation. This paper will explore the reasons why repressive rulers say they follow the rule of law and pretend to provide democracy to their citizens.

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Repressive rulers

These are rulers whose subjects are constantly subjected to suppression, exploitation and oppression, among other things that in human judgment, seems to surpass the guidelines for democracy. Such rulers are also referred to as tyrannical and spend most of their times trying to convince the world and their subjects that they are following the rule of law. These laws are common elements of abuse and flaws which are not punished. In fact, these rulers tend to be above every law in their respective countries; examples include countries like Congo, North Korea and Iraq before the war.

Citizens in such countries are usually deprived of basic rights like freedom of speech, movement and ownership of land as well as properties, among others. Such rulers end up exploiting their subjects and country’s resources to their own gain as observed during the times of Mobutu, in Congo. It is quite important to note that there are several reasons why these rulers insist on following the law and democracy.

Why do repressive rulers say they have rule of law/pretend they have democracy?

These rulers have several reasons for trying to let their subjects and the world at large believe that they are following the law and providing democracy to their citizens. These include avoiding UN interference, dodging internal reprisals and uprisings, evading international sanctions, instilling fear on citizens and portraying their countries as democratic, among others.

Avoiding UN interference

Most rulers who do atrocities and repress their subjects know that they are under obligation to serve the nation in the best way possible. They are also expected to stabilize their countries so as not to interfere with their neighbors who would report them to the UN. It is for this reason that rulers try to pretend that their countries are democratic, while in the real sense, repress their subjects.

Dodging internal uprisings

These rulers know that if these activities are understood by their subjects, they stand no chance of election to high positions; this propels them to instill fear on citizens and change laws to befit them so as to justify their dehumanizing actions and pretend to be democratic.

Evading economic sanctions

Countries depend on trade with other nations to boost their economies, therefore, when sanctions based on repression are placed on them, their economic survival is limited. The rulers therefore try to depict their countries as democratic to avoid sanctions.

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Depicting their countries as democratic

Every country prides in its structures and guidelines that shapes its history, economy and stability. The contemporary world is moving towards democracy and this makes repressive rulers ashamed of their activities before the world, this makes them to pretend to be democratic in the face of the world.

Conclusion

The world is moving towards full democracy although there are some rulers who still suppress their citizens as observed in Congo, North Korea and Libya, among others. These heads of states usually convince their subjects and pro-government supporters that every action they undertake is within the law and even boasts of democracy. However, it is clear that they only do this to avoid economic sanctions and interference from the international community as well as uprisings from within.

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IvyPanda. (2024, January 11). Suppressive Rulers and Their Citizens. https://ivypanda.com/essays/suppressive-rulers-and-their-citizens/

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"Suppressive Rulers and Their Citizens." IvyPanda, 11 Jan. 2024, ivypanda.com/essays/suppressive-rulers-and-their-citizens/.

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IvyPanda. (2024) 'Suppressive Rulers and Their Citizens'. 11 January.

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IvyPanda. 2024. "Suppressive Rulers and Their Citizens." January 11, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/suppressive-rulers-and-their-citizens/.

1. IvyPanda. "Suppressive Rulers and Their Citizens." January 11, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/suppressive-rulers-and-their-citizens/.


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IvyPanda. "Suppressive Rulers and Their Citizens." January 11, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/suppressive-rulers-and-their-citizens/.

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