A right-wing dictatorship, sometimes also referred to as a rightist dictatorship is an authoritarian or totalitarian regime following right-wing policies. Right-wing dictatorships are typically characterized by anti-communism, appeals to traditionalism, the protection of law and order, and nationalism. They justify their rise to power based on a need to uphold a conservative status quo.
Characteristics of a right-wing dictatorship Military dictatorship
In the most common Western view, the perfect example of a right-wing dictatorship is any of those that once ruled in South America. Those regimes were predominantly military juntas and most of them collapsed in the 1980s. Communist countries, which were very cautious about not revealing their authoritarian methods of rule to the public, were usually led by civilian governments and officers taking power were not much welcomed there. Few exceptions include the Burmese Way to Socialism (Burma, 1966–1988), the Military Council of National Salvation (People's Republic of Poland, 1981–1983) or the North Korean regime's evolution throughout the rule of Kim Il Sung.
Religion and the government
Many right-wing regimes kept strong ties with local clerical establishments. This policy of a strong Church-state alliance is often referred to as clerical fascism. Pro-Catholic dictatorships included the Estado Novo (1933–1974) and the Federal State of Austria (1934–1938). Many of those are/were led by spiritual leaders, such as the Slovak Republic under the Reverend Jozef Tiso. Some right-wing dictatorships, like Nazi Germany, were openly hostile to certain religions.
Ideological alignment Many right-wing dictatorships have opposed communism. Examples include Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, Estado Novo, Francoist Spain, the Chilean Junta, the Greek Junta, the Brazilian military dictatorship, the Argentine Junta (or National Reorganization Process), Republic of China under Chiang Kai-shek, Indonesia's New Order regime by Suharto, Cuba under Fulgencio Batista, in South Korea when it was led by Syngman Rhee, Park Chung Hee, and Chun Doo-hwan, a number of military dictatorships in Latin America during the Cold War.
Some right-wing dicatorships align with anti-Western sentiments, such as Russia under Vladimir Putin.
Right-wing dictatorships by region The authoritarian politics of several countries can range from parties and movements on the center-right to the far-right, including some that are difficult to define. The degree of authoritarianism can also vary.
Cases supported by various sources and definitions will be presented below:
Europe
The existence of right-wing dictatorships in Europe are largely associated with the rise of fascism. The conditions created by World War I and its aftermath gave way both to revolutionary socialism and reactionary politics. Fascism arose as part of the reaction to the socialist movement, in attempt to recreate a perceived status quo ante bellum.The New Fontaena Dictionary of Modern Thought Third Edition, (1999) p. 729. Right-wing dictatorships in Europe were mostly destroyed with the Allied victory in World War II, although some continued to exist in Southern Europe until the 1970s.
List of European right-wing dictatorships CountryHistorical name(s)Movement(s)Years of ruleDictator(s) Ahmed Zogu / Zog I Fatherland Front Kingdom of Bulgaria Republic of Estonia Patriotic League 1934–1940 Konstantin Päts French State Révolution nationale 1940–1944 Kingdom of Hungary Unity Party 1920–1944 Miklós Horthy Kingdom of ItalyPauley, Bruce F (2003) Hitler, Stalin, and Mussolini: Totalitarianism in the Twentieth Century Italy, Wheeling: Harlan Davidson, Inc., p. 107.Pauley, Bruce F (2003) Hitler, Stalin, and Mussolini: Totalitarianism in the Twentieth Century Italy, Wheeling: Harlan Davidson, Inc., p. 228. National Fascist PartyAristotle A. Kallis, Fascist ideology: territory and expansionism in Italy and Germany, 1922–1945. London, England; New York City, USA: Routledge, 2000. Pp. 41. 1922–1943 Benito Mussolini Republic of Latvia Latvian Farmers' Union (disbanded after coup) 1934–1940 Kārlis Ulmanis Republic of Lithuania Lithuanian Nationalist Union 1926–1940 Antanas Smetona Ottoman Empire Poland Republic of Poland Roman Republic Roman RepublicOptimates82–79 BCLucius Cornelius Sulla Felix Republic of San Marino Sammarinese Fascist Party 1918–1943 Giuliano Gozi Ukrainian StateEastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States: 1999, Routledge, 1999, (page 849)Ukrainian People's Hromada 1918 Pavlo Skoropadskyi Yugoslavia Kingdom of Yugoslavia
Asia
Right-wing dictatorships in Asia emerged during the early 1930s, as military regimes seized power from local constitutional democracies and monarchies. The phenomenon soon spread to other countries with the military occupations driven by the militarist expansion of the Empire of Japan. After the end of World War II, Asian right-wing dictatorships took on a decidedly anti-communist role in the Cold War, with many being backed by the United States. Contemporarily, some scholars and journalists have described China's neoauthoritarianism as right-wing, and the regime is widely regarded as socially conservative and nationalist. However, whether the Chinese government today can be classified as right wing is still a highly contested topic among scholars, with some argue that right and left label does not fit neatly in the context of China.
List of Asian right-wing dictatorships
CountryHistorical name(s)Movement(s)Years of ruleDictator(s) Republic of Azerbaijan New Azerbaijan Party People's Republic of Bangladesh Empire of China Military 1915–1916 Yuan Shikai Republic of Cyprus EOKA B 1974 Nikos Sampson Georgia Georgian Dream 2025–present Bidzina Ivanishvili with Irakli Kobakhidze Republic of Indonesia ● Gerindra● 2024 - present ● Prabowo Subianto Republic of Kazakhstan Amanat 1999–2019 Nursultan Nazarbayev Kingdom of Laos Military with the Committee for the Defence of National Interests Malaysia UMNO 1981–2003 Mahathir Mohamad Manchuria, China Concordia Association 1932–1945 Puyi with Zheng Xiaoxu and Zhang Jinghui Republic of Singapore People's Action Party 1965–1990 Lee Kuan Yew Syria Syrian Republic Military with the Arab Liberation Movement 1951–1954 Adib Shishakli Republic of Tajikistan People's Democratic Party of Tajikistan 1994–present Emomali Rahmon (1928–1949) (1945–1987) Right-wing Kuomintang Kingdom of ThailandThak Chaloemtiarana. Thailand: The Politics of Despotic Paternalism (The Southeast Asia Program Edition) Silkworm Books, 2007 Turkmenistan Democratic Party of Turkmenistan Republic of Uzbekistan Uzbekistan Liberal Democratic Party Southern Vietnam Republic of Vietnam
Latin America and the Caribbean Right-wing dictatorships largely emerged in Central America and the Caribbean during the early 20th century. Sometimes they arose to provide concessions to American corporations such as the United Fruit Company, forming regimes that have been described as "banana republics". North American right-wing dictatorships were instrumental in suppressing their countries' labour movements and instituting corporatist economies. During the Cold War, these right-wing dictatorships were characterized by a distinct anti-communist ideology, and often rose to power through US-backed coups. Many of the right-wing dictatorships that existed in South America started a campaign of political repression known as Operation Condor which involved intelligence operations, coups, and assassinations of left-wing sympathizers in South America. Operation Condor formally existed from 1975 to 1983 and it was supported by the United States.
List of Latin American and Caribbean right-wing dictatorships CountryHistorical name(s)Movement(s)Years of ruleDictator(s) Northern Argentina Argentine Confederation Military with the Federalist Party Juan Manuel de Rosas Military Republic of Colombia Republic of Costa Rica Military with the Peliquista Party 1917–1919 Federico Tinoco Granados Republic of El Salvador Grenada Grenada United Labour Party 1974–1979 Eric Gairy Military with the National Party Republic of Nicaragua Nationalist Liberal Party Republic of Panama Military
Africa
Africa has experienced several military dictatorships which makes up the majority of right-wing dictatorships that have existed. Dictatorships like the hereditary dictatorship in Togo (especially under Gnassingbé Eyadéma) had strong anti-communist and pro-Western stances which are in contrast to left-wing governments that existed in other African nations around the time. Regimes like Zaire and Rwanda under Habyarimana have sometimes been called fascist. Zaire featured what their dictator called a "neither right nor left" position but was recognized by historians as a right-wing regime and its state ideology of Mobutism has sometimes been seen as a Third Position ideology. Rwanda under Habyarimana has been compared to fascist regimes such as Nazi Germany for their Hutu supremacist policies against the Tutsi's as well as the Rwandan genocide that occurred after the assassination of Habyarimana sometimes being compared to the Holocaust.
List of African right-wing dictatorships CountryHistorical name(s)Movement(s)Years of ruleDictator(s) Republic of Upper Volta Military 1966–1980 Sangoulé Lamizana Republic of Burundi National Council for the Defense of Democracy – Forces for the Defense of Democracy Republic of Cameroon Cameroon People's Democratic Movement 1982–present Paul Biya Republic of Chad Republic of Zaire Military with the Popular Movement of the Revolution 1965–1997 Mobutu Sese Seko Arab Republic of Egypt Nation's Future Party 2014–present Abdel Fattah el-Sisi Gabonese Republic Gabonese Democratic Party Republic of the Gambia Alliance for Patriotic Reorientation and Construction 1996–2017 Yahya Jammeh Republic of Guinea Military with the Unity and Progress Party 1984–2008 Lansana Conté Republic of Equatorial Guinea First Republic of Ivory Coast Democratic Party of Ivory Coast – African Democratic Rally Republic of Kenya Kenya African National Union Kingdom of Lesotho Basotho National Party 1970–1986 Leabua Jonathan Republic of Liberia Military with the National Democratic Party of Liberia 1986–1990 Samuel Doe Republic of Malawi Malawi Congress Party 1966–1994 Hastings Banda Islamic Republic of Mauritania Republic of the Niger Military with the National Movement for the Society of Development 1987–1993 Ali Saibou Union of South Africa National Party 1948–1994 Republic of the Sudan Military with the National Congress Party 1989–2019 Omar al-Bashir Togolese Republic Transkei Republic of Transkei Transkei National Independence Party 1979–1986 Kaiser Matanzima Republic of Tunisia 25th of July Movement 2021–Present Kais Saied Republic of Rhodesia Rhodesian Front 1964–1979 Ian Smith
See also Left-wing dictatorship Authoritarian capitalism Authoritarian conservatism Films depicting Latin American military dictatorships Military government Neoauthoritarianism in China Police state Operation Condor
Notes
References
Bibliography