Authoritarian Forms Research Articles

Generative Logic of the Anti-Globalization Trend: The Revitalization of Conservatism under the Excessive Development of Neoliberalism

After extensive scholarly discussions and the ongoing evolution of these two contrasting ideologies, certain paradoxical occurrences have arisen in the context of neoliberalisms worldwide progression. Among them, the polarization at both the political and economic levels, brought about by the global spread of neoliberalism, has led to the emergence of a new form of authoritarianism in the global neoliberal landscape. While there is still debate about whether the current resurgence of right-wing nationalist political movements in various countries is inherently intertwined with the aforementioned rising authoritarianism, it is undeniable that neoliberalism is facing challenges from these backlash phenomena that are, directly or indirectly, a result of its impacts. Exemplified by Trumpism, this article will probe into the generative logic of revitalization of anti-globalization conservatism in the context of the excessive development of neoliberalism.

Sociopolitical consequences of COVID‐19 in the Americas, Europe, and Asia: A multilevel, multicountry investigation of risk perceptions and support for antidemocratic practices

AbstractAlthough different social crises may eventually favor undemocratic and authoritarian forms of governance, at some point, such antidemocratic practices require the support of a significant part of the population to be implemented. The present research investigates how and whether the COVID‐19 pandemic might have favoured greater support for antidemocratic governmental practices, on the premise of regaining control and security. Using data from 17 countries (N = 4364) and national‐level indicators (i.e., real number of contagions and deaths, and sociopolitical indicators), we test how the risk of contagion and death from COVID‐19, along with personal orientations (i.e., social dominance orientation [SDO], right‐wing authoritarianism [RWA], and perceived anomie) motivate authoritarian and antidemocratic practices. Results from multilevel models indicate that risk perception and perceptions of political instability predict a wish for stronger leadership, agreement with martial law, and support for a controlling government especially when SDO and RWA are high, while more egalitarian and less conservative people agree less with these authoritarian measures in spite of the levels of risk perception. We discuss the implications for these findings for future research on similar but also dissimilar external events (natural disasters, war, or terror incidents) and the consequences for societies with higher authoritarian tendencies.

Geographies of Hope-in-Praxis: Collaboratively decolonizing relations and regenerating relational spaces

As burgeoning new forms of authoritarianism and fascism expand their reach, Geographies of Hope-in-Praxis stem from the locus of the present moment. Constellations of peoples re-rooted into place refuse Western ideals of democracy and development and engage with one another in new arrangements based on ancestral ways of knowing. In this Environment and Planning E: Nature and Space issue on Geographies of Hope-in-Praxis (GgsHope-in-Praxis), we step into ongoing conversations about hope, push back on business as usual, and amplify understandings of initiatives to (re)assemble different kinds of wor(l)ds. Our collection “geographizes” hope by digging into hope’s praxes—theories with action. Resurgent versions of hope can be better understood within the contexts of six dimensions—place, alliance, the unthinkable, perseverance, resilience, and the (im)possible—that provide diverse lenses for delving deeper into hope's complex topographies. Together, the articles reach across regional differences and bridge on-the-ground approaches. We activate hope through long-term, reciprocal, and accountable community-based methodologies in Brazil, Ecuador, the Philippines, and Southeast Alaska, California, and Kentucky in the USA. GgsHope-in-Praxis come to life in the process of collaboratively decolonizing relations and regenerating relational spaces. Vines of hope creep into crevices to interrupt and transform oppressive systems, intertwine to (re)weave localized communities together in living networks, and expand realities to increasingly join in solidarity with one another and amplify diverse pathways towards environmental-with-racial justices.

The Islamic Values and Democratic Ideals Navigating the Intersection of Islam and Democracy

The debate about democracy and Islam has consistently been juxtaposed as if it never reaches a final resolution, leading to disharmony between pro and con camps in relation to democracy, especially in the contemporary era. This study elucidates that there is no need for a dichotomy between democracy and the discourse of the Quran, as the Quranic vision is not contradictory to the spirit of democracy. This research is conducted based on direct observation, taking into account empirical evidence from literature and phenomena occurring within society. The study concludes that such debate is not of paramount importance; rather, what is more urgent is fostering public participation capable of implementing democracy that aligns with the vision of the Quran and Islam at large, to prevent all forms of injustice, authoritarianism, intolerance, and oppression.

Looking beyond the constituent power theory: The theory of equitable elite bargaining

AbstractThe constituent power theory, which served critical functions for several years, has outlived its utility as the preeminent yardstick to measure the normative legitimacy of a constitution. As the theory stands, it cannot apply on its own terms to most instances of modern constitution-making. At the same time, it is highly susceptible to being used to legitimize authoritarian outcomes. The scholarly literature that attempts to reimagine or expand the theory is scant and unable to overcome its problems. In response, this article develops an alternative standard: the theory of equitable elite bargaining. This theory provides that a constitution is normatively legitimate if it is the product of an equitable bargain between elites from most major political groups in society at the moment of constitution-making. The theory of equitable elite bargaining is applicable to the realities of modern constitution-making and makes it more difficult to legitimize authoritarian constitutions. Further, both representation-based and consequentialist arguments can justify a constitution drafted in accordance with the theory as normatively legitimate. The theory imposes a standard that can result in arduous constitution-making processes and moderated constitutional content. Additionally, its focus on elites poses challenging questions. However, this article will argue that the net benefits of this theory warrant its consideration as a new standard to assess normative constitutional legitimacy.

Brazilian autocratic infra-legalism: a response to Kim Lane Scheppele

Kim Lane Scheppele claims that “autocratic legalism” is a new form of political authoritarianism, characterized by the use of laws and constitutional engineering. I argue that the Brazilian case provides two counterarguments to this thesis, first refuting the idea that lessons learned from past authoritarianism do not involve the use of law for non-democratic purposes, and then arguing that there are other legal instruments suitable for the implementation of political authoritarianism besides constitutions and laws. To this end, I divide the article into five parts. First, I sketch the theoretical approach and methodology. Second, I consider a broader literature on the significance of law in non-democratic regimes. Next, I report the importance of the use of law in the Brazilian military dictatorship (1964-1985). Fourth, I explain the use of administrative legal tools in contemporary Brazil and how this use evidences the existence of an “autocratic infra-legalism.” Finally, I present some concluding remarks, and a postscript written in the light of the presidential elections of 2022.

The touch of the leader: representation and responsiveness in plebiscitary leader democracy

ABSTRACT By conjoining theorizing and analyzing existing empirical research results, the article aims at situating representation and responsiveness within the Weberian notion of plebiscitary leader democracy (PLD). In unison with the ‘sensorial turn’ in political theory, it proceeds by adopting the touch metaphor as an analytical lens to help us capture aspects of responsiveness in contemporary PLD. By distinguishing between two forms of touch (‘groping around’ and a ‘continuous light touch’), we map the opportunities of creative leadership to form popular preferences while also showing the boundaries of how far the representative process can constitute the identity and preferences of the represented. Additionally, the article gestures towards the potential normative merits of the touch metaphor by connecting it to the notion of ‘tactfulness’ borrowed from carnal hermeneutics. Situated within the Weberian economy of leadership qualities, tactfulness can help differentiate between more democratic and more authoritarian forms of PLD.

Failed Totalitarian Art: English Military Painting of the First World War

The subject of this article is subjects on the military theme in the paintings of European artists of the first half of the twentieth century.The object of the study is the stylistic and artistic features of painting by British military artists and painters of totalitarian states of the first half of the twentieth century. For the first time in domestic practice, the author offers to consider the unique phenomenon of British military painting of the First World War. She compares Italian aerofuturism, a style adopted by the fascist regime during the Second World War, which is close to her in spirit and connected with her modernist roots. The research was based on the provisions of the domestic author Igor Golomstock, who took the principle of the megamachine of the American historian and philosopher Lewis Mumford as a criterion for determining totalitarian art. The main conclusions of this study are the confirmation of the effectiveness of the Mumford formula in determining the criteria for the belonging of paintings to totalitarian art. At the same time, the considered example of English military painting, created in a democratic state, but bearing obvious features of totalitarian art, raises the question of the unambiguity of the correlation of the latter with the authoritarian form of government. The novelty of this work is the very possibility of familiarizing the domestic reader with the most interesting artistic and spiritual phenomenon - English military painting, closely related to Vorticism, the national trend of modernism, also insufficiently familiar to our public In addition, a wide range of issues related to the art history problem of identifying criteria for totalitarian art is considered

Antisemitism is predicted by anti-hierarchical aggression, totalitarianism, and belief in malevolent global conspiracies

Two cross-sectional studies were carried out in order to identify predictors of antisemitism, measured using the Generalised Antisemitism or GeAs scale. In the first, which used a self-selecting sample of UK-resident adults (n = 809), age, gender, ethnicity, and educational level as well as a wide range of ideological predictors were analysed as bivariate predictors of antisemitism. In the second, which used a representative sample of UK-resident adults (n = 1853), the same demographic predictors plus the non-demographic predictors found to have the strongest bivariate relationships with Generalised Antisemitism in the previous study were used to construct a linear model with multiple predictors. Ethnicity, support for totalitarian government, belief in malevolent global conspiracies, and anti-hierarchical aggression were identified as the strongest predictors of Generalised Antisemitism. However, support for totalitarian government was only found to predict ‘old’ antisemitic attitudes (measured using the Judeophobic Antisemitism or JpAs subscale) and not ‘new’ antisemitic attitudes (measured using the Antizionist Antisemitism or AzAs subscale), whereas ethnicity, anti-hierarchical aggression, and belief in malevolent global conspiracies were found to predict both ‘old’ and ‘new’ antisemitic attitudes. This finding adds nuance to ongoing debates about whether antisemitism is more prevalent on the political right or left, by suggesting that (at least in the UK) it is instead associated with a conspiracist view of the world, a desire to overturn the social order, and a preference for authoritarian forms of government—all of which may exist on the right, the left, and elsewhere. Data from both samples are open, as is the code used in order to carry out the analyses presented here.

Reforma konstytucyjna w Kirgistanie w 2021 roku na tle środkowoazjatyckiego konstytucjonalizmu autorytarnego

In terms of the dynamics of the state system’s reforms, Central Asian Kyrgyzstan is a unique case. In 2005, 2010, and 2020 a series of crises of state power, referred to as „revolutions”, unfolded there. Among their consequences were constitutional reforms that concerned the legal construction of the main state organs. The latest reform of 2021 brought an end to the semi-presidential system and established domination of the president over the state system. The analysis of such reforms can be carried out with reference to the paradigm of authoritarian constitutionalism. The following paper undertakes the analysis of the constitutional evolution of Kyrgyzstan and its current situation in a broader context of the Central Asian constitutionalism.
 The paper attempts to reconstruct the concept of the authoritarian constitutionalism, determine the peculiarity of Central Asian constitutionalism and the scope of the constitutional reform that took place in Kyrgyzstan in 2021. The core thesis of the paper asserts that this reform fully fits the paradigm of authoritarian constitutionalism and regional, Central Asian political traditions of strong and centralized state power. The paper employs doctrinal, comparative methods as well as the exegesis of the constitutions.
 This paper consists of four parts. The first chapter discusses the scope of authoritarian constitutionalism and asserts its dual-faceted legal and political nature. The second chapter briefly presents the Central Asian specificity of constitutionalism and nation building and state building processes. Consecutively it turns to the case of Kyrgyzstan and pays closer attention to the latest constitutional reforms. The fourth chapter contains a detailed analysis of the current Kyrgyz constitution in regard to the authoritarian constitutionalism paradigm.
 The research led the author to the conclusion that authoritarian constitutionalism is a not broad theory, but a paradigm, a certain scientific perspective that is embedded on the crossroads between constitutional law and a scientific study of political systems. It is successfully applied in investigations of the non-democratic model of governance. It puts emphasis on a specific legal position of the executive that overwhelmingly dominates the legislature and is prone to abuse. In the case of contemporary Kyrgyzstan, such a model of power is determined by the legal and political specificity of the region. The constitutional reform of 2021 strengthened the position of the president, introduced non-parliamentary representative bodies and limited the independence of the judiciary.

How citizens’ conceptions of democracy relate to positive and negative partisanship towards populist parties

Although scholars emphasise the contentious relationship of populist forces to (liberal) democracy, less attention has been paid to whether this extends to those who support or oppose populist parties. This article utilises a public opinion dataset from ten Western European countries to analyse how citizens’ conceptions of democracy relate to the behavioural intention to vote for or against populist parties. The empirical analysis shows that positive and negative identification with populist parties is driven by different understandings of democracy: While individuals who are less inclined to liberal democracy but more to direct democracy and authoritarian forms of rule are more likely to sympathise with populist parties, the opposite understanding of democracy predicts opposition to both left-wing and right-wing populists. These findings demonstrate that citizens with positive and negative partisanship towards populist parties are divided in their interpretations about both the conceptual meaning and the normative functioning of democracy.

The myth of populist constitutionalism in Hungary and Poland: Populist or authoritarian constitutionalism?

Abstract The article seeks to answer the question whether the analytical framework of “populist constitutionalism” adequately describes and explains the constitutional changes that the Hungarian and Polish populist governments have implemented, respectively, since 2010 and 2015. After presenting the similarities and differences between the Hungarian and Polish constitutional developments, the article discusses the conceptual attempts of populist constitutionalism, identifying the primary and secondary characteristics that the literature attributes to this phenomenon. The main point of the article is that these criteria only partially characterize the recent constitutional changes in these two countries, and that the features that do really prevail are more indicative of an unmarked authoritarian transition than of a new, specific version of constitutionalism. It describes the different reasons for the misapplication of constitutional populism to these two countries. Finally, it explains how counterproductive the misconception of populist constitutionalism is for understanding the recent constitutional development in Hungary and Poland.

Saffron Republic: Hindu Nationalism and State Power in India. By Thomas Blom Hansen and Srirupa Roy

The growth, consolidation, and seizure of social and political power by majoritarian and populist tendencies in Indian politics have been variously examined, more so by several recent studies on the changing patterns of communal mobilisation. While on-ground, empirical research informs Nalin Mehta’s influential study (The New BJP: Modi and the Making of the World’s Largest Political Party, 2021), Amrita Basu and Tanika Sarkar’s edited volume, Women, Gender and Religious Nationalism (2022, ICAS-MP, Cambridge University Press), is an important intervention in the discussion on gender in Hindutva politics. Not only does Blom Hansen and Roy’s volume take the conversation forward—to use a cliché—in a decisive manner, it adds significantly to the already rich body of work on Hindu nationalism and its resultant outgrowths that exists. The volume is noteworthy primarily because of its attempt at interrogating the phenomenon of contemporary Hindu nationalism—or New (or neo) Hindutva—which is significantly different from earlier versions in both form and substance. The discourse has moved from one centred on temple politics to aspiration focused on foreign policy and economic achievements. Also critical to the developing phenomenon of neo-Hindutva is the substantial inroads it is making in regions in the south and east of India, far removed from the conventional understanding of the BJP (and Sangh Parivar, in general) as a cow belt-based political formation. The volume under review also brings to the fore crucial new research on the changing caste dynamics of contemporary Hindutva as caste has emerged as vital to intense Hindu nationalist mobilisation, particularly of the kind that translates into significant gains at the hustings. The volume, therefore, focuses on the reshaping of the Hindutva landscape in India, which now competes with more global forms of democratic authoritarianism or authoritarian populism. Since Hindutva is now widely regarded as an electoral strategy par excellence and mainstreamed in popular discourse, the present volume examines several issues of intense concern, particularly the phenomenon of governmental Hindutva, urban zoning on communal lines, the growing politics of segregation, the minority Hindutva project (in the form of the Muslim Rashtriya Manch) and the momentous rhetoric on development.

End of the authoritarian constitutionalism? Debating the permanence of the Brazilian National Security Law during the democratization (1978-1987)

Resumo O artigo reconstrói historicamente os debates de aprovação e implementação da Lei de Segurança Nacional (Lei n. 7.170/83), de 1978 a 1987. Partindo da definição do constitucionalismo autoritário, argumenta que o sentido original da lei era conferido pelo arranjo de competências da rede institucional de segurança militar. Na redemocratização, a lei perdeu conteúdos ligados à doutrina de segurança nacional, mas manteve o arranjo institucional que lhe dava sentido. Ao ser implementada inicialmente no Supremo Tribunal Federal, tornou-se ferramenta de uma democracia controlada.

How Sanctions Led to Authoritarian Capitalism in Venezuela

After a deterioration of democratic conditions in Venezuela, in 2017 the United States intensified its sanctions imposed on the regime of Nicolás Maduro. The sanctions failed to topple the regime, but they accelerated the transformation of the Venezuelan economy. To counter the sanctions, Maduro carried out substantive economic policy changes, resulting in the emergence of a neo-patrimonial and authoritarian form of capitalism. In this new model, private ownership is the rule, and economic agents operate for profit. Yet there is frequent state intervention that denies individuals’ fundamental political and economic rights, and the purpose of laws and regulations is ensuring regime survival.

Towards a post-democratic era? Moral education against new forms of authoritarianism

ABSTRACT Educating in a convulsed political context demands a detailed analysis of the new circumstances of our times, especially the current democracy crisis. According to the latest reports issued by international evaluation organisations, one of the greatest challenges for democratic citizenship is the emergence and rise of authoritarianism within the framework of the so-called post-democracy, and also in the manifestations known as illiberal democracy. Moral and civic education has to respond to this challenge. With this in mind, we propose revitalising a participative and deliberative democracy model, rethinking the basic values in citizens' education, redefining the relation between what is public and what is private, and empowering sensitivity and free creation in the new maker culture.

Crisis, state of emergency and state terrorism: particularities of the dictatorship in Argentina (1976−1983)

In Argentina, the 1976 coup d’état was a change of political regime and not just a change of government, from one of democratic origin turned authoritarian to another with fascistic tendencies, since the constant amplification of the State of exception will constitute a structure of state power of fascist projection, whose central characteristics were the expansion of the repressive apparatus and the institutionalization of new branches of the State: the Detention and Extermination Centers and the Task Forces. The character of the regime, however, had a dense sedimentation that combined a complex axiology. The notion of exceptionality allows us to elaborate the problem from a stage prior to State terrorism and to observe how legal and political statutes, for example the exception, secrecy, and military intelligence in a framework of severe capitalist crisis, derived in authoritarian forms of democratic regime and were generating the conditions for the coup d’état. Once the last dictatorship occurred, the concept of exception gave us access to correlate the repressive model with the characteristics of the political regime.

ЮРИДИЧНА ВІДПОВІДАЛЬНІСТЬ ЗА ЗЛОЧИНИ: ДО ПИТАННЯ ЩОДО ВИДОВОГО ПОДІЛУ ПРАВОПОРУШЕНЬ

The external aggression of totalitarian anti-democratic states against Ukraine is, among other things, caused by internal factors, including the crisis of democratic institutions and, above all, the conflicts that existed in the soviet system of law and have been recapitulated in the law of postsoviet countries. Ukraine's example of societal transformation is perhaps the most striking, as the imperial nature of power in the form of corruption, authoritarianism, repression, and disregard for rights and freedoms has also affected the newly formed Ukrainian political and economic environment. The military sphere, and especially the institution of legal responsibility of the military, is no exception, as it is extremely corruption- and crime-prone due to its isolation, conservatism, and multivector risks associated with both personal characteristics and the environment itself. Therefore, it requires urgent reform in accordance with NATO standards. However, this cannot be done without reforming the entire system of Ukrainian legislation. In accordance with the postulates of jurisprudence and practical necessity, the article substantiates the need to ensure legal certainty in the use of the terms "crime", "administrative offense", "disciplinary offense" in Ukrainian legislation, which are basic for the institution of legal liability. The author provides arguments in favor of distinguishing between the subject matter and grounds of liability for a crime, liability for an administrative offense and liability for a disciplinary offense in accordance with the Constitution of Ukraine. Proposals are made to create codified regulations governing various spheres of social and economic life and, above all, the military sphere.

Uwagi o kształtowaniu się instytucji ombudsmana w Polsce i Meksyku, 1990–2022

The ombudsman institution has become a barometer of implementing the rule of law, democracy and transparency system. Does the fact that the institution of the ombudsman was established in authoritarian countries influence its activities today? This question will be the subject of a comparative analysis of Poland and Mexico, in which there has been a democratic transformation in recent decades. In conclusion, it should be observed that despite the historical and political differences, we are dealing with a similar context and mechanism of functioning of the ombudsman institution. Both countries have an authoritarian past and both underwent a democratic transformation in the 1990s. and both struggle with contemporary forms of authoritarian forms of power.

Reinventing the Sheikhdom: Clan, Power and Patronage in Mohammed bin Zayed’s UAE

Reinventing the Sheikhdom: Clan, Power and Patronage in Mohammed bin Zayed’s UAE