Post 1

Leadership styles: Dictatorial

Dictatorial leadership would be the first form of leadership that I would discuss
on. First, I would provide a definition of what is a dictator. According to the
oxford dictionary, dictators are rulers with total power over a country, typically
one who has obtained power by force. 1

Examples of famous dictators include Saddam Hussein, Robert Mugabe and

Kim Jong Ill.

There are many ways a dictator can come into power. They
can be elected, be appointed by the resident government party hierarchy, or
inherit their position from a deceased relative i.e., Kim Jong Ill. Still other
modern dictators seize power in a military coup, and are supported by the
military. Indonesia is an example of a country that had undergone a military
coup, resulting in it being ruled by General Suharto, generally perceived as a
dictator. Sometimes dictators can initially obtain power from democratic
elections (like Adolf Hitler of Nazi Germany), but shortly after being elected the
dictator will ban all opposing parties and cancel all future elections. Free
elections would never be carried out under dictatorial governments but
sometime, “phoney” elections would be carried out in an attempt to give
themselves legitimacy3. One such example is Myanmar.

This form of leadership is usually not welcomed and generally not accepted by
the public. Dictators usually rule through the usage of fear and tyranny in order
to control the public. Corruption is also usually associated with dictators.
Dictators would take advantage of the public’s fear in them to enrich
themselves. Throughout history, there are countless examples of dictators who
have taken advantage of the general public in order to enrich themselves and
to strengthen their hold on power.

However, not all forms of dictators are bad. As suggested by the article written
by Ling Shen, “When will a dictator be good”2, there are situations whereby
dictatorial leadership is effective and useful. Take for instance an emergency
situation. During this situation, there is panic and chaos everywhere. In this
instance, it is better to have a dictator who takes charge.

This is just a short post on what dictatorial leadership means. For a more in-
depth analysis on what is dictatorial leadership, you can read it up at the
following sites.
http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005204

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/28/world/asia/28suharto.html

References:
1
http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-dictator.html
2
http://iclass.shufe.edu.cn/teacherweb/users/shenling/2006%20ET.pdf
3
http://neohumanism.org/d/di/dictatorship.html