G OVERNMENTS OF THE W ORLD

L EARNING T ARGETS  What is government?  What are the major types of government?  How is power distributed within these various governments?  What is the role of the citizen in the various types of government?

W HAT IS “ GOVERNMENT ” ANYWAY ? The people & groups of people that have the power to make the laws & see that they are obeyed.

C AN YOU FIGURE OUT THE MEANING OF THE VARIOUS TYPES OF GOVERNMENTS ? L ET ’ S BREAK THE WORDS APART ! Part of WordMeaning ArchRootChief, most important, rule, having authority over An-Prefixwithout Mon- (mono)PrefixOne, single, alone -cracySuffixRule or government by … Theo -Prefixgod Demo -PrefixPeople -craticSuffixA person who takes part in or is a member of a form of government Auto-PrefixSelf Olig – from Greek oligosfew

C AN YOU FIGURE OUT THE MEANING OF THE VARIOUS TYPES OF GOVERNMENTS ? L ET ’ S BREAK THE WORDS APART ! Part of WordMeaning AnarchyAn + arch Without + chief / ruler = without chief / ruler or government MonarchyMon + arch Single + chief / ruler = single chief / ruler DemocracyDemo + cracy People + government by = government by the people TheocracyTheo + cracy God + government by = government by god (or those given authority by god) OligarchicOlig + arch Few + chief / ruler = government by a few

W HAT ARE THE MAJOR TYPES OF GOVERNMENT ?  Anarchy  Communist  Republic  Democracy  Dictatorship  Theocracy  Monarchy

W HAT ARE THE VARIOUS TYPES OF GOVERNMENTS ?  Now that you have a basic knowledge of the various types of governments, let’s look a little further …

A NARCHY  There is no government  This can happen after a civil war in a country, when a government has been destroyed and rival groups are fighting to take its place  Anarchists - people who believe that government is a bad thing b/c it stops people from living their own lives  Example … Rwanda during the genocide

C OMMUNIST  A system of government in which the  state controls the economy  a single party holds all the power  Head is usually a dictator  Citizens  have no rights or voice in government …  sometimes even told where to work &how much to get paid  Economic system – communist  Example … Vietnam

R EPUBLIC  A form of government in which  people rule through elected representatives  Citizens  have a very active role in government … through elections (VOTING!!)  help make governmental decisions  Economic system – Mixed / Market  Examples - US

D EMOCRACY  A government that  receives its power from the people  Citizens  have a very active role in government through elections help make governmental decisions  Economic system – Mixed / Market  Examples … India, Canada

2 FORMS OF DEMOCRACY Parliamentary  The head of the gov. is the leader of the legislature – usually called the Prime Minister  Parliament – representatives of the people  Prime minister – elected by members of the parliament – NOT the people!  People vote – lots of citizen participation  Example - Israel Presidential  Leader is an elected president – chosen in a separate election from the legislature  Legislature – representatives of people  President – elected by the people  People vote – lots of citizen participation  Example – US

D ICTATORSHIP  A form of gov in which  absolute power is controlled by a dictator  Head – dictator –  can be elected then become a dictator OR head of military force that takes over gov.  Citizens  may or may not enjoy a few rights, but have no voice in gov.  Economic system – Command  Example … North Korea

T HEOCRACY  A government  ruled by a religious leader  Head – ayatollah  by attaining a congregation of followers  Citizens enjoy some rights and can vote on some issues  Economic system – Mixed / Market  Example … Iran

M ONARCHY Absolute Monarchy  A gov. in which the royal ruler has total control  Head – king or queen – usually hereditary (next in line)  Citizens enjoy many rights, such as where to work  Mixed economy  Example – Saudi Arabia (very rare to have an absolute monarchy today) Constitutional Monarchy  A system of gov. in which the power is shared between the monarchy and an elected branch of gov.  Head of gov. is usually the head of the elected branch … usually the monarch serves a more symbolic role  Citizens have rights an can vote  Market (or mixed) economy  Example – England

L IMITED V. U NLIMITED G OVERNMENTS  What do you think a limited government is/means?  Which of the govs. do you think are limited governments?  What do you think an unlimited government is/means?  Which of the govs. do you think are unlimited governments?

L IMITED V. U NLIMITED G OVERNMENT Limited  Leaders are LIMITED in their power / authority  Leaders have to OBEY the laws!  Example – democracies, republics Unlimited  Leaders have unlimited power – no limits on their authority!  Leaders to NOT have to obey the laws!  Example – monarchies, dictatorships

A ND YET … ONE MORE ASPECT OF GOVERNMENTS WE NEED TO DISCUSS !

H OW IS POWER DISTRIBUTED WITHIN THE VARIOUS TYPES OF GOVERNMENT ? Unitary Central (national) gov. possess MOST authority / decision making powers Examples – South Africa, Sierra Leon, Rwanda Confederation Local gov. possess power / authority / decision making powers Examples – US PRIOR to Constitution – under the Articles of Confederation Federal Power shared between central (national) and local govs. In authority / decision making powers Example - US

O KAY … NOW THAT WE KNOW ALL ABOUT GOVERNMENTS, THAT ’ S THE END RIGHT ? WRONG!!! One more thing … what is the citizen’s role in each of these governments?  Do citizens enjoy the same rights and privileges within each of these governments?  Do citizens help establish the rules and laws in each of these governments?

W HAT IS THE CITIZEN ’ S ROLE IN VARIOUS GOVERNMENTS ? Autocratic In gov – one person possess unlimited power Citizen has little – if any – role in gov Examples Dictatorship Absolute monarchy Oligarchic Gov – by very few – small group who govern – usually for selfish & corrupt reasons Citizens – have very little – if any, role Very rare – b/c usually 1 person will assume control and then becomes autocratic Example – South Africa during apartheid Democratic Gov – elected by the people Citizens have very active role – elect representatives Examples Republic Democracy USA

W ORDS TO KNOW …  Autocratic  Oligarchic  Democratic  Unitary  Confederation  Federal  Absolute monarchy  Constitutional monarchy  Parliamentary democracy  Presidential democracy  Anarchy  Communist  Republic  Democracy  Dictatorship  Theocracy