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Study Cards on military, political, institutions

What does political islam aim at?

It aims at the construction of a theocracy in which political and other affairs are structured according to 'higher' religious principles.

What is the key feature of a military regime?

The leading posts in the government are filled on the basis of the person's position within the military chain of demand. Normal political and constitutional arrangements are usually suspended, and institutions through which opposition can be expressed, such as elected assemblies and a free press, are either weakened or abolished.

In what circumstances foes military seize power?

- Link between military coups and economic underdevelopment.
- Military is likely to only intervene in politics when it senses that the legitimacy of the existing institutions and the ruling elite is challenged, and when it calculates that its intervention is going to be successful (so almost never intervention in stable democratic culture).
- Degree to which the values, goals and interests of the armed forces differ from those of the broader regime. In newly independent developing states, military saw itself as modernizing force confronting a traditionalist, hierarchical political elite.
- International pressures can encourage military action.