The rise of illiberal democracies T h e r i s e i l l i b e r a l 20 plus one authoritarians completely out of the closet Thanos Kalamidas An Ovi eBooks Publication 2025 Ovi eBookPublications - All material is copyright of the Ovi eBooks Publications & the writer David Sparenberg C Ovi ebooks are available in Ovi/Ovi eBookshelves pages and they are for free. If somebody tries to sell you an Ovi book please contact us immediately. For details, contact: ovimagazine@yahoo.com No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior permission of the writer or the above publisher of this book The rise of illiberal democracies The rise of illiberal democracies 20 plus one auThoriTarians compleTely ouT of The closeT Thanos Kalamidas Thanos Kalamidas An Ovi eBooks Publication 2025 Ovi eBookPublications - All material is copyright of the Ovi eBooks Publications & the writer David Sparenberg C The rise of illiberal democracies conTenTs introduction - The masquerade 9 The illusion of choice russia’s eternal presidency 16 The Bollywood of Democracy modi’s india at a crossroads 25 rwanda’s democracy behind Kagame’s iron curtain 35 The emperor without a crown Xi Jinping’s china and the age of silent dissent 45 Viktor orbán and the theater of illiberal democracy 55 uganda’s democracy a stage play with a dictator as lead actor 64 maduro’s democracy another dictator in disguise 73 malaysia’s electoral masquerade 79 erdoğan’s empire of illusions 89 Democracy in name only nigeria’s fragile facade under tinubu 99 Thanos Kalamidas The rise of illiberal democracies Daniel ortega, nicaragua’s revolution devoured from within 108 aliyev’s azerbaijan Dynasty draped in iron 117 The democracy delusions in serbia 127 egypt’s grand chimera sisi’s democracy of fear 136 Veils of fear iran’s grip on conscience 145 crown of iron - saudi arabia under the merciless Bin salman 155 israel’s dark turn netanyahu, nationalists, settlers 163 and the erosion of Democracy The tyrant’s fix lukashenko’s power trip 172 isaias afwerki: africa’s shadow over eritrea 180 The iron grip of Kim Jong Un A modern tyrant unchecked and uncontrolled 188 The apprentice of autocracy Trump’s Ongoing Dance with Power 198 Thanos Kalamidas An Ovi eBooks Publication 2025 Ovi eBookPublications - All material is copyright of the Ovi eBooks Publications & the writer David Sparenberg C The rise of illiberal democracies introduction The masquerade We are living in an age of political illusions. The old, comforting binaries, democracy versus dicta- torship, the free world versus the authoritarian bloc, have grown blurry, even obsolete. The stark, brutalist regimes of the 20th century, with their walls, secret police, and unflinching displays of force, have not vanished; they have evolved. They have learned to walk among us, to wear the vestments of their demo- cratic rivals, and to thrive in the shadows cast by our own assumptions. This is a new form of power, one that wears a friendly smile, shakes hands at inter- national summits, and speaks fluent rhetoric about freedom and progress, while quietly dismantling the very institutions that make those words meaningful. This book is not about the classic strongmen, the dictator who rules through terror, tanks, and an un- Thanos Kalamidas ambiguous iron fist. That story has been told too often, and we understand it, even if we sometimes fail to stop it. What we rarely confront is a more in- sidious breed: the authoritarian in democratic cloth- ing. These are the contemporary heads of state that hide in plain sight. They arrive at G7 summits, ad- dress the un General assembly, and give interviews to Western media in reassuring, polished language. They maintain the formal architecture of democracy, elections, parliaments, constitutions, while systemat- ically hollowing it out from within. Their power is quieter, subtler, but no less deadly. The playbook is methodical, almost surgical. it be- gins not with a bang, but with a whisper. independent media outlets are co-opted, intimidated, or bought, slowly converting once-vibrant channels of infor- mation into echo chambers of state propaganda. The law, meant to safeguard citizens, becomes a weapon against them: tax audits, trumped-up charges, regu- lations targeting opposition parties, arbitrary arrests. courts are captured or intimidated, rendering justice conditional and selective. Digital platforms, once hailed as tools of liberation, are weaponized to am- plify disinformation, suppress inconvenient voices, and rally the loyal base against carefully constructed The rise of illiberal democracies enemies, real or imaginary. The rhetoric is seamless: these leaders speak of “the people” and “the national will,” conflating personal ambition with the interests of the state, and painting dissent as treason. This is not an isolated phenomenon. across conti- nents and cultures, a recognizable pattern emerges. in the eurasian steppes, in southeast asia, across eu- rope, and even in the americas, we see leaders who have mastered the art of the democratic masquerade. Vladimir putin presents himself as the guarantor of national pride while crushing opposition under lay- ers of bureaucracy and law. narendra modi culti- vates a narrative of cultural revival while sidelining dissenting voices and reshaping institutions to align with personal ideology. Viktor orbán, recep tayy- ip erdoğan, Xi Jinping, paul Kagame, ilham aliyev, anwar ibrahim, all wield power in ways that exploit the mechanics of democracy while undermining its spirit. Their tactics differ in nuance, shaped by cul- ture and history, but the underlying principle is the same: appear legitimate while concentrating power. What makes this form of authoritarianism so dan- gerous is the illusion of consent. millions of citizens, at least initially, willingly trade liberty for the prom- ise of stability, security, or national pride. They cheer Thanos Kalamidas the leader who cracks down on corruption, never noticing that the crackdown conveniently spares the ruler’s allies. They celebrate economic growth or so- cial programs, often unaware that these gains are lev- eraged as tools to justify the erosion of checks and balances. and while the global community watches, perhaps raising eyebrows or issuing statements of concern, the veneer of democracy provides cover. The leaders are careful, calculating. They know that in the 21st century, perception is often as valuable as reality. appear legitimate, and the machinery of authoritarianism can hum along quietly, almost in- visibly, until it is too late. This is the age of the hybrid regime. The mask is everything; the reality is everything but visible. in the past, dictators had to be unmistakable, fearsome, immediate, brutal. today’s rulers have learned that power grows stronger in camouflage. They cultivate an aura of respectability, attend international gather- ings, sign treaties, and invite journalists into staged exhibitions of pluralism. They present themselves as committed to democratic norms, all while systemat- ically dismantling them. The danger lies in the com- fort of appearances, in the assumption that if a coun- try votes, debates, and enacts laws, it must be free. The rise of illiberal democracies The truth is far more complicated: the machinery of repression is often sophisticated, deeply embedded, and entirely legal on paper. Throughout this book, we will pull back the cur- tain on this global masquerade. We will examine the mechanisms that allow these regimes to flourish: le- gal manipulation, media capture, digital disinforma- tion, and psychological operations designed to shape consent. We will analyze the strategies by which lead- ers cultivate loyalty, manufacture fear, and neutralize dissent. We will meet the people who enable this sys- tem, from sycophantic advisers to intimidated civil servants, and the citizens who navigate it, sometimes complicit, sometimes caught in impossible moral di- lemmas. We will also confront the uncomfortable ques- tions. Why do so many ordinary citizens accept this trade of freedom for stability? Why does the promise of national pride and economic security blind people to the slow decay of their institutions? how do dem- ocratic norms survive when undermined by their own rituals? The answers are never simple, and the consequences are never contained within borders. a free society anywhere depends on vigilance every- where, because authoritarianism, even in disguise, is contagious. Thanos Kalamidas This book is not just a study of politics; it is a warn- ing. The greatest threat to democracy today may not be the tank on the street or the overt iron fist. it is the slow, silent poison administered by those who pledge to protect it. authoritarianism has learned to speak in the language of freedom, to smile in the halls of parliaments, and to cloak oppression in ceremonial legitimacy. The masquerade is underway, and if we are to resist, we must first learn to see through the masks. in the chapters that follow, we will examine lead- ers who have perfected this double game, from the eurasian steppes to the capitals of europe, southeast asia, and beyond. We will dissect their methods, their strategies, and their justifications, and we will expose the dangerous illusions that have allowed them to rise. and, for those who still cling to the comforting binaries of history, we will offer a stark, unflinching reality: the world has changed, and democracy, like all fragile things, requires more than hope to survive. it demands recognition, understanding, and relent- less vigilance. The masquerade is not a theory or a future threat. it is here, now. it walks among us in business suits and press conferences, smiling while it tightens its The rise of illiberal democracies grip. and it is up to us, not distant governments, not hopeful institutions, but citizens aware of the danger, to learn its rhythms, read its signs, and resist the qui- et erosion of liberty before the masks become per- manent. Thanos Kalamidas The illusion of choice russia’s eternal presidency Vladimir Putin’s Russia is the classic case study for how elections can exist without democracy. on paper, the country holds regular presidential and parliamentary votes. Ballots are printed, candidates’ names appear, polling stations open, and citizens The rise of illiberal democracies dutifully line up to cast their choices. yet the ritual masks the reality: there is no genuine competition, no true freedom of expression, and certainly no pos- sibility of power changing hands. What russia prac- tices under putin is not democracy, but the theater of democracy, staged so convincingly that millions of citizens, whether resigned, fearful, or genuinely loy- al, participate in it year after year. The core of the system is simple: the presidency is not just an office, it is the state itself. power does not flow through institutions, checks, and balances; it ra- diates outward from one man. everything else, the parliament, the courts, the media, even the election commissions, serves as decoration, props to keep the play running smoothly. This is why discussing “elections” in russia feels like talking about the menu in a restaurant where the kitchen serves only one dish. The waiter hands you a glossy booklet, you leaf through the options, but in the end, the chef has already decided: you’re eating whatever putin has prepared. The choice is an illu- sion, and illusions are the specialty of authoritarian- ism. perhaps the clearest sign of putin’s dominance is the fate of his opponents. Those who dare to step into Thanos Kalamidas the political ring against him do so at great personal risk. over the years, challengers have been disquali- fied on technicalities, jailed on dubious charges, ex- iled, or worse. The world has watched critics like Bo- ris nemtsov gunned down on a moscow bridge and alexei navalny poisoned, imprisoned, and silenced. These are not accidents; they are the logical outcomes of a system that cannot tolerate rivals. a healthy democracy thrives on dissent. it needs voices that question, challenge, and demand better. russia under putin does the opposite: it suffocates dissent before it can breathe. The state-controlled media dismisses opponents as foreign agents, trai- tors, or extremists, stripping them of legitimacy in the public eye. courtrooms, far from being neutral arenas of justice, are used as weapons to ensure polit- ical competition never reaches the ballot box. even local politics are stage-managed. Governors, mayors, and regional legislatures are populated with loyalists who owe their survival to the Kremlin, not to the people they supposedly serve. The result is suf- focating uniformity: a country of immense size and diversity speaking in a single, scripted voice. elections without free media are like trials without The rise of illiberal democracies defence lawyers. They exist, but only in form. in rus- sia, the media landscape has been stripped of inde- pendence through a relentless campaign of acquisi- tions, regulatory pressure, and outright intimidation. state television, still the most influential source of information for millions, functions not as a watch- dog, but as a lapdog, wagging its tail whenever the Kremlin whistles. The coverage is predictable: putin as the tireless leader, protector of stability, and defender of russia’s dignity. opponents are portrayed as dangerous rad- icals or Western puppets. international news is re- fracted through the lens of paranoia, always suggest- ing hostile conspiracies by the united states, nato, or shadowy elites. for the ordinary russian citizen, navigating this media landscape is like trying to swim against a re- lentless current. alternative voices do exist, online platforms, independent journalists, exiled outlets but they are pushed to the margins, labelled “foreign agents,” and throttled by censorship laws. What re- mains is a carefully curated reality where the presi- dent appears unassailable, the people appear grate- ful, and the notion of change seems almost absurd. how does a system like this sustain itself for over Thanos Kalamidas two decades? The answer lies in the mechanics of control. it is not enough to hold rigged elections; one must also make them look convincing. The Kremlin has mastered this art. elections are meticulously choreographed. pro-pu- tin candidates, or “systemic opposition,” are allowed to run, but only within safe limits. They play the role of opposition without ever threatening the outcome. Ballot stuffing, intimidation, and outright fraud oc- cur, but often the system doesn’t even need them. The mere fact that genuine rivals are barred from partic- ipation guarantees the desired result. Voter turnout is another tool of legitimacy. The state pressures public-sector employees to show up at polling stations, sometimes even photographing their ballots. mobile polling stations travel to facto- ries, offices, and even military bases to collect votes under watchful eyes. The ritual creates the illusion of mass participation, but participation in what? in a foregone conclusion. meanwhile, putin himself campaigns not as a politician but as a national father figure. he is not promising change or reform; he is promising stabili- ty, strength, and continuity. he embodies the state in