Uploaded April 2024 | Updated September 2026, 2 hours ago
The term ‘democracy’ originates from the Greek, ‘demos’ meaning ‘people’ and ‘kratos’ meaning ‘power’. The right of all citizens to elect their government is therefore what most people understand by democracy. But if we are to understand authoritarianism fully, we need to understand that democracy means more than voting once every five years. A democracy has four key characteristics: fair elections, accountable officials, universal rights, and equality.
The third in a series of 13 short films introducing the subject of modern authoritarian states for students of the IB Diploma.
The term ‘democracy’ originates from the Greek, ‘demos’ meaning ‘people’ and ‘kratos’ meaning ‘power’. The right of all citizens to elect their government is therefore what most people understand by democracy. But if we are to understand authoritarianism fully, we need to understand that democracy means more than voting once every five years. A democracy has four key characteristics: fair elections, accountable officials, universal rights, and equality.
The third in a series of 13 short films introducing the subject of modern authoritarian states for students of the IB Diploma.
