OPINION:
Based on my numerous assignments abroad, my work for CIA Director William Casey as his special assistant and my subsequent work as a negotiator with North Korea, I have concluded that authoritarianism is on the move and democracy is under siege.
Iran
The 1979 Islamic Revolution was a bloody overthrow of the Pahlavi dynasty and the imprisonment of more than 50 American hostages from the U.S. Embassy. The Iranian people had struggled for a democracy, but what they tragically got was an oppressive theocracy with the supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, currently retaining absolute power.
The Green Movement of 2009 was a spontaneous cry for democratization in Iran, brutally suppressed by the state’s security forces. The 2022 killing of Mahsa Amini by Iran’s morality police for the improper wearing of her headscarf resulted in thousands of protesters demanding greater freedoms: “Women, life, freedom” from an oppressive regime. The theocracy in Iran persists and destabilizes the region by supporting proxies such as Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis, all terrorist groups aiming to destroy Israel.
Hong Kong
On July 1, 1997, Hong Kong reverted to China from the United Kingdom under the principle of “one country, two systems.” Hong Kong was to remain autonomous until 2049, governed by its constitution, the basic law, which ensured an independent judiciary, multiple political parties, and freedoms of assembly and speech. In 2020, China imposed the national security law on Hong Kong, criminalizing any act of secession, subversion and collusion with foreign forces. Since then, hundreds of protesters and opposition lawmakers have been arrested, stifling free speech and assembly. Pro-democracy demonstrations have ended since the imposition of the national security law.
Myanmar
Myanmar’s military conducted a coup d’etat in February 2021, removing and imprisoning members of the democratically elected members of the ruling party, the National League for Democracy. To date, thousands of protesters have been killed, with thousands arrested and close to 1 million displaced by the military junta headed by Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, the commander in chief of Myanmar’s armed forces, the Tatmadaw. Protests and opposition from various ethnic groups in Myanmar continue, with no indication that the junta will relinquish power.
Russia
In 1979, the Soviet Union, under the Brezhnev doctrine, was on the march in Vietnam, Angola, Ethiopia, Mozambique, Yemen, Libya, Czechoslovakia, Nicaragua, Grenada and then Afghanistan. National Security Decision Directive 75 said the U.S. should not coexist with the Soviet Union but change it fundamentally. President Reagan came into office in 1981 and was determined, with the help of Mr. Casey and others, to defeat the Soviet Union in Poland, Czechoslovakia and Afghanistan.
In November 1986, Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev decided to withdraw all Soviet combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 1988. He also introduced perestroika (economic reform) and glasnost (political and social openness). Mr. Gorbachev resigned as president of the Soviet Union in December 1991, succeeded by Boris Yeltsin. In 1999, Vladimir Putin replaced Mr. Yeltsin. To date, Mr. Putin has held on to power, eliminating all opposition while invading Georgia in 2008, taking Crimea in 2014 and now entering the fourth year of its war of aggression in Ukraine.
The Kim family has ruled North Korea since the beginning of the Korean War in 1950. The current leader, Kim Jong-un, succeeded his father, Kim Jong-il, in December 2010. He rules North Korea with an Iron hand. Last year, North Korea amended its constitution to make the U.S. and South Korea the principal enemies, eschewing peaceful reunification with South Korea. North Korea also signed a mutual defense treaty with Russia, obligating each country to defend the other in conflict. North Korea, a country with biting sanctions and significant malnutrition among its population, is supplying Russia with artillery shells, ballistic missiles and combat troops for the war in Ukraine. North Korea’s nuclear arsenal is growing exponentially, with sophisticated short-, medium- and long-range ballistic missiles. The Hwasong-19 is a road-mobile, solid-fuel ballistic missile capable of targeting the whole U.S.
China
When Deng Xiaoping took over in December 1979, he inherited a poor and ravaged country. Mao Zedong’s “Great Leap Forward” caused millions of deaths from starvation, and the Cultural Revolution from 1966 to 1976 devastated the country. Deng’s vision of market-oriented reforms and opening to the outside world for investment, technology and trade met opposition from some conservatives in leadership positions. Still, Deng persisted, encouraging foreign investment in China, primarily from the U.S., while encouraging Chinese students to study in the U.S.
Chinese Communist Party Secretary Zhao Ziyang and his predecessor, Hu Yaobang, advocated parliamentary democracy with the rule of law. Premiers Wen Jiabao and Zhu Rongji advocated for democratization through free and fair elections, beginning with village elections in China. In 2013, Xi Jinping replaced Hu Jintao and ushered in a period of assertive leadership, stoking nationalism from a century of humiliation in the 19th century. Mr. Xi launched a significant military modernization campaign. He did not recognize the ruling from the United Nations Tribunal Court, asserting sovereignty over the South and East China seas and indicating a potential use of force against Taiwan. Mr. Xi aims for China to become the leading global power by 2049, marking the centenary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. At the 10th Party Congress, Mr. Xi secured a third term despite the customary two-term limit, ensuring his continued presidency for an extended period.
South Korea
In December 1987, the citizens of South Korea held demonstrations advocating for democratization during the military rule under Gen. Roh Tae-woo. The people prevailed, and President Kim Young-sam was elected. Subsequently, South Korea thrived as a liberal democracy, achieving the world’s 10th-largest gross domestic product. South Korea’s democratically elected president, Yoon Suk Yeol, declared Marshall Law on Dec. 3 and was impeached on Dec. 14 by the National Assembly. Apparently, Mr. Yoon wanted total control and wanted to silence the opposition Democratic Party in the National Assembly. The Constitutional Court will decide within the next few weeks whether Mr. Yoon should be removed from office.
These are just a few personal experiences of autocrats assuming or trying to assume total control of countries and territories despite the people’s wishes. We are competing with these autocracies to prove that democracy and the rule of law are far superior to autocracies and the rule of man.
• Joseph R. DeTrani is a former director of East Asia operations at the Central Intelligence Agency, a former special envoy for six-party talks with North Korea (2003-2006) and a former director of the National Counterproliferation Center. The views are the author’s and not those of any government agency or department.
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