Education Caribbean

There are many types of government. Some people simplify them into Four types, but there are others who break these categories down into more complex definitions.

Anarchy : A rejection of imposed governments and the view that society should be ordered through freely co-operating individuals.

Authoritarian : Rule by command with little or no attention to public opinion, individual rights or public consent

Autocracy : Government through a single leader who uses power in an arbitrary way rather than through reference to a system of law.

Capitalist: In a capitalist or free-market country, people can own their own businesses and property. People can also buy services for private use, such as healthcare. But most capitalist governments also provide their own education, health and welfare services.

Communism : A doctrine which advocates common ownership of all property. It provides its people's healthcare, education and welfare.

Democracy : A form of government where the people exercise political power. Everyone who is eligible to vote has a chance to have their say over who runs the country.

Dictatorship : A form of political rule by one person who governs unrestricted by legal, constitutional or conventional constraints. In a military dictatorship, the army is in control.

Federal government: In this type of system, a central government shares power with a number of small local governments. The USA is a type of this, called a federal republic.

Monarchy: A monarchy has a king or queen. In some traditional monarchies, the monarch has absolute power. But a constitutional monarchy, like the UK, also has a democratic government that limits the monarch's control.

Oligarchy : A form of government which consists of rule by a small and unrepresentative elite group who rule in their own interests, especially the accumulation of wealth and privilege.

Plutocracy : A system where the rich rule and the poor have no share in government

Populism : A system which is based upon direct communications with the people.

Regional or local: This is a government or council that controls a smaller area within a country. Some local governments have very limited powers and are mainly controlled by the central government. Others are powerful enough to make their own laws, like individual states in the USA.

Republic : A republic is a system where the head of state is not selected on a hereditary basis. The head of the country is usually an elected president.

Revolutionary government: If a government is overthrown by force, the new ruling group is sometimes called a revolutionary government.

Socialism : A system where the community has some control over the means of production

Theocracy : A form of government where the rulers claim to be ruling on behalf of a set of religious ideas, or as direct agents of a deity.

Totalitarianism : Often linked with modern nation states where the emphasis is on technologically advanced instruments of mass communications. This allows the people to be organised, mobilised and controlled.

Transitional: A country that is changing from one type of government to another has a transitional government. For example, a dictatorship may turn into a democracy after the dictator dies. The change between governments can take several years.

SEPARATION OF POWERS

The Constitution sets out the way that a country is governed. It usually recognises three different bodies that perform different roles.

The Legislature makes the laws. It is made up of one (unicameral) or two (bicameral) Houses.

The Executive administers the laws. It is made up of public servants organised into departments and run by ministers.

The Judiciary interprets the laws. It is made up of judges and the law courts.

The executive arm of government is headed by the Prime Minister, Chief Minister or Premier, the leader of the elected party with the majority of seats in the House of Parliament.

The Head of Government chairs Cabinet, which is comprised of ministers responsible for various departments.

The Executive Arm makes all decisions about government policy and set priorities for programs and services.

Decisions about policies and programs take into account many factors, the wishes of the people and financial resources being the two most important ones.

The Legislature has three roles: legislative, financial and inquiry. Its most common role is to debate the principles of proposed legislation and to ensure that each Bill serves the people.

While ideas for Bills can originate from many sources - the minister responsible for a department, Cabinet, or members of the public - Cabinet must give permission for an idea to be developed into a Bill.

The Judicial arm consists of the Chief Justice and Judges who preside over the Courts. These components are linked through the Crown, who is Head of State.

- Adjudicate other disputes not necessarily involving Government action or legislation.