On one side, in the West of the country, Islamist-allied militias took over control of the capital Tripoli and other cities and set up their own government, chasing away a parliament that was elected
On one side, in the West of the country, Islamist-allied militias took over control of the capital Tripoli and other cities and set up their own government, chasing away a parliament that was elected over the summer.
On the other side, in the East of the Country, the “legitimate” government dominated by anti-Islamist politicians, exiled 1,200 kilometers away in Tobruk, no longer governs anything.
The fall of Gaddafi’s administration has created all of the country’s worst-case scenarios: Western embassies have all left, the South of the country has become a haven for terrorists, and the Northern coast a center of migrant trafficking. Egypt, Algeria and Tunisia have all closed their borders with Libya. This all occurs amidst a backdrop of widespread rape, assassinations and torture that complete the picture of a state that is failed to the bone.
Zaire
Zaire
Zaire
was a one-party state and dictatorship, run by Mobutu Sese Seko and his ruling Popular Movement of the Revolutionparty. It was established following Mobutu's seizure of power in a military coup in 1965, following five years of political upheaval following independence known as the Congo Crisis. Zaire had a strongly centralist constitution and foreign assets were nationalized. A wider campaign of Authenticité, ridding the country of the influences from the colonial era of the Belgian Congo, was also launched under Mobutu's direction. Weakened by the end of American support after the end of the Cold War, Mobutu was forced to declare a new republic in 1990 to cope with demands for change. By the time of its disestablishment, Mobutu's rule was characterized by widespread cronyism, corruption and economic mismanagement.
The state collapsed in 1996, amid the destabilization of eastern Zaire in the aftermath of the Rwandan Civil War and growing ethnic violence. In 1997, Laurent-Désiré Kabila, at the head of the Alliance of Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Congomilitia, led a popular rebellion against the central government. With rebel forces making gains in the east, Mobutu fled the country, leaving Kabila's forces in charge.
Soviet Union
Soviet Union
In the middle 1980's about seventy percent of the industrial output of the Soviet Union was going to the military. Oleg Gordievsky, a KGB official who defected to Britain, asserted that at least one third of the total output was going to the military. British intelligence could not believe such a high figure but later Western intelligence sources estimated that it was at least fifty percent. One can only imagine what a severe shortages of industrial goods there were for the rest of the economy.
Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The collapse of the Soviet Union started in the late 1980s and was complete when the country broke up into 15 independent states on December 25, 1991. This signaled the end of the Cold War between the Soviet Union and the United States. Mikhail Gorbachev Becomes General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev was elected General Secretary of the Soviet Union in 1985. When he took over the Soviet Union economy was in bad shape and his idea was to reform the economy and modernize the political situation in the country. Glasnost and Perestroika There were two main platforms of Gorbachev's reform. The first he called Glasnost. Glasnost allowed more freedom of speech and openness in government. Government officials would be held accountable to the people for their actions. Although Glasnost was a good thing for the people, it also allowed people to protest and the media to report on issues for the first time. Many of the outlying states used this new found freedom to express their desire for independence. The other major reform was called Perestroika. Perestroika meant "restructuring". Gorbachev meant to restructure the Soviet economy to work more efficiently. He allowed some private ownership and released some of the tight control the government had on the economy. However, the people and economy of the Soviet Union were used to the government doing everything. Things got worse before they got better.
Soviet Union
Soviet Union
Nationalist Movement Spreads Soon more states wanted their independence including Armenia, Moldova, Ukraine, and Georgia. The central government of the Soviet Union began to feel the pressure of so many states wanting independence. Attempted Takeover of the Government With the communist government on the verge of collapse, Soviet hardliners decided to take action. In August of 1991 they kidnapped Gorbachev and announced to the world that he was too sick to govern. They would be taking over. When the Soviet citizens began to protest, the hardliners called in the military to shut them down. However, the soldiers refused to shoot and arrest their own people. Without the military to back them up, the takeover had failed. The Soviet Union Breaks Up On December 24, 1991 the Soviet Union was dissolved. At the same time Mikhail Gorbachev announced his resignation. The Soviet Union divided up into 15 separate independent countries including:Armenia
