Totalitarianism is a type of political regime with complete (total) control of government structures over the entire life of society. Totalitarian regimes have a negative impact on the economy, leading to inefficiency, stagnation, and poverty. Totalitarian regimes have been scaring people for a long time. They have left their mark on the economies of many countries, such as Iran, Afghanistan, the USSR, the DPRK, etc. Although the idea of absolute power may seem attractive, in fact, such regimes ruin the economy and have a bad effect on people’s lives.
In this essay, we will talk about how totalitarianism hinders economic growth and leads to inefficiency, which ultimately leads to poverty and stagnation. We will look at the examples of the USSR and North Korea. These countries show that totalitarian regimes cannot fulfill their promises of prosperity. Lack of freedom, suppression of invention and corruption make economic growth impossible. As a result, countries and people lose their potential.
The political system of the USSR was opposed to the capitalist system of Western countries. In the 1920s, the economic crisis affected the economy of the Soviet Union, of course, it could not but affect the population of the country. Marxist-Leninist ideology, which was the guide to the action of the state and society dominated the Soviet Union. Any dissent was severely suppressed. The population of the country was influenced by state apparatus – repression. The media were under the control of the state, censorship was everywhere. Of course, the state formed public opinion and supported the cult through propaganda. The USSR economy was also influenced by Stalin’s plan for accelerated industrialization, which was aimed at developing the country. However, the very methods of implementing the plan led to tragic social consequences. Inventions and research developed in the USSR sometimes migrated outside the country, and their authors could be repatriated to other states, such as the United States. This often happened because of complex migration processes or scientific exchanges. The reason for this was the centralized economy and the lack of personal property in the USSR.
North Korea is a very vivid example of a country with a totalitarian regime. Under a totalitarian regime, there are restrictions on the freedom of movement of citizens. So, if you can visit North Korea, you can learn from residents that some of them have left the country and visited others, but this will not be true. Hospitals do not provide proper treatment for residents, but there are also hospitals for the military, where everything necessary for good treatment is present. In this country, if you are a military man, then you have access to comfort and a good future for your family. The locals of this country, for tourists who have the right to enter this country, do everything to show what a prosperous country they have. When visiting this country, you will be under the total control of the curators. They will meet and escort you to your room. The government censors all TV broadcasts to show only local programming, and they monitor all phone calls. North Korea’s leaders center a cult of personality on themselves, beginning with Kim Il Sung, then his son Kim Jong Il and current leader Kim Jong Un. Cult of personality devotion is instilled in children from an early age. Posters of rulers are ubiquitous, and the government keeps the inhabitants isolated from external information and dissenting opinions about their leaders. North Korea once punished a visiting U.S. citizen who tried to steal a campaign poster from a hotel. North Korea officials sentenced Otto Urombir to 15 years in prison, and a couple of years later, the United States negotiated the tourist’s return to his homeland. He was taken into a coma, and a couple of weeks later, he died in the hospital without waking up.
In my mind, the totalitarian regime has a negative impact on the development of the economy and the country, which is confirmed by the example of North Korea. The totalitarian regime hinders thriving private enterprise because of tight control over the state. In countries with a totalitarian regime, individuality and creativity are suppressed, which prevents the introduction of business and the emergence of innovations, technology development and foreign investment. Most often, because of the lack of advanced technologies in countries, there is a lack of good medical equipment in hospitals, and there is a shortage of food. People are afraid to take risks and create something new, as the state may perceive this as a threat to its side.