450px|thumb|World map indicating the six countries labeled as "outposts of tyranny" (shown in green ) by the United States government (shown in blue ) in 2005: Belarus, Cuba, Iran, Myanmar, North Korea and Zimbabwe.

"Outposts of tyranny" was a term used in 2005 by United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and subsequently by others in the U.S. government to characterize the governments of certain countries as being totalitarian regimes or dictatorships. In addition to specifically identifying Belarus, Cuba, Iran, Myanmar, North Korea, and Zimbabwe as examples of outposts of tyranny, Rice characterized the broader Middle East as a region of tyranny, despair, and anger.

Origin

Rice provided details to characterize "a fear society" in her prepared remarks before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on January 18, 2005:

Rice went on to identify Belarus, Burma, Cuba, Iran, North Korea and Zimbabwe as examples of outposts of tyranny.

Similarly, South African President Thabo Mbeki, who had attempted to effect a conciliatory attitude to neighboring Zimbabwe by avoiding public criticism of the record of President Robert Mugabe, was displeased. "It's an exaggeration and whatever the U.S. government wants to do with that list of six countries, or however many, it's really somewhat discredited."

Some commentators have accused the U.S. of double standards in relation to the application of the "outposts of tyranny" tag since the named countries were limited to those routinely criticized by the U.S. State Department in its annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices and the International Religious Freedom Report. For example, Amitabh Pal of The Progressive wrote that as Rice specifically refrained from applying the term to such states as Saudi Arabia, Equatorial Guinea, and Azerbaijan, it suggested that the administration had ulterior motives for its human rights pronouncements, which are "heavily subordinate to U.S. strategic and economic interests".

The Washington Post has published a series of forums and interviews pertaining to the countries which Rice chose as being examples of outposts of tyranny.

Comparison to other state classifications and political neologisms

The term has been compared to George W. Bush's phrase axis of evil. Two of the states that were named in the axis of evil are also named by Rice: Iran and North Korea.

The Guardian listed the term "outposts of tyranny" with "rogue states," "states of concern," "outlaw states" and "pariah states" as terminology of the "longstanding American policy of setting up international bogeymen."

The State Department has not officially used the term "outposts of tyranny".

See also

  • Axis of evil
  • Evil Empire speech
  • Failed state
  • Rogue state
  • State-sponsored terrorism
  • State Sponsors of Terrorism (U.S. list)
  • Troika of tyranny
  • United States sanctions

References

  • Opening Statement by Dr. Condoleezza Rice (pdf format)
  • At-a-glance: 'Outposts of tyranny' - BBC News - January 19, 2005
  • Excerpts: Condoleezza Rice - BBC News - January 18, 2005
  • 2004 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices
  • 2004 International Religious Freedom Report