1. Middle East
Governments

2. Review! Match the word and definition.
Unitary
Confederation
Federal
Autocracy
Oligarchy
Democracy
Parliamentary Democracy
Presidential Democracy
People vote for Parliamentary members
Local governments hold the power
Rule by the people
Rule by a few
Rule by one
The central government holds all the power
Power is shared by central and local governments
People vote for the president separately from the legislature.

3. Answers to Review F B G E D C A H
How did you do?

4. Vocabulary: write voc words on your voc. cards.
Knesset: The Israeli Parliament
Monarchy: Rule by a king or a queen
Absolute Monarchy: type of government in which the King, queen, or emperor has unlimited power
Theocracy: a type of government in which God is seen as the true leader and religious leaders serve as the political leaders
Theocratic Republic: a type of government which has both religious leaders serving as political leaders and a popularly elected president and legislature
Autocracy: a type of government in which the ruler has absolute power to do whatever he wishes and make and enforce whatever laws he chooses; rule by one

5. Vocabulary
Oligarchy: type of government in which a political party or other small group takes over a government and makes all the major decisions; government by the few
Democracy: a type of government in which people play a much greater role in deciding who the leaders are and what decisions are made; rule by the people
Unicameral: One legislative house
Federal: a political system in which power is shared between the national (central) and local governments
Sharia Law: The law as stated in Islam's holy book, the Qur'an
Constitutional Monarchy: type of government in which the power of the king or queen is limited by a constitution

6. Vocabulary
Presidential: In this type of democratic government, people elect the president and the legislature separately.
Totalitarian Dictatorship: The ideas of a single leader are glorified; the government is not responsible to the people and tries to control all aspects of citizens' lives.
Confederation: a political system in which the local governments hold all the power and the central government depends on the local governments for its existence
Unitary: in this political system, the central government holds all the power; local governments are under the control of the central government.
Parliamentary: a democratic form of government in which the people vote for those who represent the political party they feel best represents their views of how the government should operate (member of parliament)
Ayatollah: a Shi’a religious leader

7. GPS and E.Q.
GPS SS7CG4a. Describe the ways government systems distribute power: unitary, confederation, federal.
E.Q. How do government systems distribute power?

8. Ways Government Distributes Power
Unitary
Central has all power
Regional Authority
Regional Authority
Central Authority
Regional Authority
Regional Authority

9. Unitary (Uni- means 1; all power is in 1 place)
Power is held by the national (central) government.
Local governments, if any, are under the national government’s control.
Example: Saudi Arabia
King Hamad Bin Isa Al-Khalifa

10. Regional/Local has all power
Ways Government Distributes Power
Confederation
Regional/Local has all power
Regional Authority
Regional Authority
Central Authority
Regional Authority
Regional Authority

11. Confederation The local governments hold all the power.
The central government has only as much power as the local governments are willing to give.
Nowadays - countries form confederations to band together for a specific purpose.
Examples
the League of Arab States
OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries)
OPEC

12. Ways Government Distributes Power
Federation / Federal
Divided/Shared Power
Regional Authority
Regional Authority
Central Authority
Regional Authority
Regional Authority

13. Federal
Power is shared or divided among different levels of government.
The central or national government has more power than the local governments.
Example: Israel

14. Ways Government Distributes Power
All key powers are held by the central government
State/regional authorities hold most of the power
Unitary
Federal
Confederation
Strong central government
Weaker central government

15. Sample Test Question
In Nigeria’s government, power is divided between Central and regional authorities. This is an example of which government type?
A. Unitary
B. Confederation
C. Federal
Federal
Corresponds to
SS6- CG1a, CG4a, CG6a
SS7- CG1a , CG4a, CG6a

16. CRCT Test Prep pages 98-99
282. In a unitary government system, most of the power is in the hands of the
A. individual voters
B. king and advisors
C. local governments
D. central government
D. Central government

17. CRCT Test Prep pages 98-99
283. Which of the following countries would be a good example of a unitary government?
A. Israel
B. Lebanon
C. Saudi Arabia
D. the United States

18. CRCT Test Prep pages 98-99
284. In a confederation government system, most of the power is in the hands of the
A. legislature
B. Individual voters
C. Local governments
D. Central government

19. CRCT Test Prep pages 98-99
285. What is a weakness of a confederation government system?
A. A confederation is very expensive.
B. Confederations are too large to rule effectively.
C. A confederation does not share power with its members.
D. The central government has only as much power as the local governments are willing to give.

20. CRCT Test Prep pages 98-99
286. Which Southwest Asian country would be a good example of a federal system of government?
A. Iran
B. Israel
C. Kuwait
D. Saudi Arabia

21. GPS and E.Q.
GPS SS7CG4b. Explain how governments determine citizen participation: autocratic, oligarchic, and democratic.
E.Q. How do governments determine citizen participation?

22. How Governments Determine Citizen Participation
High Participation
High Participation
Select Citizens’ Participation
General Citizens’ Participation
Government Power
Citizen Participation
Government Power
Government Power
Citizen Participation
Low or No Participation
Low or No Participation
Low or No Participation
Autocratic
Oligarchic
Democracy

23. Autocratic One person possesses unlimited power.
How Governments Determine Citizen Participation
Autocratic
One person possesses unlimited power.
The citizen has limited, if any, role in government.

24. How Governments Determine Citizen Participation
Autocratic
The oldest form of government.
One of the most common forms of government.
Maintain power through inheritance or ruthless use of military and police power.
Remy, Richard C., United States Government- Democracy in Action (Columbus, OH: Glencoe, McGraw-Hill, 2006) 24

25. How Governments Determine Citizen Participation
Forms of Autocratic Govts.
Absolute or Totalitarian Dictatorship
Ideas of a single leader glorified.
Government tries to control all aspects of social and economic life.
Government is not responsible to the people.
People lack the power to limit their rulers.
Examples- Hitler, Mussolini, Stalin
Remy, Richard C., United States Government- Democracy in Action (Columbus, OH: Glencoe, McGraw-Hill, 2006) 25

26. How Governments Determine Citizen Participation
Forms of Autocratic Govts.
Absolute Monarchy
King, queen, or emperor exercises the supreme powers of government/unlimited power.
Position is usually inherited.
People lack the power to limit their rulers.
Absolute monarchs are rare today but from the 1400s to the 1700s they ruled most of Western Europe.
Examples- King of Saudi Arabia.
Remy, Richard C., United States Government- Democracy in Action (Columbus, OH: Glencoe, McGraw-Hill, 2006) 26

28. Oligarchy Government by the few.
How Governments Determine Citizen Participation
Oligarchy
Government by the few.
Sometimes a small group exercises control, especially for corrupt and selfish purposes.
The citizen has a very limited role.

29. How Governments Determine Citizen Participation
Oligarchy
The group gets its power from military power, social power, wealth, religion or a combination.
Political opposition is usually suppressed- sometimes violently.
Examples:
Syria – ruling political party makes most decisions
Iran – small group of religious and political leaders makes many of the decisions
Remy, Richard C., United States Government- Democracy in Action (Columbus, OH: Glencoe, McGraw-Hill, 2006) 29

30. How Governments Determine Citizen Participation
Autocracy & Oligarchy
Sometimes claim they rule for the people.
In reality, the people have very little say in both types of government.
Examples- May hold elections with only one candidate or control the results in various ways.
Examples- Even when these governments have a legislature or national assembly, they often only approve decisions made by the leaders.
Remy, Richard C., United States Government- Democracy in Action (Columbus, OH: Glencoe, McGraw-Hill, 2006) 30

31. How Governments Determine Citizen Participation
Democracy
People play a greater role in deciding who the leaders are and what decisions are made.
Decisions are often made by majority vote, but laws are in place to protect individuals.
Examples- Israel
Remy, Richard C., United States Government- Democracy in Action (Columbus, OH: Glencoe, McGraw-Hill, 2006) 31

32. OAS Database Question - Corresponds to
Sample Test Question
What is a basic way citizens of a democratic nation can influence the government?
A. voting
B. working
C. obeying laws
D. consuming goods
voting
OAS Database Question - Corresponds to
SS6- CG1b, CG4b, CG6b
SS7- CG1b , CG4b, CG6b

33. CRCT Test Prep pages
287. Who makes most of the important governmental decisions in an autocracy?
A. the ruler
B. the people
C. the court system
D. the elected legislature
A. The ruler

34. CRCT Test Prep pages
288. Which Southwest Asian country could be described as an autocracy?
A. Iraq
B. Israel
C. Turkey
D. Saudi Arabia

35. CRCT Test Prep pages
289. Who makes most of the important governmental decisions in an oligarchy?
A. the king
B. the people
C. the legislature
D. a small group of powerful leaders
D. A small group of powerful leaders

36. CRCT Test Prep pages
290. Why do the individual voters have more power in a democracy than they do in an autocracy or an oligarchy?
A. kings are always cruel rulers.
B. The voters get to choose the people who make the laws.
C. All of the power stays in the hands of the local governments.
D. Voters in democratic countries always choose qualified leaders.

37. CRCT Test Prep pages
291. Which Southwest Asian country has a democratic form of government?
A. Iran
B. Israel
C. Kuwait
D. Saudi Arabia

38. CRCT Test Prep pages
292. If the Saudi royal family controls the government of Saudi Arabia, and the king is the ruler, what type of government is this?
A. unitary
B. federation
C. confederation
D. parliamentary

39. CRCT Test Prep pages
293. If the Saudi royal family controls the government of Saudi Arabia, and the king is the ruler, which best describes Saudi Arabia’s government?
A. democracy
B. dictatorship
C. monarchy
D. oligarchy

40. GPS and E.Q.
GPS SS7CG4c. Describe the 2 predominate forms of democratic governments: parliamentary and presidential.
E.Q. How do parliamentary and presidential democracies compare?

41. Parliamentary Democracy
People elect legislature or parliament (law-makers).
Executive leaders (prime ministers or premiers) are chosen in different ways in different countries.
Leaders may be voted out before the end of their term if their political party loses power.
In Israel, the political party in Parliament with the most members chooses the prime minister.

42. Presidential Democracy
Also called Congressional Form of Government.
President is chosen separately from legislature (lawmakers)
President is chief executive and head of state.
It is the duty of the president to see that the laws passed by the legislature are enforced.
Presidents do not lose their job if their political party loses power.

43. Main Difference Between Presidential and Parliamentary Democracies
Parliamentary: voters elect Parliament (legislature).
Presidential: voters elect Congress (legislature) AND President.

45. OAS Database Question - Corresponds to
Sample Test Question
In which system of government does the legislature select the executive leader of the government?
A. democratic
B. communist
C. parliamentary
D. Totalitarian
parliamentary
OAS Database Question - Corresponds to
SS6- CG1c, CG4c, CG6c
SS7- CG1c , CG4c, CG6c

46. OAS Database Question - Corresponds to
Sample Test Question
Which statement about Israel’s parliamentary system of government today is true?
A. Members of both houses of Parliament are elected for life.
B. The queen decides which laws Parliament will debate.
C. Members of Parliament do not belong to political parties.
D. The prime minister is not directly chosen by voters. D
OAS Database Question - Corresponds to
SS6- CG1c, CG4c, CG6c
SS7- CG1c , CG4c, CG6c

47. CRCT Test Prep pages
294. Which branch of government is responsible for making and carrying out the laws in a parliamentary system of government?
A. executive
B. judicial
C. legislative
D. the monarch

48. CRCT Test Prep pages
295. The leader of a parliamentary system is often called the
A. king
B. president.
C. governor.
D. prime minister.
D. Prime minister.

49. CRCT Test Prep pages
296. The leader of a parliamentary system is chosen by?
A. the king
B. a popular vote of the people
C. a decision of the national courts
D. the political party with the most representatives in the legislature
D. The political party with the most representatives in the legislature

50. CRCT Test Prep pages
297. The Head of State in a parliamentary system is often a person who has
A. no actual power.
B. a veto for laws passed by the legislature.
C. the most power in the national government.
D. a ceremonial role without much actual power.
D. A ceremonial role without much actual power.

51. CRCT Test Prep pages
298. In a presidential system of government, how is a president chosen?
A. by a decision of the national courts
B. by a majority vote of the legislature
C. in a separate vote from the one that chooses the legislature
D. by the political party with the most representatives in the legislature
C. In a separate vote from the one that chooses the legislature

52. CRCT Test Prep pages
299. What is the role of the president regarding the laws passed by the legislature?
A. The president must enforce those laws.
B. The president can change the laws he doesn’t like.
C. The president sends the laws to the states for approval.
D. Laws passed by the legislature do not have to go to the president for approval.

53. Types of Government in the Middle East

54. GPS and E.Q.
GPS: SS7CG5a. The student will compare the parliamentary democracy of the State of Israel, the monarchy of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and the theocracy of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
E.Q.: How do the governments of Israel, Saudi Arabia, and Iran compare?

55. Israel - Type of leader Israel is a parliamentary democracy.
The president is head of state and serves in a primarily ceremonial role (Shimon Peres).
The prime minister is the head of government (Benjamin Netanyahu).

56. Israel – Becoming the leader
President is elected by the Knesset (parliament).
After election, President nominates a member of the Knesset to become the Prime Minister (following a vote of confidence from the Knesset)

57. Israel – Role of Citizen
Citizens over 18 can vote for members of the unicameral legislature called the Knesset.

58. Israel – Personal Freedoms
Freedom of Speech – Yes
Freedom of the Press - Yes

59. Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia is by far the largest country of the Arabian Peninsula.
Non-Muslims are not allowed to enter Mecca, Islam’s holiest city.

60. Saudi Arabia
In the 1920s a local ruler from the Saud family of central Arabia conquered his neighbors and in 1932 created the kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Members of the Saud family have ruled the country ever since.
Riyadh, a city near the center of the country, became the capital.    

61. Saudi Arabia – Form of Government
The government of Saudi Arabia is an Islamic Absolute Monarchy ruled by the sons and grandsons of the first king, Abd Al Aziz Al Saud.

62. Saudi Arabia – Form of Government
Saudi Arabia’s government has no written constitution or elected legislature. However, its basic law of government proclaims that the Qur’an is the constitution of the country which is governed on the basis of the Sharia (Islamic Law).

63. Saudi Arabia – Title of Leader
King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz Al Saud is the current King of Saudi Arabia and Head of the House of Saud.
Most government officials are relatives of the king.
The king may ask members of his family, Islamic scholars, and tribal leaders for advice on important decisions.
Personal wealth: $18 billion!!!

64. Saudi Arabia – Becoming the Leader
The right of succession is hereditary (passed down through the family).
A newly established council selects a successor among the crown princes of the Saudi royal family.
The King’s power is limited by Islamic law and he must build consensus among religious leaders and other influential Saudis.

65. Saudi Arabia – Role of Citizen (Voting Rights)
There are no voting rights or official political parties in this country.
The role of the citizen in Saudi Arabia is to obey the King.

66. Saudi Arabia – Personal Freedoms
Freedom of Speech – No
Freedom of the Press - No

68. Iran – Type of Leader
Iran is a theocratic republic with a presidential system.
The government of Iran is based on Islamic law.
The Supreme Leader of Iran, who is a religious leader, is chief of state and has final say on all matters.
The Supreme Leader is commander-in-chief of the armed forces.

69. Iran – Becoming the Leader
The Supreme Leader is selected by the Council of Experts.
The Council of Experts, as well as the legislature and president, are elected by popular vote.
While the president is head of government, he may be removed by the Supreme Leader at any time.
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

70. Iran – Role of Citizen
There is universal suffrage (voting) for everyone over 18.
The role of the citizen in Iran is to obey the Supreme Leader.

71. Iran – Personal Freedoms
Freedom of Speech – No
Freedom of the Press - No

72. Copy following chart onto your DRC (Data Retrieval Chart): “Compare Governments”

73. DRC: Compare Governments
Israel
Saudi Arabia
Iran
Leader
President
Prime Minister
(Parliamentary Democracy)
King
(Monarchy)
Supreme Leader
(Theocratic Republic)
Takes Power by…
Election
Hereditary
Selected by Council of Experts
Role of Citizen
Vote
Obey
Obey and “Vote”
Personal Freedoms
Freedom of
Speech: Yes
Press: Yes
Speech: No
Press: No

74. CRCT Test Prep pages
300. The Israeli parliament (legislature) is called the
A. Senate
B. Knesset
C. Congress
D. House of Representatives

75. CRCT Test Prep pages
301. What role do religious leaders play in the Israeli government?
A. They have some influence in making laws.
B. They are not allowed to run for political office.
C. Religious leaders always control which candidates are elected.
D. They are guaranteed a certain number of representatives in each election.

76. CRCT Test Prep pages
302. Who is allowed to vote in Israeli elections?
A. all citizens 16 years of age or older
B. all citizens 18 years of age or older
C. only men who can prove they are Israeli citizens
D. only those who were actually born in the State of Israel
B. All citizens 18 years of age or older

77. CRCT Test Prep pages
303. How often are elections for the national government held in Israel?
A. Elections are held every 6 years.
B. Party members are elected for life.
C. Religious leaders can require new elections whenever they like.
D. Elections are held every 4 years unless the ruling party calls for them to be held sooner.

78. CRCT Test Prep pages 104-105 304. Saudi Arabia is ruled by a A. king.
B. popularly elected president.
C. representative government.
D. group of leading religious leaders.
A. king

79. CRCT Test Prep pages 104-105 305. How long does a monarch rule?
A. one elected term
B. a term of 10 years
C. as long as Parliament allows him to rule
D. until he dies or chooses to give up power
D. Until he dies or chooses to give up power

80. CRCT Test Prep pages
306. What role do the people play in a government that is a monarchy like that of Saudi Arabia?
A. They have the power to vote a ruler out of office.
B. The people get to approve the laws made by the ruler.
C. They are guaranteed certain rights by their written constitution.
D. They have little influence, as the ruler makes most decisions.

81. CRCT Test Prep pages 104-105 307. What is Sharia law?
A. laws made by the king alone
B. laws based on Parliamentary democracy
C. laws based on the teachings of the Qur’an
D. laws calling for a separation of church and state

82. CRCT Test Prep pages
308. What is the definition of a “theocracy”??
A. a government that sees God as the supreme ruler
B. a government that allows people to choose the leaders
C. a system in which religious law and civil law are separate
D. a system in which only religious leaders are allowed to vote

83. CRCT Test Prep pages
309. Why is Iran sometimes called a theocratic republic?
A. Iran’s religious leaders make all the laws for the country.
B. Religious leaders decide which Iranian citizens can vote.
C. The people of Iran have no say in choosing their government leaders.
D. Iran’s government is led by both an elected parliament and powerful religious leaders.

84. CRCT Test Prep pages 104-105 310. What is an Ayatollah?
A. a Christian priest
B. a Shi’a religious leader
C. The title of a local governor
D. a leader of a Jewish congregation
D. a Shi’a religious leader

85. Middle East Governments Comic Strip Activity
Create 3 comic strips: one each of
Israel, Saudi Arabia, and Iran
In each…
Identify the title of the leader.
Identify how the person becomes the leader.
Determine what role the citizen plays in the government.
Determine personal freedoms (Freedom of Speech, Freedom of the Press).