Managing insecurity through institutionalized militarization: The Eritrean garrison police state model

Abstract

Eritrea represents a distinctive model of a garrison police state under the personalized totalitarian rule of President Afwerki since 1993. The regime prioritizes executive authority over the rule of law and relies on pervasive surveillance and militarized governance, consistent with Garrison State theory. Unlike conventional garrison or police states, Eritrea lacks strong formal institutions, electoral legitimacy, and ideological mobilization. Instead, repression is institutionalized through mechanisms such as indefinite military conscription, embedding coercive authority within state structures. This study argues that repression serves both governance and the management of insecurity. External efforts to halt Eritrea’s actions have largely failed to alter the regime’s stance.